Coffins and Confetti

 

Coffins & Confetti (A Celebrant’s Memoir Of Life, Loss & Love) by Ruth Graham-Authentic Experience Memoir

A cracker of a read with lots of real laughs out loud and cringes/wow's (!) along the way. A book as the title says about the life of a celebrant but so very much more. Ruth has had a few jobs in her time and as a celebrant found the experiences many of them gave her useful in this job where not everything goes smoothly. We all imagine funerals, especially, and usually weddings, to be where families put their differences aside. Not always so and sometimes Ruth is in the firing line from both sides as to what should or shouldn't be said. How hard can it be for the celebrant to perform the service? As Ruth tells us sometimes nigh on impossible when you can't do right from wrong. It’s also in part, Ruth's story of her life mostly after she met her partner Russ and a little of beforehand and her numerous jobs, all relevant to her current position. There are some wise words amongst the pages and some that rather hit home in a good way. "The lesson of how incredible it is that one can wither so thoroughly under the shadow of disdain, but blossom so beautifully through being valued and loved”. "I've got cheese in my fridge more mature than some of the idiots I've wasted myself on. " 

A book of humour and of life, of living in the present and accepting that word as a gift. Talking about death doesn't have to be morbid and whilst always being respectful, humour has its place and thinking what we would perhaps like others to say about us when the time comes. A book I thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommend. 10* if I could I'm off to buy the first one now.

And I’m still humming Rhinestone cowboy for some strange reason-Sorry Ruth!

For more reviews please follow me on Twitter@nickisbookblog

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Coffins & Confetti (A Celebrant’s Memoir Of Life, Loss & Love) Following the success of her first book, A Thousand Goodbyes, writer Ruth Graham invites us to join her on the next part of her journey as an Independent Civil Celebrant. She honestly believed she'd seen it all - apparently not! Once again, we're exposed to the best, worst (and funniest) examples of human behaviour in Ruth's latest memoir, Coffins & Confetti, but this time the tears and laughter are set against the poignant backdrop of the writer’s own search for true and lasting love. Written in conversational style with trademark humour, Coffins & Confetti takes the reader on a journey encompassing the darkest corners of despair, peppered with some of the funniest true-life stories you will ever hear. A letter to life, a memo to mortality but above all, a testament to tenacity, Coffins & Confetti is a book which oozes humanity and hope with the message that if you hang on in there long enough, things will always turn around ... Purchase Links https://www.amazon.co.uk/Coffins-Confetti-Celebrants-Memoir-Life-ebook/dp/B0C94Y9JJM https://www.amazon.com/Coffins-Confetti-Celebrants-Memoir-Life-ebook/dp/B0C94Y9JJM

Author Bio –

With an eclectic background in music; acting; presenting; comedy; journalism; writing; counselling and teaching (to name just a few careers), Ruth Graham could never have guessed all the skills she’d acquired would be needed for her final role – that of funeral and wedding celebrant. With no two days ever the same, Ruth travels all over the West Midlands to meet grieving families or happy couples, in preparation for the happiest and saddest days of peoples’ lives. It’s a huge role, with so many expectations attached – and a lot of pressure to get things right. But as Ruth says, it’s also a huge privilege to be able to bring comfort in times of sadness, or to create something really beautiful and unique for a couple lucky enough to have found their match. That said, in the great improv show of life, everything doesn’t always run smoothly because it involves humans at their best and worst. The result is endless amounts of material and two books to her credit so far. The first one ‘A Thousand Goodbyes’ (The Surprising Life Of A Funeral Celebrant) garnered fantastic reviews: Hilarious Un-Putdownable /Moving/Touching/Must Read) from bloggers, industry professionals and the general public. Ruth is hoping the same for Coffins & Confetti but either way she intends to keep working as a celebrant knowing she’s making a real difference to others’ lives. Social Media Links – Instagram: @ https://www.instagram.com/Celebrantruthg/ Twitter @CelebrantRuthG