Rating: 
Summary: The Anti-Love Story
Review: When is a love story not a love story? Perhaps when the story begins with the two lovers dead bodies lying in the dunes. Jim Crace's Being Dead is a magnificent tale told in an unconventional way. Instead of telling the story of Joseph and Felice starting with how they met, got married, had kids, grew old, etc., Crace chooses to start with their demise. From there, the narrative develops in many different directions. Most disturbingly, perhaps, is how their bodies decay on the beach after their murder. He also tells the story of how they met years earlier, not far from where there bodies lie. Another story works backwards, very slowly, on the day they met their demise. And finally, there is the story of their daughter, as she slowly discovers what has happened to her parents. These four intertwined narratives reveal much about Joseph and Felice, perhaps more than would the traditional "love story." Being Dead is inventive, creative, and a pleasure to read, but it is not, not, not for the faint of heart. The description of the bodies' decay is very graphic and some would find it disturbing. There is of course nothing gratuitous and I found the descriptions to be so well done, so elegantly crafted, to be almost a pleasure to read. If you think you have the stomach for that, I highly recommend this novel. Very well done.
Rating: 
Summary: The Reading vs. The Writing
Review: This novel is a beautifully written, researched, and detailed description of the organic processes of death. If you read Being Dead for the poetry of its science, you won't be disappointed. If you read it for its story, you will be. This may be a great book, but it isn't a great reading experience. The narrative of the murdered people's lives seems superfluous, and may leave you feeling that the decomposition of their dead bodies was by far the most interesting, and perhaps the only truly profound, thing that ever happened to them. Though this may have been the author's intended suggestion, it makes for an unsatisfying reading experience. From a writing standpoint, the novel is a great accomplishment, deserving of all its critical acclaim. From a reading standpoint, it is a disappointment. I found Crace's novel Quarantine, which was shortlisted for the 1997 Booker Prize, remarkably captivating and haunting. If you didn't like Being Dead, don't let it discourage you from reading his other work.
Rating:
Summary: Overrated
Review: This is a short book, printed in a large font, lots of space between the lines and it reads more like a short-story than a novel. After finishing it, I reread the blurb from the critics (and there's several pages of it) and I've honestly no idea what they're talking about. The Observer says, for instance, "An extraordinarily moving love story", which is the most inexplicable description of this book I could imagine. Call me sentimental, but I found very little in this book to justify that description.
Rating:
Summary: not a good book to take to the beach
Review: An extremely unique and well-written book. However, I will warn you that Being Dead is not all that engaging. Although I would recommend the book because it is so interestingly bizarre, it is NOT a page turner. Furthermore, as you can see from the reviews, it is definitely not for everyone. This would be a great book for a reading group as the story does lend itself to discussion.
Rating: 
Summary: Oddly moving
Review: There is some beautiful prose in this book, and I found it (especially in the first part) oddly moving. That feeling disappeared towards the end, especially as the disjointed, dislikeable character of Syl (the daughter) enters the scene and diverts the flow of the narrative from Joseph and Celice to herself. All in all, the book seems a remarkable achievement (I haven't seen such vivid, rich, rhythmical, and yet precise and measured language for a while; some words don't even exist but express exactly what they are meant to express) but is ultimately a little disappointing as a story. It does linger in the memory, though.
Rating: 
Summary: Major Disappointment
Review: Nothing about this really worked for me. I can't recommend that anyone spend the time reading this book, even though it is short. I was trapped on a airplane and still almost put it down for good. I didn't get this book by accident; this is the type of think I read. This book is more of a gesture or exercise by Crace. Extremely disappointing given the critical hype.
Rating:
Summary: Decomposing Composed
Review: Being Dead by Jim Crace, Decomposing Composed This is a novel about the decomposition of two average characters who more or less loved each other and what led to that. Sounds unpleasant, no even repulsive, doesn't it? How can anyone manage to do that in a poetic way? Jim Crace can. From time to time I experienced conflicts between the poetic language and the morbid contents, but I think it is Craces challenge to explore this or let the reader experience this. There is a certain resignation in acceptance of facts that would normally be revolting: the fact that the pair got older and physically less attractive, the fact that they were innocent and killed, that they were not found directly and started being eaten by insects and worms, and the general fact that life goes on when you are dead. I think the idea of the book is exactly that. It's just other life or life from another perspective. It's this new perspective that makes this book a true original read. It's not a book I love, but it's a book I highly appreciate. Peter Sels
Rating:
Summary: Mixed feelings
Review: I started reading Being Dead based upon a highly favorable review in the newspaper, rating it as one of the best books of the year. While I thought the story of Joseph and Celice's courtship and marrage, and the very touching aging of the relationship, was excellently written, I found myself skipping over pages of endless discriptions of decay in order to get on with the story. Frankly, by the end of this not very long book, I had almost totally lost interest. I suspect that perhaps I just didn't get it.
Rating: 
Summary: Not worth the read
Review: The book was very gory - I read the book for a book club and that's the only reason I didn't stop after the first couple of chapters. There was no story - no point.
Rating:
Summary: Dreary Macabre Tale.
Review: A dreary tale about dull people. The author is a gifted writer, he just wasted his talents is this lengthy dissertation on the minute details of the decompostion of the human body. I thought this was a mystery novel. It was not. This book did not end, it just stopped.
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