A meditation on the human tendency to end our own lives, by an author who brings his own experience of depression to bear on this rarely discussed subject. 'This book touches on some deep questions relevant to us all. A fascinating, thoughtful, unflinching meditation on one of the most intriguing and curious aspects of the human condition.' - Dr Frank Tallis Why do people want to kill themselves? Despite the prevalence of suicide in the developed world, it's a question most of us fail to ask. On hearing news of a suicide we are devastated, but overwhelmingly we feel disbelief. In A Very Human Ending, research psychologist Jesse Bering lifts the lid on this taboo subject, examining the suicidal mindset from the inside out to reveal the subtle tricks the mind can play when we're easy emotional prey. In raising challenging questions Bering tests our contradictory superstitions about the act itself. Combining cutting-edge research with investigative journalism and first-person testimony, Bering also addresses the history of suicide and its evolutionary inheritance to offer a personal, accessible, yet scientifically sound examination of why we are the only species on earth that deliberately ends its own life.

This penetrating analysis aims to demystify a subject that knows no cultural or demographic boundaries.