If I Should Die Before You Wake: Instructions on the Art of Life

William Glassman is a professor of psychology at Ryerson Polytechnical
University in Toronto.

Paul Keddy is a professor of ecology at the University of Ottawa. This
book, which reflects his training in Tibetan Buddhist teachings,
combines evocative ideas with contradictions and lapses in clarity. For
example, Keddy notes that “joy is an indicator that we are living life
fully,” but also states that “compassion and sadness are good
indicators that we are on the right course.” His observation that
“whether or not we feel joy has no connection to whether or not others
are suffering” is immediately followed by the statement “[W]ho
knows, perhaps if we were acting in a way that created more joy in our
lives, others might be suffering less.” Other comments, such as
“life seems to bring everyone more than their [sic] fair share of
adversity” seem inconsistent with Buddhist teachings. True, life means
suffering, but what defines a person’s fair share?

While evaluations of books of this type are inevitably subjective,
readers seeking Buddhist guidance in living might find Eugen
Herrigel—or even Keddy’s mentor, Chogyam Trungpa—more rewarding.