From the Publisher Thirty-two years ago, my mother's best friend died on the operating table. She felt herself moving toward a brilliant light and spoke with her father who had passed away years before. Ultimately, she made the decision to return to take care of her two young children. Although this was the most peaceful experience of her life, she kept it a secret until the publication of books like CLOSER TO THE LIGHT and TRANSFORMED BY THE LIGHT. Reading the experiences of others gave her the freedom to speak openly about what it means to die and why there is little to fear. Lorelei Andrysick Ballantine Advertising