In an era marked by cultural division and uncertainty, Ferryman: The life and deathwork of Ephraim Finch,
offers a powerful and timely reflection on community, faith, and the universal experience of loss.
Award-winning author Katia Ariel masterfully blends biography, memoir, and cultural history to tell the story
of Ephraim Finch OAM - a deathworker, community builder, and living repository of cultural memory. As
the director of Melbourne's Jewish Burial Society for over three decades, Finch guided families through
grief with deep compassion, working seamlessly across religious and secular worlds. Whether navigating
coroners, police, politicians, clergy, or medical professionals, Finch was renowned for his ability to unite
people and foster understanding.
Through Finch's handwritten journals and intimate interviews, Ariel explores the profound themes of ritual,
belonging, and the power of stories. At a time when society is re-engaging in conversations about death
and loss, Ferryman is both a moving portrait of a remarkable man and an invitation to reconsider how we
honour the dead-and the living.
