Recommended Grief Books

There are seasons of  loss and grief for each of us. In the past few months, several friends have lost parents and one has just lost a son in an accident. Processing our grief, can be tough work. Though each of us will have different needs when we are grieving, I know I hoped to find a book that might help me through this time.  Unfortunately, I found the grief section at my local book store to be less than inspiring and almost somewhat disappointing. Fortunately, I have learned about other books since then that are very beneficial and of course there are always new books being written by someone who has grieved and shares their own story.

In the past month, I have been lucky enough to receive two books that deal with life and death written by two lovely women. I wanted to share them today as additional reference for books that you might also find beneficial.

I met Mary Burt-Godwin through the internet. She reached out to me after learning about my 1000 Mitzvahs project. She had lost her own father and was in the midst of putting together her own book. It is a compilation of stories from daughters who have lost their fathers. Her book, Dead Dads Club, offers glimpses into many different father daughter relationships and how women deal with the loss of this important person in our lives. She has also begun a website with the same name to allow others to share their own stories with her. (Lest you think Mary is all grief and no fun, she is hilarious and brings her sense of humor to her website and her new book.)

Abigail Carter is a 9/11 widow and her first book The Alchemy of Loss is a story of the journey of transformation after losing her husband Arron leaving her to raise their two children alone. Abigail and I met this year after my book came out and I have just finished her book. I couldn’t put it down. It was so personal and moving and I kept thinking about how resilient Abigail was in the face of a disaster most of us couldn’t even imagine. She is honest and authentic and her ability to share her loss with us allows us to imagine that we could also survive something so difficult. I highly recommend it.

What books have helped you through your grief?

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