There is a genuine peace and calmness that you can find between the pages of well-written books on self-help by bestselling authors. You can see the light of peace by reading some best books on grief during the darkest hours of despair when words often fail.
Grief, that complex dosser of feelings, has been included in numerous stories, creating a visionary environment that inspires us to look deeper, heal from, and find hope even in the most challenging circumstances.
These best books on grief serve as kind friends, tenderly holding our hearts as we deal with the subtle nature of loss. They range from touching memoirs to moving fiction.
Are you going through a challenging and tragic moment in your life, or do you know anyone who is going through a grieving moment in their life? Books on grief can help the person pull through the moment.
It could be the death of a spouse, child, colleague, or best friend. Whichever one it is, you can snap out of it through the pages of a book.
So, grab your water bottle, choose your favorite cozy reading spot, and get ready to travel through these compelling and transforming pages that celebrate human resilience and shed more light on the unbreakable human spirit that rises from the darkest moments of grief. Come with us!
Bearing the Unbearable By Joanne Cacciatore
Love, Loss, and the Heartbreaking Path of Grief,
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“Bearing the Unbearable”: Love, Loss, and the Heartbreaking Path of Grief is a self-help book written by Joanne Cacciatore. In this book, Joanne shares the knowledge and guidance for coping with the most devastating loss, the death of a loved one.
She also teaches the knowledge that can only come from someone who has gone through deep personal grief. The book is gentle but realistic and doesn’t minimize suffering or give pointless cliches.
Bearing the Unbearable does not teach readers techniques or methods for overcoming or getting past grief. Instead, the work adopts the notion that sadness is the reverse of love by providing particular examples from Cacciatore’s own experiences and the lives of individuals she has counseled.
Furthermore, it went on to say that to have a lasting effect on the heart and mind; one must learn to identify and embrace it.
The book focuses on coping with grief and acknowledges that beauty and joy, as well as love and happiness, may coexist alongside the kind of grief that never goes away—for example, the death of a loved one.
The Year of Magical Thinking by John Gregory Dunne
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“The Year of Magical Thinking” is a book written by author John Gregory Dunne and explores the story of Joan Didion. The experiences she had after her husband passed during the time of their adopted daughter Quintana’s illness. Didion’s daughter was terribly sick and on life support when she lost her spouse.
John and Didion visited their daughter, who was in a coma in the intensive care unit, on December 30, 2003. John suffers a severe heart attack later that evening when they are having supper in their New York apartment.
He was rushed to the clinic, and immediately after they arrived, the medical experts said her husband had died. Didion struggles to accept this reality even as she schedules an autopsy and makes funeral arrangements. Didion understood that mourning was not what she had anticipated; she struggled to place a hold on her sudden loss and her own altered identity.
She thinks she has fallen into a temporary state of insanity as she is consumed by memories of their years in Los Angeles just after they married and adopted their daughter.
Despite appearing calm and collected, Didion starts to think that her wishes might be able to make John come back to life. The book was centered on Joan Didion’s own grief journey.
Is Ok That You’re Not Ok By Megan Devine
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The book “It’s OK That You’re Not OK” by Megan Devine explores the subject of grief and loss and offers a sympathetic and empowering viewpoint for people going through severe grief.
Devine questions the societal rules and customs that revolve around grief, which frequently pressure people to rapidly “move on” or “get over” their loss.
The book urges readers to accept their feelings of grief as a normal and necessary reaction to loss and, while doing so, learn how to be joyful. The Author shares some practical advice on going through your grieving process.
Furthermore, Devine highlights that going through your grieving process is an experience that needs to be acknowledged and encouraged rather than a problem that needs to be rectified or solved.
She supports providing avenues where individuals can freely and openly express their grief without fear of criticism or being expected to live up to social norms.
Also, this grief book comes with practical advice and teaches different age groups about grief. If you find yourself in such a grieving brain-tasking experience, this book can help, or you seek online therapy.
“Healthy Healing” By Michelle Steinke-Baumgard
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Healthy Healing: Dealing with Grief Using Exercise and Endorphins is a self-help book by Michelle Steinke-Baumgard. The book is centered on helping individuals go through their grief with exercise.
She mentioned that many books and techniques intended to help us through grieving contribute to increasing our grief after a loss. Michelle taught readers that exercise is a powerful tool needed during a grieving period which could be due to the death of one’s children or spouse.
Michelle Steinke-Baumgard, who lost her husband in a catastrophic plane crash and became a widow overnight, is the best person to relish the need for a fresh approach. The mother of two children found comfort and hope in the most unlikely of places during the worst time of her life: exercise.
One Fit Widow, the blog where she chronicled her grief journey, quickly attracted a sizable following of loyal readers. Now, Michelle shares her ground-breaking approach to overcoming grief with everyone going through their grief journey or grief experience.
Furthermore, “Healthy Healing” offers readers a 12-week plan that enables them to navigate through loss by utilizing the therapeutic benefits of exercise and endorphins and reconnecting with relief by bolstering their entire being through fitness.
“Healthy Healing” addresses the physical, mental, and emotional effects of grief in a way that no other book in the category has ever done. So, if you’re going through a tough time, maybe the sudden death of a spouse, young child, or young adults around you, get this grief book.
Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig
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Reasons to Stay Alive is a book published in 2015 by Matt Haig. It is a memoir with classic nonfiction that became a best-seller worldwide. The book’s narrative is on Haig’s struggles with melancholy and anxiety, particularly his 24-year-old mental health crisis and eventual recovery.
The book examines how society views and stigmatizes mental illness, how crucial it is for people worldwide to communicate about these concerns, and methods for maintaining mental health like mindfulness, daily meditation, and appreciation.
It throws more light on what to do during the grieving process and the importance of having a grief counselor.
“Grieving Mindfully” by Sameet Kumar Ph.D
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Grieving Mindfully is a book written by Sameet Kumar, Ph.D. In this book, the Author teaches readers the essence of letting go of grief. He said when a loved one passes away, many people hold onto their grief for a very long time after the severe pain of the loss has subsided.
This is because grieving is a complicated subject, rife with misunderstandings and unreasonable expectations, frequently resulting in a potentially isolated life when people need companionship the most.
Ironically, people often become most fully conscious of life by embracing the experience of grief. Readers who are grieving will get new insights into their grieving process from this book.
Also, they will get familiar with the spiraling staircase, a symbol for the ups and downs of emotional sorrow that usually follow loss.
The book provides readers with strategies for dealing with the incidents and circumstances that lead to their grieving. It utilizes mindfulness techniques and the idea of radical acceptance, which promotes the experience of grief instead of its rejection.
Ultimately, the book offers methods for enhancing life’s significance by accepting death and attempting to embrace it. If you’re grieving over the death of a loved one or the death of your children because these things can throw an individual into deep grief, you need to get a copy of this best grief book.
Surviving the Holidays Without You By Gary Roe
Navigating Grief During Special Seasons
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“Surviving the Holiday Without You” is one of the best books on grief written and published by one of the best-selling authors, hospice chaplain, and grief expert Gary Roe you should have in your collection. It is a highly recommended grief recovery handbook.
This book, “Surviving the Holiday Without You,” serves as a grief survival kit for readers across the globe from the author and was created especially for the holidays.
The book equips readers with newfound confidence to traverse significant days and seasons by drawing on personal and professional mourning experiences.
Holidays, he claimed, are particularly challenging when you’re mourning the loss of a loved one. When you remember losing a loved one to the cold hands of death, the countenance is not often the same.
The Author also teaches readers in this book how to handle unspoken yet potent expectations and the best ways to deal with lasting memories.
You will also learn how to deal with the reflections of your departed loved one. Having experienced misinterpreted and potentially isolated life creeping in, you must deal with erratic feelings and vulnerability and take care of your emotions and yourself. This book is highly recommended.
Frequently Asked Questions On Books On Grief
Are There Books on Grief that are Highly Recommended?
Yes, there are numerous books on grief that are highly recommended, and below are a few of them:
- “The Year of Magical Thinking” by Joan Didion
- “A Grief Observed” by C.S. Lewis
- “Man’s Search for Meaning” by Viktor E. Frankl
Are there any books specifically for children dealing with grief?
Yes, there are children-related books on grief. These books are written explicitly for Children dealing with grief and can be passed for a grief recovery handbook. Take a look at them below:
- “The Invisible String” by Patrice Karst
- The Memory Box: A Book About Grief” by Joanna Rowland
- “The Saddest Time” by Norma Simon
Is Grief Hard On the Body?
Yes, grief can have a severe physical impact on the human body. So many people often suffer a range of emotional and physical reactions when grieving. Different physical symptoms and changes in the body can be brought on by the emotional effects of grief, such as sadness, rage, and loneliness.
Final Thoughts On Books On Grief
Going through grief can be a big trying moment in one’s life, and being able to come out of it requires a lot of processes. The sudden death of young adults, a spouse, and adult children can result in deep grief. So, if you are experiencing any of these moments, the best books on grief should be your go-to.
The above grief books can help you through your grief journey. It doesn’t matter the age group, be it surviving parents that lost their children to sudden death, a grief-stricken child, or a grieving teenager, these best books on grief have the answer you seek.
Also, in addition to reading books, you should consider seeing a grief counselor or going for online therapy and relating your own experiences and feelings to the expert for help. Good luck.
