How to Go on Living when Someone You Love Dies Book

My younger brother passed away suddenly in February this year at age 44. It was a shock and not only affected me and my mother, but my daughters as well, who adored their uncle (and who were adored by him). A therapist we were consulting for their grief recommended this book as I wanted to learn more about how exactly grief affects us.

The author certainly is knowledgeable about the topic, unfortunately having lost her parents before reaching adulthood. I was very relieved to know that what I was experiencing was valid. I also wanted to get a perspective on how my mother is feeling having lost a child and how children perceive death.

I was satisfied with the information (can't say I "enjoyed" the book). I did find, however, that there was a lack of concrete examples. She writes about having to change our relationship with the deceased, but doesn't say how you do that.

Furthermore, given that it was published in the 1990s, the writing was a bit dated (e.g. referring to widows having to learn about car maintenance and possibly having to look for employment after their husband's death). Women are not so helpless today.

Also, as an editor and translator, I was often annoyed by the syntax used by the author. She always put her adverbs in strange spots, making for sentences that don't sound natural. There were also excerpts from her own scientific journal articles that seemed more targeted to sociologists than to the general public. They weren't written to speak to a general audience.

Despite this, I would recommend this book if you are looking to learn more about how grief affects us.