Sorry For Your Loss: What working with the dead taught me about life

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Losing a parent is devastating for their children. If you know someone that’s lost their mother or father then let them know you’re thinking of them with these alternative phrases for “sorry for your loss”. This book handled death in a very real, very delicate way. It didn’t dumb things down for kids or over explain feelings and circumstances. Oren’s reaction and guilt toward his parent’s death was very well done and a realistic reaction. I enjoyed learning about Jewish funeral traditions; the author did a good job of giving just enough details. Plus, the idea of working in a funeral home reminded me of one of my favorite movies, My Girl. That all of that said, there were cliches and slight annoyances throughout the book. I found Evie, the main character, horribly immature and way too chatty. Although she does get more bearable as the book goes on, her obnoxious personality was too much for me in the beginning of the book. The secret of Evie’s friend Sam was built up throughout the book, but once revealed, felt very vague and under developed. Sam was more of an excuse as to why Evie was reluctant to make friends than anything of real substance. Oren’s last words to his parents were very cliched. And the two girls that bullied Evie were over the top and didn’t add much to the story. An introspective novel about the healing power of art with light touches of tears, laughter, and romance. You will want your words to reflect the severity of what has happened. Offer sympathy and understanding, say how sorry you are and if you can make it clear you are available to help in any way they may need.

It was such a sweet tale of how their friendship developed. Even with the sadness, it was still quite natural as they progressed. The family of Evie is wonderful, and Evie makes mistakes, but they are entirely typical for a young person entering adolescence. She learns about friendships, and readers gain a lot of knowledge about Jewish funeral customs, which may not be fascinating to everyone, but were to me. What comes after the hardest thing in the world? Joanne Levy answers this question the way a ten-year-old needs it to be answered. Sorry For Your Loss is funny, moving, deeply researched, deeply felt and, above all, hopeful. Deceptively simple and simply marvelous.” — Adam Gidwitz, author of the Newbery Honoree,The Inquisitor’s TaleI think environmental grief or anxiety is a big one. I found myself feeling that. I live [somewhere rural] near Austin, and I would see this field of cows and have this feeling that I didn’t understand. I didn’t know what it was; I would just feel sad. And then I realized that I think it’s a type of climate and environmental grief, because I know that that field is gonna be bulldozed, and they’re gonna put up a gas station. There were even points in the book when I laughed out loud, the strange things people want that belonged to their loved one. Who on earth would want their dead relatives false teeth, what on earth are they going to do with them. Kate then shares that there will be items like perhaps a handkerchief that still has the perfume/aftershave of the dead person still on it and she has asked relatives if they would like to take it away with them and they have just waved the offer away saying to just throw it away! Then she mentions what I would describe as the one-up-manship behaviour, who loved the person the most etc etc. Death really does seem to bring out the worst in some people! Some of the questions that Kate have been asked I think sometimes we forget to live and it often takes death to make us realise this but life really is short and we need to ensure we leave a life that was fulfilled and full of love. Thank you to the author and publisher for sending me an eARC of this book that comes out on October 12th.

A quote from the book about babies who didn't make it, that is so uplifting and lovely Hospitals have a sizing system to accommodate all stages of development. We actually use a lot of ice cream tubs – they just happen to be the right size and most useful vessels we have. They allow the tiniest of babies to be accommodated and held by their loved ones, so that the grieving parents can still feel extremely close to their child.Talking to family members who have lost someone is extremely difficult. You may well be in mourning as well and so finding the words to try and comfort them at such a harrowing time for both of you is incredibly hard. When we clapped for the NHS we didn’t think about Kate and her team, after all who thinks about mortuaries at all unless they are forced to, but this book has integrated them (in my mind) into the grand machine that is the NHS: a cog no smaller and less significant than nurses, doctors or any of the other health service staff. DG: This was always pitched as part memoir, but I wanted reporting and other people’s stories in there since I’m still learning and I’m not a grief expert. I talked to parents who’ve lost children, and I talked to psychologists and an end-of-life doula. Kate, and all othe

So if you’re looking for alternatives to ‘Sorry for your Loss’ read on as we’re here to help you find the perfect way to offer your condolences but with more meaningful words. Varied Jewish traditions and beliefs around life and death are an essential part of this story featuring two singular, quirkily realistic kids, both white, whose burgeoning friendship is a delight in a sometimes funny, always moving story.”— Cooperative Children’s Book Center (Chosen as Book of the Week)I don’t want to be cheesy and say that grief can bring meaning to your life, because I’d rather have my mom and sister any day of the week and have a meaningless life. But through writing the book and talking to so many people and hearing so many stories, I’ve learned that those connections are something that I seek out and that I really appreciate. Hearing another person’s story helps me; I can just meet somebody and immediately be like, “Oh, I get it. My feelings aren’t the same, and our grief isn’t the same, but we get each other.” If I’m going to take anything from [this experience], I think that’s very helpful. I hope others seek that out too.