This resource list was compiled over a lifetime of methodical learning about grief, teaching the topic to others, and supporting thousands. It could take you hours just to select a handful of mediocre books using publicly available search tools---to say nothing of actually reading even a few dozen of the 450+ we've used! With the entire
90-work reference at your fingertips, you need only a few minutes to find the right book and confidently make spot-on recommendations as needs arise.
Here is one sample:
Callahan, Maggie and Patricia Kelley. Final Gifts: Understanding the Special Awareness, Needs, and Communications of the Dying. Bantam Books, 1997.
This book ought to be on every shelf. In clear and simple terms, these two hospice nurses tell story after story to illustrate the ways we can understand what loved ones experience as they die. It allows family members to communicate with the dying person, finish unfinished business, and help achieve the kind of peaceful death everyone hopes to have.
Recommended for anyone with aging parents, family members who are frequently ill, the family of a terminally ill patient, and all those desiring to make the death process easier for everyone involved.
The list contains information on books dealing with grief, covering a range of styles and several situational categories. For instance, there are books on various relationships - parent, child, sibling, or friend. Some books are age-related, ranging from stillbirth or infant death to adult children whose elderly parent dies. Others cover types of death - sudden, terminal illness, suicide, or violence. We even list a few books on the death of pet. Some are recent, most were published within the last 10 - 15 years, and a few are old workhorses, published long ago but still well worth reading.
Often, newly bereaved people lack the concentration and desire to read long or complex books. Therefore, several listings consist of short chapters in easy-to-read formats. We also list more substantial books, both for those who desire such information immediately and for those past the initial stages of grief who need more extensive information.
The overall list contains both secular and religious titles. We note when a book is spiritual or religious, and where a clear denominational focus is present. In absence of such comments, presume the book to be secular in nature. Selections are based on our own reading, book reviews, personal experience, and over 25 years of working in the field of bereavement.
Please feel free to let us know if you find a particular book very helpful. Especially let us know if you feel a book should be deleted from the list, or if you have a suggestion to add. We are always interested in the feedback of others whose experiences are different than our own.
Our licensing program enables you to use it "like a single copy of a book"---to be handled and read by one person at a time. Please contact us if you want to make a multi-copy purchase of the full list. We will be happy to offer a discount depending on the number of copies you want.
Our hope is that overall this list of resources will prove highly useful to you, both personally and as recommendations to others you encounter or serve who need the resources.