General Grief/Loss/Trauma Books
Note: All imagery and content on this page is from Amazon. These are not affiliate links, I’m just sharing what has been found helpful by myself or others.
It's Ok That You're Not Ok by Megan Devine
“This book provides a path to rethink our relationship with grief. It encourages readers to see their grief as a natural response to death and loss, rather than an aberrant condition needing transformation. By shifting the focus from grief as a problem to be solved to an experience to be tended, we give the reader what we most want for ourselves: understanding, compassion, validation, and a way through the pain.”
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk M.D.
“Essential reading for anyone interested in understanding and treating traumatic stress and the scope of its impact on society.” —Alexander McFarlane, Director of the Centre for Traumatic Stress Studies. A pioneering researcher transforms our understanding of trauma and offers a bold new paradigm for healing in this New York Times bestseller
It's OK to Laugh (Crying is Cool Too) by Nora McInerny
“This book is for people who have been through some shit. This is for people who aren’t sure if they’re saying or doing the right thing (you’re not, but nobody is). This is for people who had their life turned upside down and just learned to live that way. For people who have laughed at a funeral or cried in a grocery store. This is for everyone who wondered what exactly they’re supposed to be doing with their one wild and precious life.”
The Dead Moms Club: A Memoir about Death, Grief, and Surviving the Mother of All Losses by Kate Spencer
“Kate Spencer lost her mom to cancer when she was 27. In The Dead Moms Club, she walks readers through her experience of stumbling through grief and loss, and helps them to get through it, too. This isn't a weepy, sentimental story, but rather a frank, up-front look at what it means to go through gruesome grief and come out on the other side.”
On Coming Alive: Journaling Through Grief: 100 Prompts to Guide You From Darkness to Light by Lexi Behrndt
“On Coming Alive: Journaling Through Grief is a 100 prompt guided journal aimed at guiding you through the darkness that often accompanies grief. Featuring inspiring quotes from writers, and other visionaries paired with open-ended questions and prompts, with plenty of room for writing and reflecting, this journal is the perfect companion to guide you through the complexities of grief.”
Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I've Loved by Kate Bowler
“Kate Bowler is a professor at Duke Divinity School with a modest Christian upbringing, but she specializes in the study of the prosperity gospel, a creed that sees fortune as a blessing from God and misfortune as a mark of God’s disapproval. At thirty-five, everything in her life seems to point toward “blessing.” She is thriving in her job, married to her high school sweetheart, and loves life with her newborn son. Then she is diagnosed with stage IV colon cancer.”
A Grace Disguised: How the Soul Grows through Loss by Jerry L. Sittser
“A Grace Disguised plumbs the depths of our sorrows, asks questions many people are afraid to ask, and provides hope in its answers: Will the pain ever subside? Will my life ever be good again? Will the depression ever lift? Will I ever overcome the bitterness I feel? What is God's plan in all of this? The circumstances are not important; what we do with those circumstances is. In coming to the end of ourselves, we can come to the beginning of a new life.”
Hope When It Hurts by Kristen Wetherell and Sarah Walton
“This beautiful, cloth-bound book will gently encourage and greatly help any woman who is struggling with suffering whether physical, emotional or psychological, and whether for a season or for longer. It is a book to buy for yourself, or to buy for a member of your church or friend. For anyone who is hurting, this book will give hope, not just for life beyond the suffering, but for life in the suffering. Each chapter contains a biblical reflection, with questions and prayers, and a space for journaling.”
Notes for the Everlost: A Field Guide to Grief by Kate Inglis
“Part memoir, part handbook for the heartbroken, this powerful, unsparing account of losing a premature baby will speak to all who have been bereaved and are grieving, and offers inspiration on moving forward, gently integrating the loss into life.”
Ambiguous Loss (Learning to Live with Unresolved Grief) by Pauline Boss
“Drawing on her research and clinical experience, Boss suggests strategies that can cushion the pain and help families come to terms with their grief. Her work features the heartening narratives of those who cope with ambiguous loss and manage to leave their sadness behind, including those who have lost family members to divorce, immigration, adoption, chronic mental illness, and brain injury. With its message of hope, this eloquent book offers guidance and understanding to those struggling to regain their lives.”
Pregnant with Promise: A Spiritual Journey of Pregnancy, Bed Rest, and Childbirth by Dorienna M. Alfred
“This memoir shares the author's emotional, physical, and spiritual experience with pregnancy bed rest through journal entries and referenced Biblical scriptures. She spent nearly the entirety of two pregnancies on bed rest, including a total of 18 weeks in the hospital. It is the hope that this memoir will be an encouragement to others who may be experiencing pregnancy bed rest, and to anyone facing a situation that seems insurmountable. The author believes that faith in God is one of the most powerful tools of resilience available to Believers.”