Grief Lending Library

Molly talks about the feelings that she has been having since the death of her mother. Includes information for caregivers.

• Children

• Death of a Mother

A book of love and comfort for mothers who have experienced the deep sorrow of losing a child. Each page is like opening a gift…bright, beautiful, joyful illustrations and gentle, poignant words describe heaven from a child’s eyes.

• Death of a Child

A story about a woman’s journey battling ovarian cancer. This biography speaks about the strong connections made with others and the weekly emails she sent to her friends filled with encouraging words of hope and strength from scripture.

• Anticipatory / Before the Death

• Cancer/Religious

Ages 4-12. Helps talk to children about many things they might be feelings and thinking after a death. Acknowledges feelings are okay and suggestions for when feelings get "too big"

• Children

Ages 4-8. The day a young boy's mother dies, an invisible dragon swoops in and stays with him, weighing him down day and night until, at last, their relationship changes.

• Children

• Death of a Mother

Gail Sezna tells us of the tragic deaths of two of her three sons and the subsequent painful divorce by her husband of 25 years. Her youngest son Teddy died in a tragic boating accident and her oldest Deeg was killed 9/11/2001 in the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. Four months later her husband filed for divorce. Gail describes with courage and candor her struggle to pick up the pieces and move forward from overwhelming grief towards hope and healing.

• Death of a Child

• Divorce

Ages 6-12. When Kristine learns her mother is dying, she turns to God for help. Through her 17 conversations with God, she begins to understand her feelings and learns that it’s all right to feel fear, anger, and sadness. God understands her grief and supports her through it. Includes a discussion to help parents and children talk about death, grieving and God’s love.

• Children

• Religious / Death of a Mother

A book to help sibilings anticipate a brother or sisters death from a terminal illness.

• Children

• Anticipatory / Before the Death

A story of both a devastating tragedy and an exquisite triumph-and the agonizing, relentless conflicted process connecting these two oppositional pulls.

• Sudden & Traumatic Death

• Death of a Child / Suicide

Draws on a personal tragedy of the author and 12 other bereaved families who have suffered the loss of a teen child. The book addresses topics such as normal grief response, the stages of grief, dealing with the holidays, sibling survivors, on-line grief resources and remembrance tokens and rituals.

• Death of a Child

• Death of a Teen Child

An inspiring memoir of life, love, loss, and new beginnings by the widower of bestselling children’s author and filmmaker Amy Krouse Rosenthal, whose last of act of love before her death was setting the stage for her husband’s life without her.

• Death of a Partner

• Anticipatory / Before the Death

For those who have experienced miscarriage, stillbirth, or the death of a child within the first year, this gentle resource offers: stories of hope and wisdom; practical advice and guidance, based on the experiences of many; and comfort and ways to honor and remember. Naming the Child creates a community of love and support for bereaving parents and siblings, written with a light touch and sensitive spirit.

• Death of a Child

• Miscarriage / Stillbirth / Infant Death

A book created to help people share more deeply with those who are sick or dying.

• Anticipatory / Before the Death

Using thoughtful self-assessments and examples, this book persuades readers that grief must be reprocessed at every stage of life. First, it invites readers to look backward, examining their reactions and coping strategies at the time of their parent’s death. Moving into the present, it asks, what meaning do you make of your parent’s death as an adult?

• General

• Death of a Parent

This book brings together diverse fields of study and offer a practical as well as multifaceted theoretical approach to how children cope with death. Using stories of children’s own experiences supported by data from a large research study, Silverman explains the wide range of effects of loss upon children, the challenges they face as they grieve, and ways of supporting them as they change and grow in the bereavement process.

• Helping Children & Teens

Effective treatment of the dying person and his or her family, educating the child for death and our striving for self-esteem and power, impact of the idea of death on the law, and the role of grief in mental health.

• Anticipatory / Before the Death

• Historical

A young boy from California, Nicholas Green, was killed by highway robbers while vacationing in Italy with his family. His parents agreed to donate his organs, which went to seven Italians waiting for transplants. This story has changed lives around the world.

• Sudden & Traumatic Death

• Homicide / Death of a Child / Organ Donation

Coping with sorrow, anger and injustice after a tragic death. An invaluable handbook for those who grieve for someone killed.

• Sudden & Traumatic Death

• Homicide

Brings suicide survival from the darkness into light, speaking frankly about the overwhelming feelings of confusion, guilt, shame, anger, and loneliness that are shared by all survivors. Fine draws on her own experience and on conversations with many other survivors--as well as on the knowledge of counselors and mental health professionals. She offers a strong helping hand and invaluable guidance to the vast numbers of family and friends who are left behind by the more than thirty thousand people who commit suicide each year, struggling to make sense of an act that seems to them senseless, and to pick up the pieces of their own shattered lives.

• Sudden & Traumatic Death

• Suicide

Explores the four stages of losing a parent. Children often must endure the painful final stages of a parent’s life, the finality of their death, and their own grief while offering support for a surviving parent. Helps reader acknowledge and respect the differences in how different people process pain, explaining why all people do not feel the same after such a loss.

• General

• Death of a Parent

A message of consolation and solace from the author’s book A Guide to Confident Living.

• General

• Historical

PARENT COUNCIL REVIEW® 'A young child struggles with his grief over the death of his fish. He is especially upset when others comment 'it was only a fish.' Then to add to his distress, his father flushes Puffer down the toilet. A wise aunt suggests a memorial service, and the story ends with a healing eulogy. A wonderful story for young children grieving over the death of a beloved pet.'

• Children

• Death of a Pet

Describes the difficulties parents with dying children must face; offers loving and practical help in handling these crises.

• Helping Children

• Children Dying

Reveals the beneficial changes that can occur of the dying person is not isolated and avoided, but instead invited to share his experiences with someone who can listen.

• Anticipatory / Before the Death

• Historical

Just as On Death and Dying taught us the five stages of death, Dr. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross and David Kessler applies these stages to the grieving process and weaves together theory, inspiration, and practical advice, including sections on sadness, hauntings, dreams, isolation, and healing.

• General

This collection of quotations and reflections create a companion to grief.

• General

• Death of a Father

Ages 6-10. Changes such as divorce, abuse, or the death of a loved one can cause children to run away or hide from the problem. This book is created especially to help teach children to see running away for what it truly is: a dangerous means of avoiding problems.

• Children

• All Loss

After the sudden death of her husband, Sheryl Sandberg felt certain that she and her children would never feel pure joy again. Her friend Adam Grant, a psychologist at Wharton, told her there are concrete steps people can take to recover and rebound from life-shattering experiences. We are not born with a fixed amount of resilience. It is a muscle that everyone can build.

• General

• Death of a Partner

The authors share the impact of Caleb’s life and affirm that life includes the inevitability of death rather than denies it. Here the gift of life is measured not in length but in depth.

• Death of a Child

• Historical

The author writes with sympathy and compassion as someone who has experienced the grief of multiple pregnancy losses making this book a great way to reach out to men who are suffering in this way. There is also space for journaling.

• Death of a Child

• Men and Grief / Miscarriage / Religious

In this hopeful five-book set, a mother and her three children ages 5, 7 and 19 share their story after the suicide death of husband and father Don, in 2002. Their reflections are captured in their own words and through poignant art by artist/storyteller Laurie Phillips

• Suicide

As a parent, you don't have the luxury of worrying only about yourself and your emotional well-being. It is your job, in good times and bad, to attend to the needs of your child as well as your own. Putting your child's needs first is a no-brainer, so when something bad happens, it feels natural to put your own on the back burner.The purpose is to help parents who are dealing with their own grief balance their needs with the needs of the children in their care.

• Death of a Child

Tells of the unique relationship between the author and her son who was killed in an accident.

• Death of a Child

Explores dying and death as they concern the staff members of two large hospitals.

• Anticipatory / Before the Death

• Historical

When Isabel Allende’s daughter, Paula, became gravely ill and fell into a coma, the author began to write the story of her family for her unconscious child. A powerful autobiography who straightforward acceptance of the magical and spiritual worlds will remind readers of her first book, The House of the Spirits.

• Death of a Child

A team of scholars surveys, assesses, and interprets the available material

• General

• Historical

Joiner explores the nature of murder-suicide and offers a unique new theory to explain this nearly unexplainable act: that murder-suicides always involve the wrongheaded invocation of one of four interpersonal virtues: mercy, justice, duty, and glory. This book seeks to make sense of one of the most difficult-to-comprehend types of violence in modern society, shedding new light that will ultimately lead to better understanding and even prevention.

• Sudden & Traumatic Death

• Murder-Suicide

This book allows you to hear multiple different persepectives on others stories with pet loss, support groups, and practicing family therapy. You get to hear from professionals on their recommendations for taking care of yourself and your loved ones throughout grief.

• Death of a Pet

A practical guide and an emotional support for adults and children who have had a pet die.

• Death of a Pet

• Helping Children

To help pet parents everywhere, she opened the first standalone pet funeral home in the United States in Indianapolis. In this guidebook, she helps pet parents, veterinarians, death-care professionals and others celebrate the special bonds we share with our animal companions.

• Death of a Pet

Poetry that expresses the needs and feelings of children, the elderly, and those who are ill, dying or mourning a death.

• General

Soon after the horrific events of September 11, newsroom staffers at The New York Times began to ask about the real people, the names and faces behind the unimaginable statistics. Their efforts, which grew into the daily "Portraits of Grief" feature, gathered force over the ensuing weeks and eventually became a cultural phenomenon on a national scale. Portraits: 9/11/01 brings together all the poignant memories and reminiscences, and stands as a lasting tribute to these beloved souls.

• Sudden & Traumatic Death

Grades 6+. Spells out the warning signs, guides teens through the steps of reaching out to a friend, and explains when and how to seek help. It also suggests ways for teens to help themselves when they are feeling stressed or depressed.

• Teens

• Sudden & Traumatic Death / Suicide

Information children need to know during the illness, during the death, and what children need to heal from their loss. Information how children can express themselves, learn about integrating death into their lives and search for new meaning.

• Helping Children

• Cancer

A program model for guiding adolescents in ways to understand and cope with depression and/or suicidal feelings.

• Sudden & Traumatic Death

• Teen Suicide

A transcript of discussions which took place at a symposium.

• Anticipatory / Before the Death

• Historical

Ages 5-12. Crafted for terminally ill and/or grieving children. Tool for opening discussion on the impending death of a young person.

• Children

• Before the Death

The life story of the woman whose mission is to teach us how to confront our fear of death, so that we may know better how to live.

• General

• Historical

Sequel to On Death and Dying; consists of the most frequently asked questions and Dr. Kubler-Ross's answers.

• Anticipatory / Before the Death

• Historical

Ages 8+. Elizabeth makes a memory quilt out of scraps of her father's clothes.

• Children

• Death of a Father

Ragtail, a young mouse, has just experienced the death of his best friend. As he tries to understand what has happened, Ragtail is swept by confusing feelings of denial, anger and sadness. With the help of a new friend, he learns to deal with his feelings and soon discovers the comfort that comes from remembering.

• Children

• Death of a Friend

In Rare Bird, Anna Whiston-Donaldson unfolds a mother’s story of loss that leads, in time, to enduring hope. This is a book about facing impossible circumstances and desperately wishing you could turn back the clock. It is about discovering that you’re braver than you think. It is about the flicker of hope and the realization that in times of heartbreak, God is closer than your own skin.

• Death of a Child

• Religious

Has your world been shattered by grief? Is pain pulling you under the waves of despair and threatening to hold you there? Take heart; rescue is possible. Hope is possible. Whether you’re grieving the loss of an infant child, grown child, spouse, or elderly parent, Raw Survival is for you.

• Death of a Child

• Sudden & Traumatic Death / Religious

A quarterback’s inspiring story of tackling depression and surviving suicide loss.

• Sudden & Traumatic Death

• Suicide

The first book ever to systematically expound the piece-by-piece reconstruction and synthesis of events surrounding the terminal phase of life.

• Professional

• Historical

A sequel to Dr. Moody's book, Life After Life. He has now interviewed hundreds more men and women who were close to death or actually pronounced dead.

• General

• Near Death Experiences / Historical

At 39, theologian Billings was diagnosed with incurable cancer. The questions were acute: Why me? Why now? Where is God in all of this? This eloquently written book shares Billing’s journey and reflections on providence, lament, and life in Christ in light of illness.

• Anticipatory / Before the Death

• Religious

A rich store of wisdom to help man face his own death bravely, and to aid his loved ones to work through their bereavement to continued meaningful life.

• Professional

• Historical

Ages 6-96. About the unique grief felt by children when a pet dies.

• Children

• Death of a Pet

Ages 3 and up. When grandpa dies, Holly and Glen remember the special times they had together—gardening, reading and learning about butterflies.

• Children

• Death of a Grandparent

Ages 6-12. Because she has already discovered the wonders of God, Suzy understands the true meaning of her best friend's death.

• Children

• Death of a Friend

Ages 4-8. A story of a family remembering their dog through the traditions of Día de Muertos. We go along with them as they process their grief, and know they loved ones are never truly gone as long as you remember them.

• Children

• Death of a Pet

When Alexis dies mysteriously on a cold, January morning, her mother Margaret is expected to accept Alexis’s death and her own complicated life without answers. Instead, she begins to search for a perspective that would give her peace to accept the loss of the child who was part of her soul and the courage to believe in tomorrow. A powerful book for any parent of an exceptional child.

• Death of a Child

• Sudden & Traumatic Death

If you, or someone you know, has experienced the death of a child, this book can help you: Find where to turn for help. Support someone who has lost a child. Accommodate to the death of a child and keep on living. Find peace and comfort without forgetting.

• Death of a Child

After the sudden death of her 12 year old daughter after a car accident, author Lucy Hone takes us through her experience with the strategies of resilient grieving, and how they helped her through her inescapable sorrow.

• Sudden & Traumatic Death

Rethinking suicide is a critical examination of what we think about about suicide, particularly on ideas around the assumed role of mental illness. Discusses how research shows suicide is a highly complex problem with many risk factors. This book incorporates firsthand experiences with scientific findings to introduce new perspectives.

• Sudden & Traumatic Death

• Suicide

In this heartfelt book Marilyn Adams shares the loss of her 11-year-old son in a farm incident as well as the process and tremendous growth she experienced to find meaning and purpose today.

• Death of a Child

This book shows how God provides roses--special occasions, people, and memories--to help us through sorrow. Drawing from the loss of her children (crib death, pneumonia, drunk driver collision) Heavilin will help you understand the grieving process, support family members, give insight into sibling grief, and maintain your marriage during this difficult time.

• General

• Death of a Child

Ages 6-10. Explains death as the inevitable end of life and provides three situations in which children experience powerful emotions when someone close has died.

• Children

What happens to children – those unborn, stillborn, or youngsters – when they die? Can you hope to see them again? Can you let go of your fear and guilt? Can God’s love soothe a wound so jagged? With Scriptural authority and the warmth of a pastor’s heart, John MacArthur examines the breadth of the entire bible and reveals in this compelling book that the Heavenly Father’s care for every life.

• Death of a Child

• Religious

Ages 5-8. The story of a young girl whose father has recently died, which deals with the full range of emotions, questions, and worries that children have when a parent has died. Offers ways to remember and honor the lost parent, encourages the open sharing of feelings, and helps children understand that their parents want them to be happy and live their lives fully.

• Children

• Death of a Father

Ages 5-9. Explores the feelings Sam has after his dad dies. Includes a parent’s guide for helping children cope with grief.

• Children

• Death of a Father

This book describes Sarah's grief following her father's death. It offers compassionate practical advice for adults who want to help grieving children.

• Children

• Death of a Father

Ages 5-12. Two young friends, Carly and Savannah, experience the fullness of life by by creating a friendship garden. Unfortunately, tragedy occurs when young Savannah is diagnosed with an incurable form of cancer. As the seasons turn Carly attempts to comprehend death and support her dying friend. When Savannah dies Carly is able to find ways to cope with her grief and honor her friend.

• Children

• Childhood Cancer

Todd Monson's story, as told by his mother, touches the deep center of emotional and spiritual life.

• Death of a Child

• Historical

Until now, not much help has been available for those who have lost a pet. Saying Good-bye to the Pet You Love, written by a psychologist with twenty years of experience as a pet bereavement specialist, helps you understand the very special human-animal bond, which, in turn, can help you deal with your terrible loss.

• Death of a Pet

This book is a remarkable collection of quotations, personal reflections, and prayers intended for those who find themselves in their own “season of grief.” The insights and stories from Ann Dawson’s own experience after the death of her son are carefully placed alongside the comforting and often inspiring words of writers like C.S. Lewis and Kahlil Gibran.

• General

• Death of a Child

On November 3, 2020, Tim and Aileen Challies received the shocking news that their son Nick had died. Seasons of Sorrow includes a selection of Tim's reflections sharing the poignancy of early grief, the doubts and fears that plague us during loss, and the faith and joy that sustain us through sorrow.

• Death of a Child

• Sudden & Traumatic Death / Religious

This book covers topics such as: the steps to rebuilding beliefs, relationships, and happiness; how to honor the past without being dominated by it; what assistance to request from family and friends; how to tell the difference between sadness and depression; when to seek company and when it’s best to be alone; why reminiscing about the past can help create a new future; and why some people take longer than others to recover their love of life.

• Death of a Partner

Shapeshifter is an interactive memoir with art and activities that wraps together my family's story of inherited grief following a tragic childhood death with original art and creative exercises that have helped fuel my recovery and death care work.

• General

• Art, Photography, and Graphic Novel

Hospice chaplain uses three decades of experience interacting with grieving parents to give this heartfelt, easy-to-read and intensely practical book. The author walks the reader through the powerful impact a child's death can have - emotionally, mentally, physically, relationally, and spiritually.

• Death of a Child

A collection of poems following the death of an infant. Expresses grief, anguish and anger.

• Death of a Child

• Death of a Baby

If you have no idea how to help someone when they are grieving the death of a loved one, then this is the book for you. This book was written, based on the experiences of grieving individuals who have been there and were willing to share what were the best and worst things that someone did for them while they were in the midst of their grief.

• General

How the very young can and should be taught about death at school and at home. A resource for teachers of the young, as well as for their parents.

• Helping Children

• Historical

A powerful mix of information, personal reflections, and poetry. The author draws on clinical experience, research, and wisdom from hundreds of bereaved siblings to explain the five healing tasks specific to sibling grief.

• General

• Death of a Sibling

This book consists of poems, letters, diary entries, and essays written by parents, grandparents, professional counselors, siblings, friends, and babysitters-all of whom discuss their personal experiences in confronting SIDS. After an informational opening chapter, the remaining 17 chapters focus on confronting one's loss and that of loved ones and how to move forward.

• Death of a Child

• SIDS

Clara writes of her own grief, and interviews women and men. The moving, honest responses to these interviews tells the reader that through the tears and rage and awful silence, God still loves us and knows our children.

• Death of a Child

• Miscarriage

Provides practical suggestions to validate parents' grief; cope with the unique concerns of early loss, crisis pregnancies, stillbirth, and newborn death; find medical, religious, and family support; and manage their lives afterwards.

• Death of a Child

• Miscarriage

For women and men who are single and dealing with the death of a child in miscarriage, as an infant or as an older child.

• Death of a Child

Book for the child who comes after the one who died. Explains the parents’ desire for a child and the sadness that comes over them when that baby dies. Then shares how the parents get to the point of wanting another child to come into their lives.

• Children

• Death of a Sibling

For children ages 4 and up. A very personal way to help your child deal with the death of a friend or relative. Includes practical suggestions for parents.

• Children

• Helping Children

Designed for adult caregivers to read to surviving youngsters following a suicidal death. 'Wondering if you could have done something to prevent this suicide is normal. Nothing you said or did would have changed what happened.'

• Children

• Suicide

Offers specific details involved in preparing for death, ways of minimizing fear and grief and provides a forum in which people share their first-hand experiences with death.

• Anticipatory / Before the Death

• Historical

Something Very Sad Happened is intended to be read to two- and three-year-old children to help them understand death and process the loss of a loved one. Written at a developmental level that is appropriate for two- and three-year-olds, the story explains death; lets children know that it is okay to feel sad; and reassures children that they can still love the person who died, and the person who died will always love them.

• Children

“As a grieving father, R. Glenn Kelly exposes the inner thoughts of a man who has lost the most precious of gifts; his child. Written with the powerful and honest emotion that only someone who has walked in his shoes can truly understand, R. Glenn provides encouragement, insight, and hope to men who are “in the club no one wants to belong to.

• Death of a Child

• Men and grief

Ages 3 and up. In this story, Sora takes you through the feelings she experiences after the death of her brother. Through this story, children are shown that feeling a range of emotions is okay, and how to cherish special memories after someone we love has died.

• Children

• Sibling Loss

The Sound of Solitude is the most moving, private, and essential collection of verse Rod McKuen has yet been willing to share with his millions of readers. Written in diary form this book details the slow, secret search for love, the joy of finding someone, and the nearly indefinable emptiness left behind when love goes.

• Death of a Partner

The author uses her personal experience of her daughter's death to help other parents deal with their grief in the days, weeks, months and years after losing a child.

• Death of a Child

In Stepparenting the Grieving Child, Diane Ingram Fromme shares the assumptions and presumptions, steps and missteps that occurred within her own stepfamily. Diane faced the key challenges any new stepparent to grieving children experiences, including helplessness to know how and when to offer comfort, awkwardness to identify the times and ways to memorialize the lost parent, and outsider blues--not only feeling uncomfortable in her own home but also in her own skin.

• Helping Children

• Death of a Parent

Lena Heilmann lost her sister, Danielle, to suicide in 2012. In this book, she shares the stories of other suicide loss survivors to share comfort, heling, and connection. These essays bring you through the first years of grieving, to the decades that come after. They tell stories of grief, support, and strength.

• Sudden & Traumatic Death

• Suicide
• Sibling Loss