The Art of Condolence : What to Write, What to Say, What to Do at a Time of Loss

Rating:
Summary: "What Do I Say, What Do I Do?"
Review: As one who spends my professional life with grieving people and the professionals who care for them, one of the most common questions I hear is, "Do you have any suggestions about what to say/what to do. . .?" In a thoughtful, practical book, the Zunins have made that question much easier to answer!

I especially like the section on what to write in condolence notes and cards. After my Dad died in 1993, the cards that came that "told the stories" and helped us remember were the real "keepers." The stories and remembrances bring fond recollections to the family and friends and help through the healing process of bereavement.

If you've ever wondered, "What do I say, do, or write?" this book is for you. You'll find yourself going back to it again and again.

Rating:
Summary: excellent addition to your library
Review: As one who spends my professional life with grieving people and the professionals who care for them, one of the most common questions I hear is, "Do you have any suggestions about what to say/what to do. . .?" In a thoughtful, practical book, the Zunins have made that question much easier to answer!

I especially like the section on what to write in condolence notes and cards. After my Dad died in 1993, the cards that came that "told the stories" and helped us remember were the real "keepers." The stories and remembrances bring fond recollections to the family and friends and help through the healing process of bereavement.

If you've ever wondered, "What do I say, do, or write?" this book is for you. You'll find yourself going back to it again and again.

Rating:
Summary: excellent addition to your library
Review: I recently lost my beloved cat of 14 years. At the same time our neighbors lost two of their beloved dogs. We were all floundering in grief and what to do and say. This book helped me with my own grief and also allowed me to say and do things better with others.

Rating:
Summary: Help at a difficult time
Review: When my father first recommended this book as I was struggling to write a letter to the family of a friend killed by a drunk driver, I was skeptical. "How can a book tell me what to write?" I thought. "I don't want this to be some kind of form letter. This is personal." But the letter that The Art of Condolence helped me to write was anything but distant. The book guided me with sensitivity through one of the most difficult tasks I've ever faced, and the result was a deeply personal letter offering my condolences and memories of my friend. To my amazement, several different members of the family independently thanked me for the letter and told me how powerful it was for them. Finally, this book made what could have been a wrenchingly empty and frustrating task into a cathartic process that helped me grieve as I remembered my friend.