To Find Hope: Simple Wisdom for Those Who Grieve

by Karlene Kay Ryan

Book Overview

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0809137356
• ISBN13: 9780809137350
• Release Date: January 1997
• Publisher: Paulist Press
• Length: 59 Pages
• Weight: 0.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 7.0" x 5.0"

Customer Reviews

A gentle and compassionate book

"To Find Hope: Simple Wisdom for Those Who Grieve" is a series of short thoughts for individuals going through the grieving process. In a foreword, author Karlene Kay Ryan explains that her 19-year old son was killed in a car accident in 1986; she describes this book as "a simply written synopsis of wisdom born from experience."I think that what she has written is applicable to various situations of grief. But several of the entries are specifically about dealing with the loss of a child, so if you get this book for someone dealing with another kind of grief, they might find these sections disorienting. Also, this book is very much geared towards a theistic audience (one's relationship with God is mentioned several times), so it is probably not appropriate for readers with a more secular orientation.Overall, I found this to be a compassionate and gentle book with some good practical advice. She includes some practical exercises for the grieving parent. However, I should note that two of her exercises are not environmentally friendly (one suggests releasing helium balloons, and another suggests scattering ripped paper in the wind). Much of the book has a "New Age-y" feel, such as when she says "You will be one with God and your child."Overall, I respect Karlene Kay Ryan for taking her personal grief and using her experience as a way to help others. Whatever its flaws or limitations, "To Find Hope" is an admirable book which, I believe, has the potential to bring peace to many.