Books and Brochures

Books

As we grieve the death of our loved ones, some of us have taken comfort in reading. Donor family volunteers have compiled a list of recommended books based on topics such as bereaved parents, helping children and teens grieve, suicide, general bereavement and more. If you would like to recommend a book for donor families, please let us know.

Other Resources

The National Donor Family Council would like to thank former Executive Committee member and donor father Dr. John Moyer for compiling this extensive list of books for grieving families and caregivers. Most of the following books can be obtained at your local library, bookstore or by writing to the publisher.

For Donor Families

  • Healing The Spirit by Robin Cowherd More
  • Caring for Donor Families: Before, During, and After by RaeLynn Maloney and Alan D. Wolfelt
  • To the Edge and Back: My Story from Organ Transplant Survivor to Olympic Snowboarder by Chris Klug with Steve Jackson

For Bereaved Parents

  • Forever Ours by Janis Amatuzio, MD
  • Let Your Light Shine by Ann King Lishinski
  • Finding Your Way after Your Child Dies by Phyllis Vos Wezeman and Kenneth R. Wezeman
  • Help Your Marriage Survive the Death of a Child by Paul C. Rosenblatt
  • A Broken Heart Still Beats: After Your Child Dies by Anne McCracken
  • After the Darkest Hour the Sun Will Shine Again: A Parent's Guide to Coping With the Loss of a Child by Elizabeth Mehren

Helping Children and Teens Grieve

  • The Next Place by Warren Hanson More
  • How Do We Tell the Children?: A Step-by-Step Guide for Helping Children Two to Teen Cope when Someone Dies by Dan Schaefer and Christine Lyons
  • Teenagers Face to Face with Bereavement by Karen Gravelle and Charles Haskins
  • Healing Your Grieving Heart for Teens: 100 Practical Ideas by Alan D. Wolfelt
  • 35 Ways to Help a Grieving Child by Dougy Center
  • Guiding Your Child Through Grief by Mary Ann Ann and James P. Emswiler
  • When Father Kills Mother: Guiding Children through Trauma and Grief by Jean Harris Hendriks and Tony Kaplan
  • Nobody's Child Anymore: Grieving, Caring and Comforting When Parents Die by Barbara Bartocci

Parental Death

  • Finding Your Way After Your Parent Dies: Hope for Grieving Adults by Richard B. Gilbert
  • When Parents Die: A Guide for Adults by Edward P. Myers
  • Motherless Daughters: The Legacy of Loss by Hope Edelman
  • The Orphaned Adult: Understanding and Coping with Grief and Change after the Death of Our Parents by Alexander Levy

Sibling Support

  • Recovering from the Loss of a Sibling by Katherine Fair Donnelly
  • The Dawn of Hope: Encouragement for Those Who Grieve by Eldyn Simons (Editor)

Death of a Spouse

  • Widower's House: A Study in Bereavement or how Margot and Mella Forced Me to Flee My Home by John Bayley
  • A Grief Observed by C. S. Lewis
  • Finding Your Way After Your Spouse Dies by Marta Felber
  • The Way of Transition: Embracing Life's Most Difficult Moments by William Bridges
  • The Grief Journey: Coping with the Death of a Spouse or Lifetime Companion by National Kidney Foundation

Bereaved Grandparents

  • Grandparents Cry Twice: Help for Bereaved Grandparents by Mary Lou Reed and John D. Morgan

General Bereavement

  • Catching Your Breath in Grief by Tom Attig (available at Amazon.com)
  • How Do I Live through Grief: Strength and Hope in Times of Loss by Harold Bauman
  • Journey of Love: A Guide for the Grieving by Sharon I. Eve
  • When Suffering Persists by Frederick W. Schmidt
  • Nothing Left Unsaid: Words to Help You and Your Loved Ones through Illness or Death by Carol Orsborn
  • The Infinite Thread: Healing Relationships Beyond Loss by Alexandra Kennedy and John O'Donohue
  • The Good Grief Guide: How to Come through Bereavement with Hope for the Future and at Peace with the Past by Michael Dunn
  • For Those We Love but See No Longer: The Daily Office for Times of Grief by Lisa Belcher
  • After Goodbye: How to Begin Again after the Death of Someone You Love by Ted Menten
  • Seasons of Grief and Healing: A Guide for Those Who Mourn by James E. Miller
  • Awakening from Grief: Finding the Road Back to Joy by John E. Welshons
  • No Time for Goodbyes: Coping with Sorrow, Anger, and Injustice After a Tragic Death by Janice Harris Lord
  • I Wasn't Ready to Say Goodbye: Surviving, Coping and Healing after the Death of a Loved One by Brook Noel and Pamela D. Blair
  • When You Lose Someone You Love: Comfort for Those Who Grieve by Richard Exley
  • Speak to Me: Grief, Love, and What Endures by Marcie Hershman
  • Against the Dying of the Light: A Father's Journey through Loss by Leonard J. Fein
  • Don't Let Death Ruin Your Life: A Practical Guide to Reclaiming Happiness after the Death of a Loved One by Jill Brooke
  • Dealing with Grief and Loss: Hope in the Midst of Pain by Serendipity House
  • Grief Passages by Gale Davis Stewart
  • A Beacon for Life by Karen Van Den Heuvel

Suicide

  • After Suicide: Living with the Quest by Eileen Kuehn
  • Life After Suicide: A Ray of Hope for Those Left Behind by E.Betsy Ross

Religious

  • Where Is God when Bad Things Happen?: Finding Solace in Times of Trouble by Luis Palau

For Friends and Caregivers

  • Don't Ask for the Dead Man's Golf Clubs: What to Do and Say (and What Not to) When a Friend Loses a Loved One by Lynn Kelly
  • Beyond Sympathy: What To Say and Do for Someone Suffering an Injury or Loss by Janice Harris Lord

Writing Through Grief

  • Finding What You Didn't Lose: Expressing Your Truth and Creativity Through Poem-Making by John Fox
  • Write from Your Heart: A Healing Grief Journal by Katherine Peterson
  • Writing to Heal the Soul: Transforming Grief and Loss Through Writing by Susan Zimmerman