Product Description

The death of a loved one is the most traumatic experience any of us face. No two people cope with it the same way: some cry while others remain dry-eyed; some discover growth through pain, others find arid wastes; some feel angry, others feel numb. Virginia Ironside deals with this complicated and sensitive issue with great frankness and insight, drawing on other's people's accounts as well as her own experiences.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #33364 in Books
• Published on: 1997-04-24
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

About the Author
Virginia Ironside lives in London W12. As well as being a journalist she has also written several novels and children's books, including Made for Each Other. She has been a problem page editor - at Woman and the Sunday Mirror - for many years and also has a regular column in the Independent.

Customer Reviews

Excellant, well written and sensitive book.
I came to this book as a result of the death of my Father to find that the author had felt compelled to write the book after the death of her own Father. When first skimming through the pages looking for any kind of answer to the confusion going on in my mind, I found, at first, the book to be too angry and raw. However after the initial shock of my Father's death wore off I was surprised to find how the overwelming emotion I felt was white hot rage and suddenly the book made sense. However Virginia Ironside's book is not just about rage but about the many different and confusing emotions bereaved people feel.

The book is particularly well written, with each chapter looking at a new aspect of grief. She pours scorn on the usual sentimental approach to bereavement and the platitudes which are meant to make us feel better and instead looks for some honesty - painful as it may be.

Despite being a very angry and brutally honest account the book is ultimately caring and hopeful and it helped me more than anything else I have read. At present it is on my bedside table and I keep reading bits at night when I wake up, sleepless and bewildered.

I would recommend this to anybody who has suffered a bereavement and would advise that you are not put off by the book's brutal honesty.

An honest and comforting story about grief.
A truely excellent account of grief,quite frank and beautifully honest,which I personally found refreshing and needed.
The title 'You'll get over it'sums the book up.Will you ever get over someone you truely loved so much?People think they are being a comfort whilst saying this,Virginia picks up well on this and uses appropriate sarcasm.
I lost my dad at the begginig of the year(2002).
This book has guided me through all the emotions I have been feeling,almost mirroring my own thoughts and feelings.
I feel this is a definate for the bereaved as it makes you realise that what you feel isn't 'mad' or 'foolish' it is grief.
Thankyou Virginia.

Helpful and thought provoking
After a desperate trawl through the endless books on bereavement looking for words that would mean something to me, I was given this book by a friend. Books on bereavement can only offer so much, as ultimately your loss is unique, but as much as any book can help, then this book did. Virginia Ironside has managed to write a book that makes sense to person who currently sees the world as a senseless place. When I read this book (the first time, in one sitting) there were lots of times I wanted to say "Yes, that's it, I'm not going mad!". If you've suffered a bereavement or know someone who is suffering, this is one book amongst the many that will help. A real life-line.