This is a delightful book, well written in four distinct parts. The first part is a series of short pieces, designed for people who are not up for reading anything lengthy. Grief dissolves the ability to concentrate but picking up something brief and meaningful to read can add a slither of value to the day. The material is consoling, relevant and varied and addresses the real, and often unmentioned, troubles that accompany the loss of a loved one. The second section is an anthology of readings, poetry and prose, from different times and places, on the different aspects moods and experiences of grieving. This section concludes with a few pieces that are specifically Christian. The third section is the personal account of the first year of the author's bereavement and the post mortem experiences of her husband. This material is not filtered through memory but, being taken from the journal writings, comes straight, as it was at the time. The last section of the book suggests, through the work of several authors, different ways of understanding the continuation of life after death. This is an unusual book, combining as it does useful, intelligent advice, moving and delightful poetry and the evidence and hope of life hereafter. Grief's Hermitage is not designed as a Christian handbook, though it does contain some religious material. It is not easy to engage with bereavement and the Afterlife without some reference to spirituality; many thoughtful writers have started from a spiritual viewpoint, but that aside, the very nature of the material leads one beyond ordinary day-time realities to consider a wider, trans-personal context.
