On Grieving the Death of a Father

by Harold Ivan Smith

Not many books have been written to help the grieving son or daughter deal with the new reality of a deceased father. Smith has combined personal stories from Frederick Buechner, Norman Vincent Peale, Corrie ten Boom, James Dobson, and many other well- known people to help others through their grieving process.

Genres: Grief, Nonfiction

140 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

Harold Ivan Smith, 1947-

Harold Ivan Smith, MA, ED.S., FT, DMin, is a national speaker, noted author, experienced counselor and grief educator. He has presented bereavement workshops across the country, training more than 20,000 professionals and lay caregivers during a thirty-year career. Seminar and conference attendees rave about interactions with Harold Ivan, and his insightful gifts of helping, healing, and facilitating grief.

A prolific writer, he has authored dozens of books and resources, included best seller, A Decembered Grief: Living with Loss When Others are Celebrating. Also among his titles are Griefkeeping: Learning How Long Grief Lasts; ABCs of Healthy Bereavement; Grievers Ask, When You Don’t Know What to Say; When Your Friend Dies; Finding Your Way to Say Goodbye: Comfort for the Dying and Those Who Care for Them; and Grieving the Death of a Father. His newest book, Using Biographical and Historical Grief Narratives With The Bereaving (Routledge).

He is also an authority of the griefs of American Presidents and First Ladies. He facilitates Grief Gatherings, an innovative storytelling program at Saint Luke’s Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri, where he is a member of the teaching faculty. Harold Ivan is active in the Association for Death Education and Counseling (ADEC) and is designated a Fellow in Thanatology (FT).

Reviews

[Grada (BoekenTrol) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shortly after my father died I received this book from a fellow bookcrosser.
It took me over a year to finally start reading it. It appears that I never really properly gave my thoughts on it, although I thought I did...

From what I thought then:
What a wonderful book.
Nearly two years ago I received it as a gift after my father died. I kept it close, but although I had been leafing through it, I never actually started reading.
Untill two days ago. And now I've finished. I must admit here, that I skipped the biblical parts, because if I feel likecreading those, I'll look up the passages in my own bible. Then the text lands better, so to speak.

I have had a weekend of remembering and (partially) reliving what happened. Well, it helped. I liked this book and will certainly get back to it from time to time.

[Charlotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book from my friend Martha a few weeks after my dad died. The book is divided into four sections: First Thoughts, The Burying, The Mourning, The Remembering. The author has interspersed his own thoughts and experiences in each section, with quotes from a variety of people, some well known, and some obscure. These sons and daughters include very diverse experiences and represent a wide span of father-child relationships. Each part ended with a section called Moments of Comfort and had quotations, scriptures, hymns, prayers... It was easy reading. Some ideas resonated with my experiences, some were very different, some made me grateful for the dad I had, some made me ache for missed opportunities. Perhaps the strongest messages are that there are many forms of grief, but all are okay.

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

My mom bought this book for me after my dad's death in Dec. 07. There were many letters/writing by different people who suffered the same loss. It was extreamly helpful in dealing with the emotions that come along with losing a father. I made notes and highlighted things that really spoke to me and from time to time thumb through it.

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was just okay. The authors shared experience on losing their father I valued. The seemingly never ending list of famous individuals experiences took away from the text. Mind you I did not know many of these individuals. I should have paid a closer eye to the text being written in 1994 before I purchased it I suppose. The text started off strong and meant well but ultimately fell flat. Also there are heavy Christian elements which was unbeknownst to me before opening the text so if you lean otherwise beware.

[Charlotte Falkner · Rating 1 out of 5]

The introduction was the only good part. The rest was like a book report--detailing the grief of historical figures and nauseum plus lots and lots of Bible quotes.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I lost my Dad 12 months ago and it has taken me this long to read it as it's been a long and painful process. I felt comfort reading about other peoples losses from their perspective as it's the same situation but everyone handles it so differently. I found it a great help, and would recommend it to those who are also struggling with the same emotions.

[Kristina · Rating 3 out of 5]

My friend gave me this book before I headed home for my dad's funeral. It features writings from famous people (and not-so-famous people) whose fathers have died. It also has lots of nice quotes about loss, grief and fathers.