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When You Lose Someone You Love, Gift Edition (CompanionHouse Books) Offer Solace and Comfort and Encourage Healing in a Difficult Time of Grief; Gentle Insight for Anyone Who Has Lost a Loved One
An incredible gift of comfort for anyone who has lost a loved one. Providing gentle comfort and healing with life-affirming insights from the personal grief journal of award-winning artist, author Joanne Fink, When You Lose Someone You Love, Gift Edition is a beautiful 116-page hardcover book with the look and feel of a very personal and empathetic greeting card. Filled with expressive sentiments and beautiful illustrations, this special and heartfelt book offers a healing connection with all who have suffered a loss and are in mourning. Everyone who has lost a loved one—whether recently or years ago—will connect with the thoughtful sentiments and beautifully simple illustrations inside this book. Joanne journaled this book as a way of dealing with her own unimaginable loss. Page by page, you'll understand that you are not alone; that there will be days when you feel overwhelmed, nights when you can't sleep, and times when waves of sadness wash over you unexpectedly. Affirming and cathartic, this comforting book will help bring healing without sugarcoating the devastating heartbreak and challenges of losing a loved one. When You Lose Someone You Love makes a perfect sympathy gift for someone you care about, offering comfort, hope, and healing to anyone who endures the journey of losing a spouse, family member, or close friend. "Everyone's grief journey is different... and the ability to emerge with your soul intact is dependent upon your willingness to do the excruciatingly difficult work that grieving requires. It is a long and lonely process, and no-one can accept the reality of YOUR loss for YOU... it is something that you must do for yourself. One of the things I've learned on my journey is that love is a force so powerful that it transcends death."—Joanne Fink
- GenresNonfictionGriefSelf Help
112 pages, Hardcover
Published April 9, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
November 6, 2019
As I come upon the third anniversary of the loss of my husband, I become very emotional and feel his loss even more. I have days that I don't want to do anything, somedays, I don't even get out of my pyjamas. I read this little book to see what the author could possibly share with me about grief that I hadn't already experienced. What I found was a lovely little book with short comments and sentiments couples with beautiful artistic illustrations. Was anything in this book new to me? Not really, but, it validated some of what I feel. Many people think that it has been three years and should be "over it" by now. Some people ask if I am going to start "dating". I don't know what my future will hold, but I am still grieving. I know I still love my husband and miss him terribly. I still feel like a fifth wheel at certain events. And all this is okay and normal. Thanks Joanne Fink for validating how I feel and letting me know that I am not alone. I recommend this book to anyone who had lost a loved one and just needs to hear and see that you are not alone, and it is okay to feel the way you do. Thanks to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book upon my request. The rating, ideas and opinions shared are my own.
October 17, 2020
"On August 3rd, my beloved husband, Andy Trattner, lay down to take a nap, had a heart attack while he was sleeping, and never woke up. He was only 53."
God, I didn't expect this to make me tear up. Joanne Fink had to make the terrible experience of waking up next to her dead husband. She uses this book as an opportunity to visualise what grief and a-life-after feels like.
Everyone will lose someone. It's a hard reality to face, but it's an inevitable part of the human experience. If you haven't grieved over someone yet, you will most likely at some point in your life. And despite this being such a fundamental part of living, I feel that it's very little spoken about – even just writing this like I did felt harsh and insensitive. We don't really know how to talk to people who have recently experienced loss, we treat them with care and empathy, we're sorry for them, and yet you know that they'll remain feeling disconnected from the world when going through something like that.
Fink does a terrific job at finding the words that summarise how irrational grieving can feel, how you can be great one day and feeling the worst the next. It's a process, it's got ups and downs and most of all: it takes time. She seems to understand that there's still hope to be felt, that good things will continue to happen to you and that it's not going to end all things. Love can be eternal, you don't have to stop caring for someone just because you won't get to see them anymore.
As a little disclaimer – I am not currently processing a loss myself, I didn't need this book for comfort or solidarity. But loss will always be part of our lives, and for those grieving I can assure you that this will give you the little comfort that a book can in those circumstances.
God, I didn't expect this to make me tear up. Joanne Fink had to make the terrible experience of waking up next to her dead husband. She uses this book as an opportunity to visualise what grief and a-life-after feels like.
Everyone will lose someone. It's a hard reality to face, but it's an inevitable part of the human experience. If you haven't grieved over someone yet, you will most likely at some point in your life. And despite this being such a fundamental part of living, I feel that it's very little spoken about – even just writing this like I did felt harsh and insensitive. We don't really know how to talk to people who have recently experienced loss, we treat them with care and empathy, we're sorry for them, and yet you know that they'll remain feeling disconnected from the world when going through something like that.
Fink does a terrific job at finding the words that summarise how irrational grieving can feel, how you can be great one day and feeling the worst the next. It's a process, it's got ups and downs and most of all: it takes time. She seems to understand that there's still hope to be felt, that good things will continue to happen to you and that it's not going to end all things. Love can be eternal, you don't have to stop caring for someone just because you won't get to see them anymore.
As a little disclaimer – I am not currently processing a loss myself, I didn't need this book for comfort or solidarity. But loss will always be part of our lives, and for those grieving I can assure you that this will give you the little comfort that a book can in those circumstances.
December 23, 2020
I love this heartfelt book and how pages of black and white images emerge into colorful pages as the healing process occurs. Here are the sentiments that I related to the most:
*When you lose someone you love everything seems disjointed-time seems to move at a different pace for you than for everyone else.
*There are days you wonder how you can go on without them...some days you don't want to-other days you want to live your best life to make them proud of you.
*When you lose someone you love it helps to look up at the stars and imagine that the light of your loved one's soul is shining down upon you to light your way.
*When you lose someone you love everything seems disjointed-time seems to move at a different pace for you than for everyone else.
*There are days you wonder how you can go on without them...some days you don't want to-other days you want to live your best life to make them proud of you.
*When you lose someone you love it helps to look up at the stars and imagine that the light of your loved one's soul is shining down upon you to light your way.
April 6, 2020
This is suppose to be a journal from a woman who lost her husband a little bit of time ago. As a result it does explore down deep what it feels like to face each emotion, each response to the loss and the searching behind such a deep loss.
The words are all true but I think I love it best when the author mentions in the Epilogue that each grief journey is different and that people will react differently as they go through their grief. I can honestly say that I am most definitely one of those who may seem insincere in my grief for I seem to be able to move on pretty easy so far, which I can't even really explain to myself why I do so.
What I love about this book is the fact that if this was a journal it was more or less a sketch journal but even so I love it. Each two page spread focuses on sketches or doodles, which are themed upon the writing of the page. This pairing helps the reader to stay on track while making the transition of each thought to be seamless.
Another thing that I truly enjoy is that the book follows a clear grayscale coloring palette at the beginning but it slowly grows to add more color once the tone changes. As a result you can see how the author slowly struggles through the grief and the mourning but then slowly is able to count her blessings from the tragedy. And then to finally get her feet back underneath her as she starts life without her spouse.
Heartwarming and inspiring this is definitely a must-have for anyone who has ever experienced such deep lost, especially if they are still struggling to find ground underneath their feet.
***I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review***
The words are all true but I think I love it best when the author mentions in the Epilogue that each grief journey is different and that people will react differently as they go through their grief. I can honestly say that I am most definitely one of those who may seem insincere in my grief for I seem to be able to move on pretty easy so far, which I can't even really explain to myself why I do so.
What I love about this book is the fact that if this was a journal it was more or less a sketch journal but even so I love it. Each two page spread focuses on sketches or doodles, which are themed upon the writing of the page. This pairing helps the reader to stay on track while making the transition of each thought to be seamless.
Another thing that I truly enjoy is that the book follows a clear grayscale coloring palette at the beginning but it slowly grows to add more color once the tone changes. As a result you can see how the author slowly struggles through the grief and the mourning but then slowly is able to count her blessings from the tragedy. And then to finally get her feet back underneath her as she starts life without her spouse.
Heartwarming and inspiring this is definitely a must-have for anyone who has ever experienced such deep lost, especially if they are still struggling to find ground underneath their feet.
***I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review***
November 20, 2022
A gut-puncher. Will be helpful to use with clients.
November 21, 2017
Author and artist Joanne Fink’s husband Andy died suddenly at only 53 years of age. After 29 years of marriage, Joanne was devastated by his death. A few weeks after he died she began journaling and drawing her thoughts. When You Lose Someone You Love is the result of those cathartic writings and sketches.
This pocket-sized book (it’s 4x6, the dimensions of a photo, and ¼ inch thick) would fit in a small handbag. The pages alternate between artistically whimsical black and white line drawings and easily readable text utilizing a variety of casual craft-type fonts.
Here are some of my favorite pages (I can’t quote page numbers because there aren’t any):
Did I say the drawings were black and white. Well, that’s not entirely true for toward the book’s end color begins to make an appearance on the pages (a wonderful metaphor for what’s happening in the bereaved one’s heart and life) … just a bit at first with a little more color added on each succeeding page until the last full-color pages.
This book would make a perfect gift for a new widow, widower, or person who has just said goodbye to a parent, child, sibling or close friend. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen another publication quite like it. It’s a beautiful and thoughtful way to share sympathy and caring.
I received this book as a gift from the publisher for the purpose of writing a review.
This pocket-sized book (it’s 4x6, the dimensions of a photo, and ¼ inch thick) would fit in a small handbag. The pages alternate between artistically whimsical black and white line drawings and easily readable text utilizing a variety of casual craft-type fonts.
Here are some of my favorite pages (I can’t quote page numbers because there aren’t any):
“When you lose someone you love everything seems disjointed.
TIME seems to move at a different pace for you than for everyone else.”
“When you lose someone you love, you can be OK for hours or even days at a time and then totally lose it for No reason at all.”
“When you lose someone you love, you begin your life journey anew.”
Did I say the drawings were black and white. Well, that’s not entirely true for toward the book’s end color begins to make an appearance on the pages (a wonderful metaphor for what’s happening in the bereaved one’s heart and life) … just a bit at first with a little more color added on each succeeding page until the last full-color pages.
This book would make a perfect gift for a new widow, widower, or person who has just said goodbye to a parent, child, sibling or close friend. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen another publication quite like it. It’s a beautiful and thoughtful way to share sympathy and caring.
I received this book as a gift from the publisher for the purpose of writing a review.
October 21, 2017
This would make the perfect gift to give someone who has just lost a loved one. It will last longer than flowers and will be there when the person needs a special lift in their spirits. The sentiments expressed in this small book are ones that we've all thought at one time or another. But this book gives you "permission" to think them, even say them out loud. The illustrations are beautiful. I especially like the placement of color. It's very meaningful.
October 4, 2017
This book arrived at just the right time. My family was getting ready to lay one of our family members to rest. While it was comforting to know Pappy was with Grandma again, it was hard to let him go.
This book arrived at just the right time. My family was getting ready to lay one of our family members to rest. While it was comforting to know Pappy was with Grandma again, it was hard to let him go.
The hardest part was not knowing what to do for his immediate family. My friend Tammy is an only child. We lost her mom in 2016 and now her father in 2017. Tammy is married with 3 children of her own that are devastated.
I gave this book to Tammy after I read it, she loved it and said it helped her in her state of grieving.
This book is actual pages from the author Joanne’s personal journal from when she lost her husband. Through her grief, and opening up a very personal private part of her life, she is helping many others in their grieving process.
Remember: it’s ok to grieve in any way you see fit to. Cry, Scream, whatever it takes. Just remember that our loved ones that have moved on are always with us in our hearts and watching over us.
This book arrived at just the right time. My family was getting ready to lay one of our family members to rest. While it was comforting to know Pappy was with Grandma again, it was hard to let him go.
The hardest part was not knowing what to do for his immediate family. My friend Tammy is an only child. We lost her mom in 2016 and now her father in 2017. Tammy is married with 3 children of her own that are devastated.
I gave this book to Tammy after I read it, she loved it and said it helped her in her state of grieving.
This book is actual pages from the author Joanne’s personal journal from when she lost her husband. Through her grief, and opening up a very personal private part of her life, she is helping many others in their grieving process.
Remember: it’s ok to grieve in any way you see fit to. Cry, Scream, whatever it takes. Just remember that our loved ones that have moved on are always with us in our hearts and watching over us.
March 13, 2020
I recently attended a multi-session class for educators on grief in children. During one class we shared books on grief that were at several different reading levels. This book is beautiful and shows a progression through grief from the time it is first experienced, about growing and feeling and back toward a new normal of life without your loved one. After reading this, I lost my beloved (13 y.o.) dog, Karmen who was with me through 3 surgeries, loss of 6 family members and some other serious losses, to working in hospice & training as a vigil volunteer. The illustrations in this book are powerful and amazing. I will not say what happens during the story, except to say it is beautiful and a must-read by anyone who has experienced grief. The high school teacher who shared this book with us had an opportunity to share it with a student who desperately needed it at that moment. I would recommend keeping a copy for just such moments.
January 13, 2021
*I received an ARC of this book from Fox Chapel Publishing through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
Shortly after reading this book I lost my grandmother. When that happened, I recalled some passages from the book and found them to be painfully accurate. Even if the type of loss is not at all the same (, I found myself in the author’s words more than once. The illustrations are perfectly paired to the sentiment of the whole book, beautiful. Some “feel” calming and reassuring, while others convey a sense of quiet despair. I would recommend this book to anyone dealing with grief, not immediately after losing a loved one, it feels more appropriate for someone who is already in the process of accepting such a terrible loss. These pages are filled with much needed beauty and hope.
Shortly after reading this book I lost my grandmother. When that happened, I recalled some passages from the book and found them to be painfully accurate. Even if the type of loss is not at all the same (, I found myself in the author’s words more than once. The illustrations are perfectly paired to the sentiment of the whole book, beautiful. Some “feel” calming and reassuring, while others convey a sense of quiet despair. I would recommend this book to anyone dealing with grief, not immediately after losing a loved one, it feels more appropriate for someone who is already in the process of accepting such a terrible loss. These pages are filled with much needed beauty and hope.
December 1, 2019
A series of slightly platitudinous comments about grief, from a designer and writer with experience of losing her husband. I'm too lucky to have needed this so far in my life, so I'm not sure how effective I would find it were I to be in the market for such self-help. Certainly the designs are good, with lovely fonts throughout to dramatise things and make all the pages dynamic and pretty, and the mid-way inclusion of colour shows to some extent there is always a change for the better in the middle of the grieving process. I don't feel this was exactly a book I would choose to give to someone mourning for someone else, either – but I wouldn't wish harm on its creators, nor of course those who do find it a comfort.
October 31, 2021
It is very refreshing to come across a book that validates what grieving feels like rather than analyzing it from a professional point of view. The simplicity of this book is its beauty as the author describes feelings, attitudes, etc as one who truly knows the feel of grief on a personal level. Only someone who walks a grief journey can relate to its stark reality. A lovely book to receive or give to someone experiencing grief of a loved one.
September 28, 2017
A big thank you from NetGalley for the ARC. I am voluntarily reviewing this book. I wasn't sure what to expect but I was a little disappointed as to me it was a lot of platitudes. I know it was her personal grief book and maybe it would help some people but for me not so much. I do appreciate the sentiment.
October 25, 2019
A big thank you to NetGalley and Fox Chapel Publishing for the ARC. I am voluntarily reviewing this book. My brother just passed away and I am still reeling. This book doesn't say anything new, it just puts it all in the same place. Reminds us that you are not alone. Beautiful and thoughtful. 5 stars
September 15, 2021
Having lost my husband less than two weeks ago, this book so resonated with me. It put into words and gentle illustrations everything I've been thinking and feeling. I was in tears reading this and it reinforced the knowledge that I am not alone.
This book was given as a gift and was truly, the perfect gift at this sad, life-changing time.
This book was given as a gift and was truly, the perfect gift at this sad, life-changing time.
November 15, 2019
Beautiful little book on grief. Illustrations are lovely and prose is helpful/ validating. It is geared towards someone who lost a spouse more than someone who lost a stillborn baby, but still very nice.
March 10, 2020
As a clinician, I’m always looking for books to use in therapy with children (and adults). Books provide a safe way for children to connect with emotions and feelings of the characters in the story. This was one of those books.
March 6, 2021
This is a very touching book. It did make the tears flow. While not all emotions maybe experienced, it is a such an experience that is different for everyone. I look forward to checking out her blog
April 21, 2026
Cole Imperi would give this sweet little book out.
August 20, 2025
The art style is cute, it’s a collection of quotes abt losing sb u love, i would love to read this when I feel like having my tears shed lol.
November 11, 2019
"You don't stop loving someone just because they aren't here anymore."
The author shares her loss and how journaling has helped her. Beautiful book about her loss.
Thank you to publisher and NetGalley for ARC
The author shares her loss and how journaling has helped her. Beautiful book about her loss.
Thank you to publisher and NetGalley for ARC
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews