The Secret Life of Grief: A Memoir

Winner of the Nautilus Silver Book AwardWhen Tanja Pajevics mother died she felt alone and unsupported. She didnt want her grief to sideline her as it had when her father died. This time around she wanted to grieve consciously.But how?In a society that no longer has clear rituals or traditions around grief Tanja set out to create her own. As the weeks and months passed Tanja a first-generation Serbian-American woman delved into her anger rage and sorrow as well as explored the complicated issue of forgiveness. Along the way she explored the rise and fall of communal mourning in the United States as well as its roots in the current medical model.Tanja also examined ingrained family patterns she was ready to release--all while raising two young children and dealing with a husband facing his own challenges. Throughout she reassessed and reconfigured her life reconnected with her true self and found redemption and healing as well as joy.Written in fierce honest prose The Secret Life of Grief is a book for anyone who isnt willing to pull it together and act like nothings wrong. The Secret Life of Grief is a book for those of us who believe in the transformative power of loss. And its a book for those of us who believe in love.