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Book Review of Five Cries of Grief: One Family's Journey to Healing After the Tragic Death of a Son

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On August 12, 1986 twenty-five-year-old David Strommen was struck and killed by a bolt of lightening. The tragedy sent his parents reeling with grief. Out of that grief came a journey toward healing--a journey that is chronicled in this extraordinary book.

The Strommens enountered five cries of grief--the cry of pain, from the awareness of their devasting loss; the cry of longing, from missing their son; the cry for supportive love, from the extreme sense of vulnerability they experienced; the cry of understanding, as they tried to attribute meaning to a meaningless loss; and the cry for significance, as they strove to see some good result from this tragedy.

As they wrote accounts of their journey, they recognized that the grief of a father may differ significantly from that of a mother. Thier stories--voiced in alternating chapters--launch a journey that can provide strength, insight, and renewal for all who experience the heartbreak of a loved one's sudden death.

"A powerful and moving book written from the individual perspectives of a mother and father." Roland and Doris Larson, consulting psychologist and co-trainer