An Intimate Loneliness: Supporting Bereaved Parents and Siblings (Facing Death)
Gordon Riches, Pam Dawson

This book is a significant contribution to the life and work we call bereavement. It not only speaks well of the unique issues that surround the grief issues felt by parents and siblings on their own, but serves well to demonstrate the interplay (and interdependence) that comes as parents and siblings grieve around the same losses.

Three questions are addressed well: What impact does a child's death have on family relationships? How might differences in the way mothers and fathers deal with bereavement contribute to increased marital tension? Why are bereaved siblings so deeply affected by the way their parents grieve?

Some of the key issues include intimate loneliness, bringing order out of chaos, problems of adjustment for bereaved parents, connections and disconnections, problems of adjustment in response to difficult deaths. An extensive bibliography is included.