|
Books > Health, Home & Family > Family & health > Family & other relationships
As heard on the HOW TO FAIL podcast with Elizabeth Day 'I was
utterly floored by the emotional depth of About A Son - a book that
reaches so deeply into the human experience that to read it is to
be forever changed. It is an unflinching examination of grief, a
painstaking deconstruction of injustice and a dispatch from the
frontiers of the human heart' Elizabeth Day On the evening of
Halloween in 2015, Morgan Hehir was walking with friends close to
Nuneaton town centre when they were viciously attacked by a group
of strangers. Morgan was stabbed, and died hours later in hospital.
He was twenty years old and loved making music with his band, going
to the football with his mates, having a laugh; a talented graffiti
artist who dreamed of moving away and building a life for himself
by the sea. From the moment he heard the news, Morgan's father
Colin Hehir began to keep an extraordinary diary. It became a
record not only of the immediate aftermath of his son's murder, but
also a chronicle of his family's evolving grief, the trial of
Morgan's killers, and his personal fight to unravel the lies,
mistakes and cover-ups that led to a young man with a history of
violence being free to take Morgan's life that night. Inspired by
this diary, About a Son is a unique and deeply moving exploration
of love and loss and a groundbreaking work of creative non-fiction.
Part true crime, part memoir, it tells the story of a shocking
murder, the emotional repercussions, and the failures that enabled
it to take place. It shows how grief affects and changes us, and
asks what justice means if the truth is not heard. It asks what can
be learned, and where we go from here.
The Medical Basis for the Healing Power of IntimacyWe all know that intimacy improves the quality of our lives. Yet most people don't realize how much it can increase the quality of our lives -- our survival. In this New York Timesworld-renowned physician Dean Ornish, M.D., writes, "I am not aware of any other factor in medicine that has a greater impact on our survival than the healing power of love and intimacy. Not diet, not smoking, not exercise, not stress, not genetics, not drugs, not surgery." He reveals that the real epidemic in modern culture is not only physical heart disease but also what he calls spiritual heart disease: loneliness, isolation, alienation, and depression. He shows how the very defenses that we think protect us from emotional pain are often the same ones that actually heighten our pain and threaten our survival. Dr. Ornish outlines eight pathways to intimacy and healing that have made a profound difference in his life and in the life of millions of others in turning sadness into happiness, suffering into joy.
Multiple award-winning author Elsa Joubert's memoir about life after the death of her beloved husband. She must come to terms with the loss of independence, friends who die and the changes in her memory and bodily powers. Vivid memories of her eventful life as a celebrated writer are skilfully woven into her story. Filled with wisdom, compassion and humour, this book will leave no reader untouched.
|
|