From School Library Journal
Grade 7 Up–An accessible and helpful title. Outlining the phases of the grieving process, Myers incorporates numerous personal accounts and quotes from young adults who have experienced the death of a family member into the text. He discusses the range of emotions young people may have from anger and fear to relief and sadness and assures readers that these feelings are normal. Encouragement is offered, reminding readers that most people who have experienced such a loss will recover. However, the author also acknowledges that grief can lead to depression and thoughts of suicide and offers checklists outlining warning signs. Throughout the book, students are encouraged to seek outlets for their emotions with trusted adults, family members, counselors, and therapy groups. The final chapter provides an annotated list of helpful organizations–grief counseling centers and other support groups–with contact information. Black line drawings are sprinkled throughout but add little to the text.–Julie Webb, Shelby County High School, Shelbyville, KY Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Book Description
When Will I Stop Hurting?: Teens, Loss, and Grief is a self-help guide for teenagers who are struggling with bereavement and the emotional difficulties it presents. This book provides an overview of grief as a painful but normal process, and it offers insights from bereavement experts as well as practical suggestions for coping with loss, including personal accounts from teens.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

When Will I Stop Hurting? Teens, Loss, and Grief is a self-help guide for teenagers struggling with bereavement. Myers provides an overview of grief as a painful but normal process and offers insights from bereavement experts and practical suggestions for coping, including accounts from teens. When Will I Stop Hurting? closes the gap in current literature on grief and mourning, which tends to focus on adults and younger children. This book is warm and accessible and will reassure teens about the normality of grief, encourage their understanding of what happens during the grief process, and provide resources for coping with loss. Myers explains the psychology of grief, provides psychologists' guidance on bereavement, and offers teens' insights of their own experiences. Teens who are coping with loss and grief, as well as parents, relatives, teachers, psychologists, and other adults concerned with teens' well-being, will find this book a valuable resource.

SYNOPSIS

A self-help guide for adolescents coping with bereavement, this volume provides an overview of the grieving process. It also offers insights from bereavement experts and first-hand accounts from teens. Chapters address topics such as the nature of grief, the kinds of loss, effects of grief and loss, and warning signs. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

FROM THE CRITICS

VOYA - Jonatha Masters

Myers creates a book that intends to help teens deal with loss and the grief that follows. The first chapter is perhaps the most helpful and insightful because it contains real stories of loss from teens across the country. Young adults who have experienced loss might benefit from reading the stories of their peers. They will learn that they are not alone and that others have experienced similar feelings. In chapters five and six, Myers discusses coping mechanisms that can be used during times of bereavement, suggesting everything from confiding in a trusted adult to eating right to seeking professional help. The resource guide that lists organizations and associations is a good place for teens to find additional information on loss and grieving. Volume eight in a series that hopes to help inquisitive teens find answers about illnesses, social issues, and different types of lifestyles, this book's only disappointment will be found in the illustrations. The illustrations are too childish and cartoonlike for such serious subject matter. One hopes that teens who are dealing with loss will not be deterred by these drawings. It is a simple oversight that can be easily overlooked. (It Happened to Me). VOYA CODES: 3Q 2P J S (Readable without serious defects; For the YA with a special interest in the subject; Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9; Senior High, defined as grades 10 to 12). 2004, Scarecrow Press, 176p.; Glossary. Index. Illus. Source Notes. Further Reading., PLB. Ages 12 to 18.

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