Book Review - Saying Good-Bye to the Pet You Love by Lorri A. Greene, Jacquelyn Landis

Book Description
Written by a psychologist who is a leader in the field of pet bereavement, this practical but sympathetic guide validates the survivor’s often misunderstood feelings, explains the importance of the human-animal bond, and offers strategies for working through the grieving process. Some of the coping techniques include memorializing the pet, recognizing problematic thinking, and finding support. The book also covers dealing with guilt and explaining the pet’s death to a child.

From the Publisher
This is a book for loving pet owners who have lost a pet. Often friends and family downplay the sorrow one experiences over the loss of the pet, but this new book helps pet lovers of all sorts, including those with working animals, deal with all levels of grief. It not only includes cognitive self-help tools to help readers truly understand and work through their grief, it is is also written by a psychologist who is a leader in the filed of pet bereavement.

From the Inside Flap
No matter what your friends and family might think or say, you know that the sorrow you feel about your pet’s death is real and very painful.

Until now, not much help has been available for those who have lost a pet. Saying Goodbye to the Pet You Love, written by a psychologist with twenty years of experience as a pet-bereavement specialist, helps you understand the very special human-animal bond, which, in turn, can help you deal with your terrible loss.

You will find solid psychological bereavement techniques here that will support you in your grieving process and help you find your own unique path to recovery. This book includes chapters on coping skills for easing a child through pet loss, and for those who accidentally killed, or witnessed the death of, their pets. The special needs of the guardians of working animals are also addressed, as are self-help resources for the elderly.

***

February 9

This was a good and interesting book about dealing with the loss of your pet. I didn't want a religious view of pet loss, which there seems to be a number of, so this was ideal for me. While I didn't need to read every chapter because they didn't apply to me, I still thought the rest was well-written and helped me. I thought it interesting that there are three kind of grievers, and it gave me insight into how some people can say the things they do to those who are feeling the loss more. I think it's sad how it's not 'ok' to grieve for a pet in our society. Why is it any different than a human? I'm so glad there are books out there like this that can help me and others know that we are allowed feel the way we do when we lose a dear pet.

4/5 stars

Book Review - A Snowflake in My Hand by Samantha Mooney

Book Description
A miracle of a book--a joyous celebration of the unspoken but deeply felt bond between animals and people and, in Roger Caras's words, "a celebration of life in the face of death".

***

January 27

A heartwarming (and breaking) book about many of the cats that went through Sam Mooney's life. Ms. Mooney certainly knows cats and she takes you into brief sections of their lives so you get to know and love them too, even though you've never met them. I loved this book (even if I wished it had been longer so I could have spent more time with it!) and it's helped me a bit since the sudden loss of two of my cats. The author's beautiful writing shows us, the reader, that life does go on and their memory will always stay with you. Every cat is special and has an integral part of their owner's life, and anyone who's ever known them. Excellent book.

5/5 stars

Introduction: How do you do?

I just thought I should introduce myself a little bit before I start blogging away.

I am a voracious reader, but lately it has been really hard to concentrate on much more than a fast-paced show. It has really put a damper on my life. Not just because I can't read, but because I've had to drop so many classes and finally I just had to take some time off from college to get everything under control. I've gone to doctors and have pretty much ruled out everything except allergies and depression. I've been taking allergy drops for about six months now and have an appointment to see the doc in just a little over a week to see if everything is working alright. They said it could take up to a year. Also I'm just starting medicine for depression. It's too early to tell right now if it's working but I haven't had any side effects yet, which is a great sign. Especially because the medicine I tried right before it did not work whatsoever and left me with several serious side effects. Unfortunately I've had problems concentrating for about a year now and didn't get diagnosed until January. It's the kind of depression where I don't feel depressed. I've never had that before so it was kind of a downer. Literally. LoL

I can be sarcastic, witty, moody, snarky, nice, fun, boring and all of that. Which, now that I think of it, is pretty much like most people.

I love my cats and the two closest to me passed away on September 15 and December 15, 2007. They were mother and daughter. Sati (pronounced Say-tee) was a stray who came to the back deck pregnant. Of course she didn't show at the time and two months later she had her kittens. I think she might have been nine or ten when she died, but that's just a guess. B'Elanna (Buh-lanna) was only seven when she followed her mother to Rainbow Bridge. She died in the midst of playing of a coronary embellism (sp?). Both were very unexpected deaths and hit me hard. I still miss them and it is very hard at times to know they're gone.

Sati is the Tuxedo cutie and Lanna is the black beauty