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The Mourning Report
(Homebound Publications, 2020) Years after her mother's death from breast cancer, Caitlin decided to embark on a “grief journey,” interviewing the people involved in her mother’s dying process: a hospice nurse, a priest, an estate planner, a hairstylist, and a funeral director. If she figured out how they could function after being so close to her mother’s death, then maybe she could learn how to navigate her own life. I cried more times than I can count while reading this book, but I also laughed and marveled at Garvey’s honesty. She has dared to tell the truth about grief, anxiety, and the seemingly impossible task of living on after loss. The Mourning Report is an unforgettable portrait of a mother and daughter, and something truly rare—a meditation on death that is filled with life.” Titled a report—sly and straightforward in its nomenclature—Garvey’s memoir is also a testimony. It attests to grief as a veil, and to the ravages of loss. At eighteen, Garvey lost her mother and subsequently herself. With candor and vulnerability, she writes to retrieve the Lost Child she’s become. The result is a book of heartrending tenderness.” |
The Mourning Report blends memoir and reportage to examine how a daughter’s loss radiates. Caitlin Garvey’s dispatch on her own mourning, as well as that of friends and professionals who surrounded her mother’s death, is a beautifully written account of grief ’s concentric circles.” |
At this time of crisis, we are all searching for meaning and substance. Garvey provides both in this lovely and incisive book.” 
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