Grieving a Suicide - by Albert Y Hsu (Paperback)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

A 2003 Finalist in the United Kingdom Christian Book Awards

"Albert," the neighbor said, "your mom needs you to come home."

That's how it began for Albert Hsu when his father died. Anyone who has lost a loved one to suicide experiences tremendous shock and trauma. What follows is a confusing mix of emotions--anger, guilt, grief, and despair.

Suicide raises heartrending questions:

Why did this happen?

Why didn't we see it coming?

Could we have done anything to prevent it?

How can we go on?

Many also wonder if those who choose suicide are doomed to an eternity separated from God and their loved ones. Some may even start asking whether life is worth living at all.

After his father's death, Hsu wrestled with the intense emotional and theological questions surrounding suicide. While acknowledging that there are no easy answers, he draws on the resources of the Christian faith to point suicide survivors to the God who offers comfort in our grief and hope for the future.

For those who have lost a loved one to suicide and for their counselors and pastors, this book is an essential companion for the journey toward healing. This revised edition incorporates updated statistics and now includes a discussion guide for suicide survivor groups.

Review Quotes

"Grieving a Suicide is one of the most helpful books I read after our son, Matthew, died by suicide. I scribbled notes and comments to myself on nearly every page of this revised and expanded edition, and I found Al Hsu's compassionate and practical words even more beneficial than before. He has walked this painful path and knows firsthand how to give hope and comfort to grieving people. Grieving a Suicide is on my list of must-read books for survivors of suicide loss."

Kay Warren, Saddleback Church, Lake Forest, California

"Al Hsu has updated Grieving a Suicide, an already-valued resource that I recommend to every Christian grieving a suicide. This book is an honest and authentic telling of Al's story of grappling with his father's suicide. It's a story that desperately needs expression in the church, to bring suicide out of the shadows. The bonus gift of the book is listening in on Al's theological and practical reflections on the gut-wrenching complexities of suicide."

Karen Mason, associate professor of counseling and psychology, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, author of Preventing Suicide

"Having lost my brother to suicide, I am often asked by other survivors for recommendations of helpful resources. Al Hsu's Grieving a Suicide will now be the first I recommend. It is comprehensive without being clinical, practical without offering easy answers. And while Hsu's book is tremendously hopeful, it does not flinch at this bald fact: suicide is turmoil and trauma."

Jen Pollock Michel, award-winning author of Teach Us to Want and Keeping Place

"In a world that often meets our most desperate moments with silence, this book is a vital voice of hope. Leaving space for grief, Hsu offers clear answers to questions people don't ask until they have to. In the process, he graciously points us toward life and light, which can be so hard to see in the darkness left by suicide."

Amy Simpson, life and leadership coach, author of Troubled Minds

"My family, maybe like yours, has been touched by suicide. Answers are often sparse and the questions linger. In the midst of the pain, we mourn and we grieve. In this unique and helpful book, Al Hsu helps us to grieve well in the midst of the hurt."

Ed Stetzer, Billy Graham Distinguished Chair, Wheaton College

"This is a sad, painful, comforting, and wonderful book. Al Hsu, with endearing honesty, carries the reader on a journey through his own story of grief, weaving together many contemporary, literary, and historic examples of responses to suicide and possible explanations for such a tragic choice. He does not shrink from grappling with tough questions about life and God that are raised by such suffering. This is a profound, detailed, and immensely helpful book for anyone touched by the suicideof a friend or family member. I know of no other book so comprehensive, sensitive, and healing."

Richard Winter, psychotherapist, professor emeritus of counseling and applied theology, Covenant Theological Seminary, author of When Life GoesDark

About the Author

Albert Y. Hsu (pronounced "shee") is associate editorial director (trade) at InterVarsity Press, where he acquires and develops books in such areas as church, culture, ministry, and mission. He earned his PhD in educational studies from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. Al is the author of Grieving a Suicide, Singles at the Crossroads, and The Suburban Christian. He has been a writer and columnist for Christianity Today and served as seniorwarden on the vestry of Church of the Savior in Wheaton, Illinois. He and his wife, Ellen, have two sons and live in the western suburbs of Chicago.