Once More We Saw Stars

A Memoir

By: Jayson Greene

Narrated by: Jayson Greene

Length: 7 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

“A gripping and beautiful book about the power of love in the face of unimaginable loss.” (Cheryl Strayed)

For fans of The Bright Hour and When Breath Becomes Air, a moving, transcendent memoir of loss and a stunning exploration of marriage in the wake of unimaginable grief.

As the story opens: Two-year-old Greta Greene is sitting with her grandmother on a park bench on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. A brick crumbles from a windowsill overhead, striking her unconscious, and she is immediately rushed to the hospital. But although it begins with this event and with the anguish Jayson and his wife, Stacy, confront in the wake of their daughter's trauma and the hours leading up to her death, Once More We Saw Stars quickly becomes a narrative that is as much about hope and healing as it is about grief and loss. Jayson recognizes, even in the midst of his ordeal, that there will be a life for him beyond it - that if only he can continue moving forward, from one moment to the next, he will survive what seems unsurvivable. 

With raw honesty, deep emotion, and exquisite tenderness, he captures both the fragility of life and absoluteness of death, and most important of all, the unconquerable power of love. This is an unforgettable memoir of courage and transformation - and an audiobook that will change the way you look at the world.

©2019 Jayson Greene (P)2019 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Beautiful…heartbreaking…an answer to the question: How does one survive such a devastating tragedy…a story not just of loss, but of remarkable love…life-affirming…luminous.” (Washington Post)

"His writing...is a revelation of lightness and agility.... A miracle.... A narrative of grief and acceptance that is compulsively readable and never self-indulgent." (The New York Times)

“In Once More We Saw Stars, Jayson Greene crystallizes the bravery required for parenting, the insanity within grief, the struggle and haven of marriage, the durability of love in all its forms. This is a book about how we make sense of suffering and what it means to be a family. It’s funny, lucid, and deeply generous - proof that a masterful writer can make from his own specifics a universal story with lessons for us all.” (Lucy Kalanithi) 

It will open your heart if you let it.

I’ll be the first to admit I never thought I’d go near this one. As the mom of my own two toddlers, I didn’t think my heart could take a parent’s memoir about losing his two-year-old daughter after she was struck in the head by a falling brick. But then I saw that glowing blurb by Cheryl Strayed on the cover, and I braced myself because I knew I was going in.

Listening to Jayson Greene tell the story of grieving his daughter, Greta, is like walking through a fire and coming out the other side with more love, more compassion, and more understanding about the sacred things in life. It’s a very special listen that makes the scary stuff feel more okay. And it will open your heart if you let it ❤️

Beautiful memoir.

I found this memoir extremely well written and deeply moving. It is read by the author and he does a beautiful job at relating such a painful and tragic story. I highly recommend this memoir.

Beautiful book about the worst thing that could happen to a family.

This book was hard for me to read because we too lost a 2 year old in 1970 from a sudden childhood illness. Our daughter was almost 4 at the time. A year later we were blessed to have another son. Jayson captured the feelings and emotions amazingly. I almost felt like I was experiencing their loss along with them. I only wish that grief counseling had been available to us. Somehow we survived those years. Thank you for sharing your story. Betsy S., Fairhope, AL

Heartbreakingly profound and full of hopeful healing

We tragically lost our first grand baby and are nervously awaiting the arrival of his sibling. I felt like Jayson spoke the words I haven’t been able to acknowledge within myself just yet... I pray I am able to learn from this beautiful example.

I'll Never Get that Time Back

Worst narration. Just awful waste of my time. He should have kept it as a journal for himself and whomever he chose to share it with.

Not My Cup of Tea

So I got through about 25% of this book before I gave up on it. It’s a tragic story and I’m sure the adjustment that the family went through was both moving and profound. But after a quarter of the way through I felt that the story was dull and my attention span was sinking. At the risk of sounding callous, I thought it better to just quit rather than having to endure.

Beautiful writing, robotic narration

Hard to listen to because the narrator’s and timbre sounds computer-generated. Otherwise important book about loss, grief, and healing.

Powerful story enhanced by the author's reading

This will stay with you for quite sometime. Jason's sharing of the worst day of their family's life comes through in every word!

Not too bad. Good story with some weird boring parts

Some really good parts, but also some really weird stuff and ways to supposedly connect with their daughter they lost. Great at the beginning and end. Middle is dry so skim through it and just keep reading because it will get better

Excellent story

Sad story to read. I applaud the narrator for reliving everything. Kudos on the book