Rock On

Mining for Joy in the Deep River of Sibling Grief

By: Susan E. Casey

Narrated by: Reagan Boggs

Length: 8 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's summary

Rock On: Mining for Joy in the Deep River of Sibling Grief is about love, loss, grief, and the journey toward hope and reclaiming joy. Rock On focuses solely on sibling loss because it's a tragedy author Susan Casey experienced in her own life. On Valentine's Day, 2014, she learned of the horrific and unexpected death of her 43-year-old brother, Rocky (birth name: Brian), who died while in Hong Kong with his wife and three-and-a-half-year-old daughter.

Susan shares her journey, capturing the bond between her and her brother, the shock over his sudden death, and the emotional three-week trip to Asia. When Susan returned home, she was faced with unimaginable grief. In her effort to heal, she interviewed others all over the world that had lost a sibling. Brothers and sisters shared their stories with a vulnerable and open heart, and these stories helped to nudge Susan, step by step, out of the deep river of grief. As she listened, a deeper healing took place, anchoring Susan's belief that loving and losing far outweigh never loving at all.

The stories segue into excerpts from the people she talked to that are relevant to the theme of each chapter. Susan weaves in her memories throughout each story and ends each chapter with her thoughts on the chapter's theme to provide additional insights to help the listener on their grief journey. Susan's story and the stories of other people who lost a sibling explore the resiliency of the human spirit after a tragic loss and how their sibling's death impacted their lives.

©2020 Susan E. Casey (P)2020 Library Tales Publishing

Such a beautiful , well written book!

This is a touching, beautifully written memoir about the relationship and deep bond between the author and her younger brother, Rocky. It begins with their childhood and carries into adulthood when she suddenly and traumatically loses him to a medical condition. Susan also describes how challenging family dynamics can be, especially with a sibling's spouse in the grief journey. I appreciate how deeply honest and vulnerable she was throughout the book.

I am so thankful Susan wrote this book and shared her story, as well as the stories of a number of other people she interviewed, who also lost a sibling. This book helps validate how profound, life changing and impactful losing a sibling can be, yet also manages to inspire hope that there will be times of joy again.

I highly recommend this book for anyone who has lost a sibling or wants to better understand sibling loss. Thank you for this beautiful book Susan!

Dawn DiRaimondo, PsyD, author of "Surviving Sibling Loss: The Invisible Thread That Connects Us Through Life and Death