The Knock at the Door

Three Gold Star Families Bonded by Grief and Purpose

By: Ryan Manion, Heather Kelly, Amy Looney

Narrated by: Caroline Slaughter, Laurie Catherine Winkel, Cara Reid

Three Gold Star women, linked forever by unimaginable loss, share their inspiring, unlikely journey that began on the worst day of their lives.
What happens when tragedy knocks on your front door?
For us, it was a literal knock, with two men standing in crisply pressed uniforms. They had news. News that gutted us to the core -- the death of our loved ones, a brother and two husbands -- in combat zones. The thing about those moments is that it's almost inconceivable that they can happen to you. That is, until they do.
This book is for anyone who has ever received a knock at the door. And if you live long enough and have the courage to love others, you will. Maybe it's a cancer diagnosis. Maybe it's the death of your best friend. The betrayal of a spouse. The loss of a child. The implosion of a professional career. Or any tragedy that takes the person we love the most away from us too soon. Life is not without its challenges. The key is how you respond.This is our story. The story of three women, bonded by grief and purpose. Grief because we lost our best friends in war. Purpose because we resolved -- together -- to do something about it. To turn loss into inspiration for others and to channel the love that we had for the men in our lives into love for others through service. It was the only way we could escape the trap of despair and inaction, and we believe it offers a roadmap for anyone else who has ever had to answer a knock at the door.

This is a very important book.

Alright so here is the deal. I am a 24 year man from the country (where I still reside). So most of my knowledge of the world comes from The Jocko Podcast, reading books and listening to them here on Audible. Both this book and Ryan's fathers book "Brothers Forever" were unique, in different ways. Tom Manion's book shook me awake to the fact that the hero doesn't always survive. Which you constantly hear, but for someone with limited life experience like me, it didn't click because most the books I was reading were autobiographical. So obviously the guy I'm reading about will live, even though there are other people dying all around him (I'm ashamed to say) it was almost like the other people were not really real in my mind. The book Brothers Forever shifted my perspective on that front. Now this book broadened my perspective further, by illustrating the events through a lens that isn't even available to me in real life. I appreciate these ladies taking the time and making the effort to record their stories and sharing them with people like me, who have a restricted view of the world. I guess that's just a long way of saying, absolutely get the book, if you don't get something out of it than you aren't paying attention. The narrators also do a very good job. P.S. Get Heather and Amy onto The Jocko Podcast.

Goosebumps from the get go!

This was such a compelling book. I have a hard time reading books. I need things to really catch my attention. And this did it. Not only because of the topic but because I lost my brother in 2017 and this is everything I’ve been needing to hear. I am so thankful for being exposed to TMF and their staff. I love what has become of Travis, Brendan and Robs Legacies. They will forever live on because of these women’s courage to tell their stories. Thank you for sharing it with the world.