How to Make Friends with the Dark by Kathleen Glasgow [arc review]

I am speechless and lost in a tsunami of emotions.

Kathleen Glasgow surprised me and shocked me with Girl in Pieces, and it is no different here.

Grief sucks

Grief stinks

There is no happy ending in grief

So needless to say (and true to what I now consider Kathleen Glasgow's style), there is no happy ending here either...

The Blurb:

Here is what happens when your mother dies.

It’s the brightest day of summer and it’s dark outside. It’s dark in your house, dark in your room, and dark in your heart. You feel like the darkness is going to split you apart.

That’s how it feels for Tiger. It’s always been Tiger and her mother against the world. Then, on a day like any other, Tiger’s mother dies. And now it’s Tiger, alone.

Here is how you learn to make friends with the dark.

The review: 5 Stars

It is hard to review a book that left you speechless. How to Make Friends with the Dark is not for the faint hearted. It deals with grief and loss in a very raw and real way. Tiger lost everything, and I truly mean everything. She goes from being a normal teen annoyed at her mum for picking a dress she didn't want -typical- to being alone. One day she has a house and a mother, the next she is in foster care living with strangers.

Grief is not an easy topic to put on paper. The thoughts and emotions that usually follow a teen in grief (and many adults) is not either: depression, suicidal thoughts, loneliness, trauma, etc. Kathleen Glasgow described all of those perfectly. My heart was breaking for Tiger and the other kids while reading the book. And as someone that has been in foster care and is now a foster mum I can also tell you with certainty that all of those feelings are real, that all those situations can happen and do happen. The accuracy of it all was phenomenal.

The thing I loved most about the book was the ending. It has became a habit to say "everything will be ok" and Kathleen Glasgow makes it very clear it is NOT. Grief sucks and it stays with you, life is hard, and that is ok. It is ok to cry, it is ok to be in pain, and it is ok to say it is not going to be ok.

Release date: April 9th, 2019

Find the book at: GoodReads - Amazon

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