A Hole in the World

“One of the best books I've read in ages…a profound, mystical, and even haunting book that will be a faithful companion to all of us who have seen trouble.”—Sarah Bessey, New York Times bestselling author of A Rhythm of Prayer and Jesus Feminist

“A beautiful, necessary book that resounds with openhearted curiosity and gorgeous vulnerability…In exploring how others have grieved, she walks us winsomely toward honesty, healing, and, above all, hope.”—Jeff Chu, co-author, with Rachel Held Evans, of the New York Times bestseller Wholehearted Faith

“With compelling personal narrative alongside theological, historical, and cultural inquiry, Amanda Held Opelt…invites us to put our aching bodies in motion, to glimpse at the surviving we can all do. Because grief, like love, like hope, is a learning. It does not return us to the before. The learning of grief does, however, enliven the after—and I suppose we’d call that resurrection.”—Jen Pollock Michel, Author of In Good Time and A Habit Called Faith

“A Hole in the World is a wonderfully conceived and beautifully written book…It is, in part, an anthropology of grieving, a powerful memoir, and glimpses into a heartbreaking diary. In a world where rituals of grief are slowly vanishing, it reintroduces us to some of the most creative forms from Western culture. Most of the time the book is looking back on the rich history of rituals of pain, from cards to casseroles, from wearing black to sitting shivah. But it also looks forward, preparing our hearts for what will inevitably happen to us all.”—Michael Card, songwriter and author of A Sacred Sorrow

“A Hole in the World is both generous and generative, a book that tenderly guides us into the fierce landscape of our own losses, because the author has dared to walk there first. Few of us today know how to speak of our sorrows, but in this book, Held Opelt gives us language for loss that is honest, hopeful, and gorgeously human.”—K. J. Ramsey, licensed professional counselor and author of This Too Shall Last and The Lord Is My Courage

“Blending history with memoir, social worker Opelt examines death rituals and reflects on her season of grief in this devastating debut…Poignant and erudite, this is not to be missed.” 
 —Publishers Weekly (starred review)