This was not my favorite work on grief, to say the least. It's short, but it's also outside of the bounds of the way I approach grief work with others (as a grief and trauma professional). While we need more work on the topic and ultimately, always more conversations, this work does not read as cleanly as the help it wants to offer.

A wonderful book. Highly recommended. You will enjoy reading it. Written in a very engaging prose. Nowhere would you feel being stuck or bored. Pick it up if you get a chance. Thanks to the author for a review copy.

An Incredible guide!

If you've read The Four Agreements, you've engaged with the work of Grief and Renewal author Don Miguel Ruiz. Ruiz is known as one of the world's most influential leaders and authors. In this book, he has essentially reached out his hand and guided readers to think about grief as a part of a larger process that also includes renewal at its opposite end. Ultimately, calling to action a releasing our full spectrum of emotions that reside within us.

He challenges readers to continue to check-in with self and be real about whatever we feel as we go through the grieving process. "It’s important to keep asking the question. “How do I feel?” The answer is always changing, just as we are changing and learning. Losing someone has a devastating effect on both the body and psyche. What we feel is likely to be beyond words and beyond tears. We need to be as honest with ourselves as possible."

Grief and Renewal: Finding Beauty and Balance in Loss is then a course in learning to identify the various stages of grief as well as resource in how to deal and input healthy coping mechanisms as you navigate.

I thank Urano Publishing and NetGalley for this gifted copy.

My feverish brain appreciates the many calming messages contained in this book! This quick read is an exceptional “mystery course” that is an antidote to staying stuck in a traumatized mindset, one too often fed by overthinking or “unchecked thoughts”. I especially appreciate the authors’ stance on grief as an opportunity to heal. This book teaches us not to trust between our ears, outdated opinions and thoughts (largely formed in childhood) and it highlights the fact that they get in our way. Believing all our wrong stories perpetuates pain and makes us sick.. Here is invitation to question and dare to disagree with our own certainties.. The book offers a guide for survivors to honor their bodies and see themselves as transformed, powerful beings who should be skeptical of all we “think we know” when it torments us and weighs us down. These lessons encourage bravely feeling and honoring all emotions, just let them be fleeting. Awareness is courage. Most helpfully, this book encourages wounded people to make peace with the unpredictability of life. It invites the mind to settle down and allow calm and comfort to be present. “Trust life” and “accept love”, despite pain, are liberating mottos. Kindness and gratitude flow from a changed, non-judgmental attitude toward ourselves and others. This book helps us rethink what keeps us mired in misery and helps us see a path toward joy,

While the book is thought-provoking and insightful, I found it wasn't quite what I needed during my time of grief. It's a concise and to-the-point resource, but it may not resonate with everyone.

If you are grieving, give this book a shot. just reviewed Grief and Renewal by Miguel Ruiz and Barbara Emrys. #GriefandRenewal #NetGalley
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Dive into the profound wisdom of "Grief and Renewal," a heartfelt collaboration by Miguel Angel Ruiz and Barbara Emrys. With compassion as their guide and a refreshingly relatable style, they tenderly accompany readers through the labyrinth of grief, illuminating a path toward purpose, peace, and renewal. Grief, a universal enigma, is approached with both reverence and practicality, acknowledging that each journey is unique. Through their down-to-earth prose, Ruiz and Emrys offer a toolkit for recognizing grief's stages and fostering healing coping strategies. This course becomes a gentle companion, leading you to embrace acceptance and navigate the complexities of loss. "Grief and Renewal" is a testament to their artistry, inviting you to walk the challenging road of grief with love, vulnerability, and a steady guide toward clarity.

Grief and Renewal : Finding Beauty and Balance in Loss is a gentle and sensitive guide to negotiating the grieving process, written by the legendry author of the classic Four Agreements in partnership with Barbara Emrys. It covers the different stages of grief and introduces a variety of coping mechanisms. It is a gentle whispering voice with a powerful message, and a focus on finding a higher purpose and meaning in your loss. Overall a beautiful book,,gentle but impactful

This book offers a gentle and supportive guide to help people navigate the grieving process. I appreciated that the cover art was familiar, similar to the author's earlier bestseller, The Four Agreements.

This book provides insights and tools to help readers understand their grief and find a path to healing. The various stages of grief are covered, as well as healthy coping mechanisms. It also offers guidance on how to find a higher purpose and existence in the wake of loss.

The authors present a five-part course on the topic of death and loss in the human experience.

Day 1 - The Reality
Day 2 - The Reflection
Day 3 - Grief
Day 4 - Grace
Day 5 - The Elegy

I chose this book because I recently read "The Four Agreements" by Don Miguel Ruiz. The four agreements are: Be impeccable with your word, Don't take anything personally, Don't make assumptions, and Always do your best.

This book challenges the reader to think about death, change, and grief in a new way. Life is the constant process of creation and destruction. We know our lives will end, but we fight the reality of death. We must accept the fact that death does not discriminate; it touches everyone. Death is a natural part of life.

The authors encourage us to discover how our approach to death can inspire a more conscious approach to living. We can be aware of our own eternal and infinite nature. We can appreciate the nature of all living things and how each reflects life differently.

I will revisit this book often as I reflect on my life journey. This book on death and grief is actually about life and living.

Don Miguel Ruiz's Grief and Renewal: Finding Beauty and Balance in Loss has a similar style and cadence to The Four Agreements.

Grief and Renewal is a short but potent book, inspired by nature and full of ancient wisdom. I found the approach to grief very gentle and comforting. Brew a cup of warm tea, cuddle up with a blanket, and settle in to let the insights wash over you. I did find the narrative a bit disjointed at times, but I enjoyed the continuity of the story of the shaman. Leaning well into the spiritual/mystical, I think this book would be valuable for anyone grieving any loss.

Thank you to Urano Publishing via NetGalley for gifting me with an ARC to review. I enjoyed it!

Thank you, NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book

Although I couldn’t finish this book, I found the topic being discussed interesting.

The book is narrated as if you’re in a classroom taking lessons and participating in a course on grief, I found that unique and made it easier to read and imagine.

Grieving isn’t just for people, you can grieve for anything you feel emotionally attached to:

“We naturally grieve over the loss of anything or anyone when there is a strong emotional attachment.”

The book also offers good advice on how to handle emotions:



“Feel. Allow yourself to feel to the fullest, no matter how tender or terrible the emotion seems to you.”

Something about the story of the Medicine man that I didn’t quite like but don’t know exactly why I didn’t like it..

Overall, I think it’s a decent book. It may need more actual advice on dealing with grief and less with the philosophical and sciency stuff..

This book is a gentle reminder to live fully and to experience everything holistically- and there is a phrase in the book where the author says, "be patient as you learn to be more aware," that stuck with me.
The author does not shout, force his beliefs or understandings in this book, and it felt like someone was there beside me guiding and listening and letting me feel my grief, find my light. It's a small book, easy to read and very memorable. I hope it gets into the hands of everyone of us who has loved and lost.
Thanks Netgalley for the eARC.

"Grief and Renewal" is a thoughtful, gentle book that is a comfort to read. I'm sure I will keep it as a reference to turn to when needed and recommend to friends. Recommended for anyone who is looking for a calm and encouraging book while grieving. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

This was good food for thought on the subject of grief. I plan to read it again in a few months to see if I can get more out of it as time passes. I hope to be able to do the things it talks about for a more peaceful existence.

When I first read The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz, I was transformed and confused in equal parts. His storytelling has a rhythm, and it takes a bit of getting used to. His writing is also charming, and it was this personal, mystical voice that led me to read The Four Agreements several times over the years. It is a life-changing message if you learn to let it in.

Fast-forward to the present day, as Ruiz and his co-writer Barbara Emrys prepare to release a new book, Grief and Renewal: Finding Beauty and Balance in Loss (Urano Publications, September 2023). Walking with people through their grief, be it an expected loss or in times of unspeakable tragedy, has been my professional path for nearly 35 years as a hospital and hospice chaplain. I literally couldn’t wait to review this new book, written by someone whose voice feels like an old friend.

According to the book jacket copy, “Don Miguel Ruiz, one of the world’s most influential spiritual leaders, and author of the classic, The Four Agreements, gently guides readers through the process and pain of navigating grief, to find a higher purpose and existence, and to be at peace with their loss. Grief is one of the many mysteries of life, and the path to easing the pain is never the same for everyone.” Ruiz, the youngest of 13 children and now 70, has seen some loss in his life. He has also received two heart transplants in twelve years, and he has thought deeply about issues of mortality.

The book is described as being part of the Mystery School series, and the writing style makes you feel like you are in a room with him attending a retreat. In “Orientation Day”, he writes that your life is your art, and so he considers loss an artistic challenge. He points out that life is calling the reader back to its never-ending game of mysteries and asks, “Are you still willing to play?” To Ruiz, the trauma of losing a loved one gives you the opportunity to wake up fully.

His narrative of grief and loss reminds me, in many ways, of the Buddhist notion of impermanence and the peace that embracing balance can bring. In another way, he is calling us to embrace the circle of life. The text is very comforting and practical, with themes that will be familiar to his readers. “Does life stop creating because of the tragedy of broken things?” He weaves the lovely story of a shaman throughout the book, who reminds us that we are wrapped up in our own stories. Quotes like “Humans pay a thousand times for one mistake” help us focus our intention.

I very much enjoyed this book, and I felt comforted by it. I will recommend it to my clients. One of the themes of the book with which I agree is that suffering is a choice. Ruiz reminds us that the dead are not suffering, and so we are grieving for ourselves. This isn’t a message that we should just get over it; it's more a message of deep compassion. He speaks of grace and says that it is a gift that we do not need to earn. “Life is the giver of grace.”

One of the great talents of Don Miguel Ruiz is his ability to use prose to paint imaginary pictures of the beautiful stories he tells, and that comes through in this new book. Through his stories, we find our place in the universe, even as we integrate the loss of a loved one. Toward the end of his book, Don Miguel Ruiz speaks of forgiveness, gratitude, and hope. He talks of forces that sustain us now and that will eventually call us back again. I couldn’t help but wonder if Ruiz was preparing us for his own mortality.

Thank you for the opportunity, Net Galley, and the publisher and author, to read this ARC!

I finished this book within 24 hours. It really speaks to grief in such a beautiful way. I lost my father 6 months ago and haven't been able to read any other books on grief- I find them to be too harsh. This book is gentle. It normalizes your feelings and even speaks of grief in different forms, not just death. It allows you to be "human" and gives examples of feelings you might be feeling, while reminding you to try to find joy, when you can, and to love yourself for the human you are and the experience you are having. This was really beautiful, very real, uplifting, and hopeful, but not "too much." I will definitely recommend this book to anyone who is grieving!

A beautiful book dealing with difficult topics. I can see this as a gift for a friend dealing with grief. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Five stars.