What Our Friends Left Behind - Hardcover
Grief and Laughter in a Pandemic
By Victoria Noe
Published by King Company Publishing
Grieving a friend is hard.
Grieving a friend during a pandemic is a lot harder.
What Our Friends Left Behind: Grief and Laughter in a Pandemic is a powerful and compassionate exploration of friend grief during the COVID-19 epidemic. This book sensitively addresses the unique challenges and emotions faced by people who have experienced the loss of a friend during these uncertain times.
Through personal anecdotes, interviews, and expert insights, Victoria Noe delves into the profound impact of losing a friend and the specific grief journey that ensues. The book acknowledges the unique bond and significance of friendships and explores the complexities of grieving for a friend in a world upended by isolation, physical distancing, and limited opportunities for traditional mourning rituals.
Noe’s book also highlights the power of honoring the lives of those friends, offering examples of meaningful tributes and finding solace in shared memories. It encourages readers to embrace the healing power of community, finding comfort in the stories of others who have experienced friend grief during the pandemic.
What Our Friends Left Behind serves as a source of comfort, validation, and hope, reminding readers that they were not alone in the intricate journey of friend grief during these challenging times.
Buy this book direct July 1-15 and get all six Friend Grief books free! While supplies last!
Praise for What Our Friends Left Behind:
"Victoria Noe sheds light on the striking similarities between the COVID-19 pandemic and the HIV/AIDS epidemic in its early years, with the respective governments of both times choosing to ignore the advice of experts and medical professionals, putting vulnerable sections of the populace at even more risk. This book provides a moving encapsulation of the pandemic's effect on people, showcasing ways to mourn the friends that many of us lost along the way. Noe shares her own experiences with grief, anxiety, and stress during this period, losing childhood friends and struggling to mourn properly due to extraordinary circumstances, and discovering new ways to honor those who passed away. What Our Friends Left Behind is a deeply personal yet universal account of loss and grief that explores commemorating departed friends in this modern era of social media and an increasingly divided society. Highly recommended." ***** Reader's Favorite
"Firstly, I did find comfort in this author's story. She's a smart woman, sensitive, with the writing skills to put over her thoughts and feelings on, what is to many, a very sensitive subject. I like the message of ‘honouring’ the people we lost, and the importance of sharing what we feel with others - and how this is a way of healing.
"What Our Friends Left Behind is an open-hearted reflection of significant friend losses during an unprecedented health emergency. Victoria Noe effectively inserts the voices of those impacted and captures the anguish of each unique loss. I predict that this book will receive accolades for expertly laying out the chronology, the statistics, and the very personal episodes from this historic time." - Lynne Staley, author, In Death Is the Secret to Life: A Tribute Journal
Grieving a friend during a pandemic is a lot harder.
What Our Friends Left Behind: Grief and Laughter in a Pandemic is a powerful and compassionate exploration of friend grief during the COVID-19 epidemic. This book sensitively addresses the unique challenges and emotions faced by people who have experienced the loss of a friend during these uncertain times.
Through personal anecdotes, interviews, and expert insights, Victoria Noe delves into the profound impact of losing a friend and the specific grief journey that ensues. The book acknowledges the unique bond and significance of friendships and explores the complexities of grieving for a friend in a world upended by isolation, physical distancing, and limited opportunities for traditional mourning rituals.
Noe’s book also highlights the power of honoring the lives of those friends, offering examples of meaningful tributes and finding solace in shared memories. It encourages readers to embrace the healing power of community, finding comfort in the stories of others who have experienced friend grief during the pandemic.
What Our Friends Left Behind serves as a source of comfort, validation, and hope, reminding readers that they were not alone in the intricate journey of friend grief during these challenging times.
Buy this book direct July 1-15 and get all six Friend Grief books free! While supplies last!
Praise for What Our Friends Left Behind:
"Victoria Noe sheds light on the striking similarities between the COVID-19 pandemic and the HIV/AIDS epidemic in its early years, with the respective governments of both times choosing to ignore the advice of experts and medical professionals, putting vulnerable sections of the populace at even more risk. This book provides a moving encapsulation of the pandemic's effect on people, showcasing ways to mourn the friends that many of us lost along the way. Noe shares her own experiences with grief, anxiety, and stress during this period, losing childhood friends and struggling to mourn properly due to extraordinary circumstances, and discovering new ways to honor those who passed away. What Our Friends Left Behind is a deeply personal yet universal account of loss and grief that explores commemorating departed friends in this modern era of social media and an increasingly divided society. Highly recommended." ***** Reader's Favorite
"Firstly, I did find comfort in this author's story. She's a smart woman, sensitive, with the writing skills to put over her thoughts and feelings on, what is to many, a very sensitive subject. I like the message of ‘honouring’ the people we lost, and the importance of sharing what we feel with others - and how this is a way of healing.
In terms of who is this book for, that's difficult to answer. I know many people still don't want to think about the COVID years, and, subsequently, they might be reluctant to open a book of this nature. All I can say is I personally found this book insightful and helpful - yes, helpful. Helpful insofar as the author reminded me that no matter how alone I often felt back then, I wasn't - not truly. And how important it is to honour the fallen." ***** Wishing Shelf Book Awards
"What Our Friends Left Behind: Grief and Laughter in a Pandemic is heartfelt, earnest, often humorous, and at the very least deserves to be read for the light it shines on a very dark time. - Jason Munoz, Reedsy Discovery
"What Our Friends Left Behind is an open-hearted reflection of significant friend losses during an unprecedented health emergency. Victoria Noe effectively inserts the voices of those impacted and captures the anguish of each unique loss. I predict that this book will receive accolades for expertly laying out the chronology, the statistics, and the very personal episodes from this historic time." - Lynne Staley, author, In Death Is the Secret to Life: A Tribute Journal
Hardcover | 213 pages
| $21.99 USD
| 5.5 x 8.5
| 979-8-9882405-0-1
| September 18, 2023
Author photo by Alina Oswald
Follow Me:
Follow on Facebook
Follow on LinkedIn
Follow on Instagram
Follow on BookBub
Follow on Amazon
Follow on YouTube
Now Available
Blog Categories
- AIDS
- HIV
- women's history
- Friend Grief
- Friendship
- Grief
- Celebrity deaths
- grieving styles
- aging
- grieving
- George Harrison
- The Concert for George
- Names Project
- Disenfranchised grief
- Kenneth Doka
- “Family Ties”
- friends
- 9/11
- bereavement
- Valentine's Day
- Eric Clapton
- Facebook memorials
- men's grief
- Big Chill
- Delle Chatman
- Slides
- friendgrief
- cumulative grief
- Dying Matters
- end-of-life decisions
- Kathleen Pooler
- intuitive grieving
- survivor guilt
- gay community
- Longtime Companion
- grief support
- public grief
- Aurora Winter
- Elizabeth Taylor
- life stories
- online grief support
- StoryCorps
- Everybody's Talking About Surprises
- Kristina McMorris
- mass blogging day
- Caring Bridge
- FDNY
- Rudy Giuliani
- eulogies
- Fr. Mychal Judge
- father’s day
- types of grievers
- Memorial Day
- military
- WW2
- hospice
- Osama bin Laden
- September 11
- closure
- World Trade Center
- Chicago
- Windy City Times
- National Day of Service
- online grieving
- Paul McCartney
- Kristie West
- Beatles
- signs from beyond
- writing
- International Friendship Day
- 30-Day Challenge
- 9/11 Memorial
- Amy Dickinson
- grief blogs
- grief websites
- social media day
- Mesirow
- anger
- workplace grief
- Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
- stages of grief
- National Ovarian Cancer Coalition
- ovarian cancer
- Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month
- Ovarian Cancer Symptom Awareness
- Marines
- Medal of Honor
- Sgt. Dakota Meyer
- Winnie the Pooh
- 10th anniversary of 9/11
- Ground Zero
- British Gardens
- Damon DiMarco
- Tower Stories
- 110 Stories
- “The Guys”
- genealogy
- Story Corps
- Voices of September 11
- hurricane Irene
- Death Café
- Uncategorized
- Eric Zorn
- friendships
- John Lennon
- Grief Speaks
- Lisa Athan
- “Living in the Material World”
- funeral arrangements
- Carol Marin
- Mary Schmich
- Steve Daley
- anger and grief
- 50/50 movie
- Steve Jobs
- Mychal’s Message
- New Year’s resolutions
- Mary Tyler Moore
- holidays
- The Big Chill
- complicated grief
- Michael J. Fox
- “The Lives They Lived”
- New York Times
- World AIDS Day
- Davy Jones
- girlfriends
- Deanna Watson
- Nick Gholson
- Jeff Zaslow
- boomers
- Glenn Wright
- House of Spoof Collective
- If I Die
- Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
- baby boomers
- Porter Anderson
- The Good Men Project
- Writing on the Ether
- Small Actions Big Difference
- Huffington Post
- Sayan Sarkar
- guys research
- Live For The Moment
- The Fall Gallery
- University of British Columbia
- grief and guilt
- end of life
- grief and anger
- bucket list
- The Buried Life
- "50/50"
- ACT UP
- LGBTQ
- ADEC
- ADEC12
- APA
- depression
- DSM-5
- Dan Wheldon
- Christopher Meeks
- HuffPost50
- caregiving
- compassion fatigue
- McKnights Long Term Care
- Patricia Smith
- Tracey Carruthers
- Coach Carruthers
- loss
- virtualdavis
- Google+
- Cup of Joe for a Joe
- Green Beans Coffee
- social media
- virtual friends
- instrumental grieving
- first responders
- nuns
- Dr. Beth Erickson
- Dr. Karen Gail Lewis
- Anna Quindlen
- memoir
- Plenty of Cake
- Justyna Palka
- Karl Sprague
- The Short Distance
- Jeanne Veillette Bowerman
- Ramblings of a Recovered Insecureaholic
- Slavery by Another Name
- Hospice of the Valley
- Legacy.com
- Marty Tousley
- Aurora
- shootings
- high school
- reunions
- AIDS Quilt
- birthdays
- Creativity and Crisis
- Smithsonian Folkways Festival
- regret
- Fr. Michael Duffy
- Franciscans
- Connie Ragen Green
- denial
- United in Anger
- Ringo Starr
- Gigaom
- Matthew Ingram
- blog
- Day of the Dead
- Elton John
- Elton John AIDS Foundation
- Love is the Cure
- Ryan White
- How to Survive a Plague
- Baylor University
- cancer
- Christopher Hitchens
- Mortality
- Pam Sherman
- Suburban Outlaw
- Tony Scott
- Boston marathon. terrorism
- senior citizens
- women
- writing group
- veterans
- 60 Minutes
- suicide
- The Life and Death of Clay Hunt
- anticipatory grief
- Mary Ellen McGarry
- memorial services
- blame
- US Navy
- death
- Marcus Luttrell
- firefighters
- self-care
- Genevieve Creighton
- Whistler
- Newtown
- medical personnel
- performing artists
- Catholic
- rituals
- Evanston
- Five Wishes
- internet
- R.I.P. trolls
- tribute pages
- memories
- dying
- Jon Underwood
- PTSD
- living wills
- Nelson Mandela
- wills
- Pride Parade
- Belgrade
- Jelena Gencic
- Novak Djokovic
- tennis
- Wimbledon
- AIDS@30
- Jim Eigo
- Peter Staley
- Spencer Cox
- William Lucas Walker
- Book Expo America
- Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS
- Gay Pride Month
- HBO
- Sebastian Junger
- Tim Hetherington
- Which Way is the Front Line From Here?
- Hadiya Pendleton
- Our House
- Friend Grief and AIDS
- The Last One
- Audrey Tautou
- Delicacy
- funerals
- ThrowbackThursday
- Chicago Tribune
- Metropolis Coffee
- Dallas Buyers Club
- Jared Leto
- Matthew McConnaughey
- Afghanistan
- William Swenson
- Glencoe
- music
- National Suicide Awareness Month
- Stop Soldier Suicide
- New York City
- NYPD
- Audrey Pellicano
- Madeline Sharples
- storytelling
- Idina Menzel
- If/Then
- #BEA14
- Author Hub
- Friend Grief and the Military
- NYC
- self-publishing
- BGSQD
- moral injury
- Army
- Captain Jennifer Moreno
- Kyle White
- CAPS
- Printers Row Lit Fest
- Arthur M. Fischman
- Meryl Ain
- Stewart Ain
- The Living Memories Project
- American Women Veterans
- Chicagoland Authors Promoting Success
- National Veterans Art Museum
- grief police
- mourning
- corpsmen
- medics
- hierarchy of grief
- Sean Strub
- Carole King
- Harold Ramis
- Philip Seymour Hoffman
- guilt
- Housing Works
- battle buddies
- Veterans Day
- CHANGES
- Sally Ember
- Friend Grief and 9/11
- Friend Grief and Anger
- Friend Grief in the Workplace
- In Print Writers
- Rockford
- LA Law
- GMHC
- Perry Halkitis
- Queen Elizabeth II Memorial Gardens
- writing about grief
- Robin Williams
- Writers Digest Conference
- classmates
- Nerinx Hall
- Sisters of Loretto
- St. Louis
- business
- Brendan O'Connell
- Capital Fringe Festival
- theatre
- friendship friend grief
- health
- LGBT
- Chicago theatre
- Fred Eberle
- Laurel Cronin
- Brain Injury Awareness Week
- concussion
- TBI
- The Red Pump Project
- women and AIDS
- Women and GIrls' HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
- Leonard Nimoy
- Mr. Spock
- Star Trek
- nonfiction
- Rebecca Bricker
- Tales from Tavanti
- Nicholas Kristof
- shaming
- Pierre Jalbert
- Combat
- St. Louis Cardinals
- Dan Blank
- Gabriela Pereira
- Libraries Illinois Conference
- Charlie Sheen
- Paris attacks
- Friend Grief and Men: Defying Stereotypes
- Josephine Stewart
- David Bowie
- Vanessa Hudgens
- Grammy's
- Joe Biden
- Mark Liebenow
- Women's History Month
- Nancy Duncan
- Planned Parenthood
- Andrea Johnson
- Indie authors
- Writing conferences
- Military Outreach USA
- Orlando
- Pulse
- Grantchester
- Al Katkowsky
- George Davis
- Women & Children First
- Ghalala Khan
- Divas and Moms
- Fag Hags
- teaching
- Chicago Public Library
- Evergreen Park Public Library
- Indie Author Day
- Library Journal
- Villa Park Public Library
- baseball
- Jose Fernandez
- Miami Marlins
- straight women
- Hallmark Channel
- AIDSWatch
- editing
- authors
- books
- writers
- CarePartners
- CareTeams
- Trudy James
- AIDS/Lifecycle
- Bank of America
- Susan Freed
- interviewing
- Rebecca Skloot
- public speaking
- The Muse and the Marketplace
- HIV Long-Term Survivors Awareness Day
- Gays Against Guns
- research
- Hamilton
- marketing
- Jessica Cage
- Oswego
- Penned Con
- Success
- Las Vegas
- Librarians
- Libraries
- terrorist attacks
- holiday gifts
- Luvvie Ajayi
- Nasty Women
- Pat McKinzie
- Jeremy McCarter
- John McPhee
- Lin-Manuel Miranda
- Rania Zeithar
- word of the year
- Gus Kenworthy
- Pip Kenworthy
- Winter Olympics
- Paul Bauer
- Police
- Rachel Maddow
- Rebecca Makkai
- The Great Believers
- Alliance of Independent Authors
- Build Book Buzz
- Big Gay Ice Cream
- Bosie Tea Parlor
- IndieLab
- PenAmerica
- To Absent Friends
- Savoy Hotel
- Bonaventure House
- Armistead Maupin
- binge-reading
- Tales of the City
- Peter Tork
- Andrew Velez
- A&U Magazine
- TPAN
- Stonewall Inn
- Nursing
- US Conference on AIDS
- Carol D. Marsh
- Nurses on the Inside
- Remaking a Life
- Taking Turns
- COVID-19
- coronavirus
- CALOR
- Rosa E. Martinez-Colon
- Krishna Stone
- #PublishingPaidMe