Song for Sarah: A Mother's Journey Through Grief and Beyond

by Paula D'Arcy

Nearly three decades ago, Paula D'Arcy began to write letters to her unborn child--letters in which she chronicled her emotions, hopes and dreams. A few years later, Paula's daughter and husband were killed in a tragic automobile accident?and the diary to Sarah became a journal that today brings tremendous healing, peace, and comfort to those immersed in their own grief.
This new edition includes a foreword from Gerald Sittser, author of A Grace Disguised. As well, it updates the original edition with two new one from the author, the second from the author's second daughter, whom Paula D'Arcy was carrying in her womb at the time of the accident that killed her first child and husband.

Genres: Grief, Memoir, Nonfiction

144 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 1979

Reviews

[Mary Lou · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story!

Thoughts and quotes from the book:
Make a promise with your family, "we will never forget that we don't need to be rich or important or revered, but we do need to be together"

If family doesn't come first, we'll lose it.

One day it all ends in clothes and shoes deserted in a closet. One day everyone's clothes will hang alone in their closet.

If we fuss about our lies, if we make clothes and houses and work and events of great importance, then in the end we'll be fooled. In the end they are so temporary.

All men are free to think and act and make their own choices and all their choices have consequences, results which fall into the lives of the many others with who we live.

[Celina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Received Song for Sarah as a graduation gift and read it in one day. How one can continue to thrive in the face of tragedy is illuminated by d'Arcy...how one can survive this kind of tragedy is an amazing testimony to the strength of the human spirit.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this book from my Mother's library after she died in 2021. Oh my the agony of
Song for Sarah! A writer with a poet heart (much like my Mother and me) kept a diary through her first pregnancy and the 18 months of her child’s life (when both the child, Sarah, and the author’s husband were killed by a drunk driver), and through the first year of her mourning. That included her second pregnancy, since she was pregnant at the time of the crash. The spiritual battle she fought and the profound wisdom she gained (and passed along to the readers of this book) through this awful period of life is life-changing for this reader - and I would imagine many other readers.

[Virginia Markhart · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very difficult to read. This mother had a lot of insight into the grieving process. What a horrible thing to experience, the loss of her husband and child in a car accident. The letters she wrote to her daughter tell the story of her strength and survival. Lots of the letters were so real. Very painful.

[Famulos Antek · Rating 3 out of 5]

przygnebiajace czyli takie jakie lubie ale chyba nie moja forma

[Lori Neff · Rating 4 out of 5]

relatable and honest. if you've suddenly lost a loved one, you'll relate to her questions and pain.

[Elizabeth Gibbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've never experienced the kind of loss that this author went through, so I could never pretend to relate, but I was certainly touched by the emotions that were brought out by the simple journal entries. The words are pieces of that time as much as the memories themselves. I'm glad I ran across this book and would suggest it for anyone who has suffered the loss of a small child. While it can't take away any of the pain, it might be able to give hope that the feeling of utter helplessness and despair is normal, and that the feeling of being completely lost will someday fade and you'll be able to find yourself again, even if you are a new and different person. Life won't ever be the same but there will come a time when there will be a new normal.

[Lucy Bilik · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing book of letters to daughter from mother before and after birth and later death. An unmasked range of emotions that she has gone thru from deep love and happiness to deepest grief known to a mother to loose both daughter and husband. I have not understood some of emotions and feelings that ran thru me during my loss but now I know that they were all normal and part of grieving process. Great read to all grieving mothers.

[Bobbie N · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entries from Paula D'Arcy's journal, starting with her learning she was pregnant and continuing through the horrendous period of grief she suffered following the deaths of that child and her husband 3 years later. Heartwrenching.

[Stacie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

This mother loved her daughter so much, reading this book i felt a little jealousy to be honest. haha it silly i know...

[Jane Lively · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was kind of melancholy and wonderful all at the same time. It was really cute and sometimes the farthest from being sweet. I loved it. :)

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although the grief is different than mine I found this a really good source for dealing with my life, as it is now!