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Project Rebirth: Survival and the Strength of the Human Spirit from 9/11 Survivors
Written in conjunction with the documentary Rebirth, a full decade in the making, an uplifting look at the lives of nine individuals whose lives were forever changed by the largest tragedy our nation has ever faced.
The images of the burning towers, the heartbroken friends building memorials, the minute-by-minute accounts of the horrors of that day-all are indelibly etched on our collective consciousness. But what of those left behind after 9/11? What have they, and we, learned from the gift of time?
In Project Rebirth, a psychologist and a journalist examine the lives of nine people who were directly affected by the events of September 11, 2001. Written concurrently with the filming of a forthcoming documentary, it is uniquely positioned to tackle the questions raised about how people react in the face of crippling grief, how you maintain hope for a future when your life as you knew it is destroyed, and the amazing ability of humans to focus on the positive aspects of day-to-day living in the face of tragedy.
The project follows people dedicated to rebuilding, both physically and emotionally. Spirituality, resilience, and hope are at the center of their stories. Brian, who lost his firefighter brother, spent two years working at Ground Zero and then helped to rebuild the PATH train station. Tanya, who lost her fiancée on 9/11, finds new love, new life, and joy as a mother in the years following, all doors she thought closed to her forever.
Not a book that recounts the events of that day, and not a book about grief, Project Rebirth is a book about resilience and finding inner peace.
The images of the burning towers, the heartbroken friends building memorials, the minute-by-minute accounts of the horrors of that day-all are indelibly etched on our collective consciousness. But what of those left behind after 9/11? What have they, and we, learned from the gift of time?
In Project Rebirth, a psychologist and a journalist examine the lives of nine people who were directly affected by the events of September 11, 2001. Written concurrently with the filming of a forthcoming documentary, it is uniquely positioned to tackle the questions raised about how people react in the face of crippling grief, how you maintain hope for a future when your life as you knew it is destroyed, and the amazing ability of humans to focus on the positive aspects of day-to-day living in the face of tragedy.
The project follows people dedicated to rebuilding, both physically and emotionally. Spirituality, resilience, and hope are at the center of their stories. Brian, who lost his firefighter brother, spent two years working at Ground Zero and then helped to rebuild the PATH train station. Tanya, who lost her fiancée on 9/11, finds new love, new life, and joy as a mother in the years following, all doors she thought closed to her forever.
Not a book that recounts the events of that day, and not a book about grief, Project Rebirth is a book about resilience and finding inner peace.
- GenresHistoryNonfiction
256 pages, Hardcover
First published August 18, 2011
2 people are currently reading
81 people want to read
About the author
Robin Stern
18 books30 followersRobin Stern is the Co-founder and Associate Director for the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and an Associate Research Scientist at the Child Study Center at Yale.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
September 11, 2021
This book shared the stories of specific people who were affected by losses of 9/11 in different ways and how they all grieve in their own ways. Tremendous stories.
April 8, 2014
This is a great companion piece to the documentary. Three additional people's stories are told and while some are more compelling, I feel like this gives a great insight about grief, loss, and recovery. The main take away from the book is that grief and rebirth are intensely personal and there is no set path. What may help one person over the loss of someone or something might hinder another person.
It's written in a straight-forward manner, with author or clinical intrusion. While the authors craft the stories in a pleasing way, they don't simply insert bits and pieces into a template and hope it works out. Instead, each story is told in the way the participant told it. It's shaped and polished by the authors to showcase one possible road to recovery and rebirth.
This is not a book JUST about 9/11, nor is it a book JUST about healing. It's a book that highlights one of the greatest loss the US has ever suffered, personalizes it, and then looks at it through the scope of what possible steps are taken in order to overcome the grief.
It's written in a straight-forward manner, with author or clinical intrusion. While the authors craft the stories in a pleasing way, they don't simply insert bits and pieces into a template and hope it works out. Instead, each story is told in the way the participant told it. It's shaped and polished by the authors to showcase one possible road to recovery and rebirth.
This is not a book JUST about 9/11, nor is it a book JUST about healing. It's a book that highlights one of the greatest loss the US has ever suffered, personalizes it, and then looks at it through the scope of what possible steps are taken in order to overcome the grief.
October 30, 2015
I feel a bit guilty to be honest as I wanted to love it but I couldn't.
It was just too disjointed and a little preachy in its conclusion.
Half of the stories were beautiful moving portraits of sons, lovers, husbands, wives losing their loved on in 9/11. The lad who's mother worked for Cantor Fitzgerald and died in the initial impact told a poignant wonderful tale of following in his mother's footsteps. He also delivered a eulogy after 9/11 and a sparrow landed on his head which was incredible.
But then the other half was stories about individuals who were there helping out at the pile at Ground Zero or losing their job as a principal due to comments attributed to her son who actually helped out as he was in the National guard. The latter story did not fit into the piece as it was too far removed. Her tale is more about the prejudice towards Muslims after 9/11.
So it is well worth reading some of the stories but others just fell flat. Sorry
It was just too disjointed and a little preachy in its conclusion.
Half of the stories were beautiful moving portraits of sons, lovers, husbands, wives losing their loved on in 9/11. The lad who's mother worked for Cantor Fitzgerald and died in the initial impact told a poignant wonderful tale of following in his mother's footsteps. He also delivered a eulogy after 9/11 and a sparrow landed on his head which was incredible.
But then the other half was stories about individuals who were there helping out at the pile at Ground Zero or losing their job as a principal due to comments attributed to her son who actually helped out as he was in the National guard. The latter story did not fit into the piece as it was too far removed. Her tale is more about the prejudice towards Muslims after 9/11.
So it is well worth reading some of the stories but others just fell flat. Sorry
November 20, 2011
You don't need to have experienced the tragedy of 9/11 personally to relate to this book. Anyone who has experienced a loss or grief (consequently everyone) can benefit from both the narrative accounts and the author's commentary.
August 24, 2013
Surprised this wasn't more compelling. Borrowed thru MORE, so I had to return it in a month. Maybe if I could draw it out longer I could've read it. The stories just didn't grab me like most 9/11 stories do. Hope to retry it in the future...
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews