The Fall of a Sparrow: Of Death and Dreams and Healing

by Kent L. Koppelman

In this book, the author describes his attempt to create a meaningful and satisfying grieving process following the death of his 19 year old son, Jason, in a car accident. The narrative confronts the harsh reality of death from the hospital to the cemetery and the many mundane yet painful decisions that must be made. For those who must cope with an unexpected death, the grieving process becomes a struggle to express one's love and at the same time say goodbye.

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

Kent L. Koppelman, Ph.D. Education 1979, La Crosse, Wisconsin.

A champion of diversity and the author of “Understanding Human Differences,” Kent Koppelman is known for writing a lasting textbook that is read by college students in multicultural education classes throughout the U.S. He also wrote “Values in the Key of Life: Making Harmony in the Human Community,” another human relations resource. He helped found a number of organizations, including the Wisconsin State Human Relations Association, that promote educational programs that help students recognize and value human diversity.

Koppelman has been recognized as a superb educator and a model mentor with awards like the Outstanding Educator of the Year from Phi Delta Kappa and Wisconsin Teacher Educator of the Year. He recently retired as a professor of education at the University of WisconsinLa Crosse, where he led the educational policy and practice department as chair from 1990 until 2000 and the education studies department from 2003 until 2006.

Readers also know him as the author of “The Fall of a Sparrow,” an eloquent story about the search for meaning, grieving, and healing that followed the death of his son, Jason, in a car accident.