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Hope Beyond an Empty Cradle: The Journey Toward Healing After Stillbirth, Miscarriage, and Child Loss
Tens of thousands of women and families every year lose a baby to miscarriage, stillbirth, or infant death. The statistics are sobering--between 10% and 20% of pregnancies end in miscarriage, 1% in stillbirth, and nearly 23,000 babies die before their first birthday--but statistics alone miss the depth of the hurt. Each loss is personal and devastating.
No woman is prepared to lose a baby, and caregivers are often unaware of how best to help. In Hope Beyond an Empty Cradle therapist Hallie Scott first shares her own story, as a mother whose only child, Abigail, was stillborn, and then leads readers through a healing process that makes space for heartbreak, despair, guilt, questions, and anger. Life is never the same in the wake of the loss, but a new normal is possible.
The book will be a welcome resource for families who have lost a child, as well as for those seeking to care for them in their traumatic grief.
No woman is prepared to lose a baby, and caregivers are often unaware of how best to help. In Hope Beyond an Empty Cradle therapist Hallie Scott first shares her own story, as a mother whose only child, Abigail, was stillborn, and then leads readers through a healing process that makes space for heartbreak, despair, guilt, questions, and anger. Life is never the same in the wake of the loss, but a new normal is possible.
The book will be a welcome resource for families who have lost a child, as well as for those seeking to care for them in their traumatic grief.
- GenresNonfictionGrief
152 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 8, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
May 16, 2021
I begin this review with a content warning, but also with the realization that those who need that warning are also those who need this book. Hope Beyond an Empty Cradle deals with child loss and contains the author’s personal stories of experiencing stillbirth and miscarriage. If you’ve come to this webpage because you’ve experienced the loss of a child, I am so sorry. There is no blog post, book, or review that can take away that pain. However, I do think that Hallie Scott’s wise words as a professional therapist who has herself experienced child loss will be a reminder that you’re not alone and that there is still hope.
Hope Beyond an Empty Cradle is not an easy book to read, but it touches on a subject that affects almost everyone to some extent. 10-15% of known pregnancies end in miscarriage. 24,000 babies each year are stillborn, with 60% having no discernable cause. If your life hasn’t been touched by child loss, it is very likely that it has affected your friends, your family, or others you know.
Hallie Scott writes out of her own personal experience, having had her first pregnancy end in stillbirth and a second with miscarriage. She also writes out of her professional experience as a marriage and family therapist. The result is a book that not only knows what to say from an intellectual standpoint, but knows how to say it from an emotional one. Hope Beyond an Empty Cradle at times a memoir, at times a therapy session. Sometimes you are invited into Hallie’s home. Sometimes you are invited into her office. It’s a well-structured blend that truly models an incarnational concept of therapy. Scott understands what you’re going through because she’s been there too—not just in textbook or theory, but in reality.
Hope Beyond an Empty Cradle provides more than just empathy, it provides solidarity. As Scott works through her own losses in memoir fashion then turns to therapeutic evaluation, you’re drawn into this compelling narrative. I can’t speak from the experience of a mom who has suffered child loss, but I can imagine that this book will help you feel seen—and that’s an experience that goes a long way toward beginning the healing process.
Perhaps my biggest takeaway from the book was Scott’s reassurance that the pain and grief are okay. Too often, healing is seen as the pain and grief ending. Scott writes that the pain and grief are memories of a life valuable enough to not forget. It’s okay to hold on to grief at some level. Hope Beyond an Empty Cradle is the kind of book that I think churches should have a supply of to give out in times of need. No, don’t go substitute a book for an actual relationship with a hurting person. But, recognize what can you can give and what you can’t. Hallie Scott gives a perspective that most of us can’t give—or if we can, it’s not with her professional experience or writing talent. There is hope. There is healing. Hallie Scott will help you navigate the journey as someone who has been there. Hope Beyond the Cradle is a truly important work.
Hope Beyond an Empty Cradle is not an easy book to read, but it touches on a subject that affects almost everyone to some extent. 10-15% of known pregnancies end in miscarriage. 24,000 babies each year are stillborn, with 60% having no discernable cause. If your life hasn’t been touched by child loss, it is very likely that it has affected your friends, your family, or others you know.
Hallie Scott writes out of her own personal experience, having had her first pregnancy end in stillbirth and a second with miscarriage. She also writes out of her professional experience as a marriage and family therapist. The result is a book that not only knows what to say from an intellectual standpoint, but knows how to say it from an emotional one. Hope Beyond an Empty Cradle at times a memoir, at times a therapy session. Sometimes you are invited into Hallie’s home. Sometimes you are invited into her office. It’s a well-structured blend that truly models an incarnational concept of therapy. Scott understands what you’re going through because she’s been there too—not just in textbook or theory, but in reality.
Hope Beyond an Empty Cradle provides more than just empathy, it provides solidarity. As Scott works through her own losses in memoir fashion then turns to therapeutic evaluation, you’re drawn into this compelling narrative. I can’t speak from the experience of a mom who has suffered child loss, but I can imagine that this book will help you feel seen—and that’s an experience that goes a long way toward beginning the healing process.
Perhaps my biggest takeaway from the book was Scott’s reassurance that the pain and grief are okay. Too often, healing is seen as the pain and grief ending. Scott writes that the pain and grief are memories of a life valuable enough to not forget. It’s okay to hold on to grief at some level. Hope Beyond an Empty Cradle is the kind of book that I think churches should have a supply of to give out in times of need. No, don’t go substitute a book for an actual relationship with a hurting person. But, recognize what can you can give and what you can’t. Hallie Scott gives a perspective that most of us can’t give—or if we can, it’s not with her professional experience or writing talent. There is hope. There is healing. Hallie Scott will help you navigate the journey as someone who has been there. Hope Beyond the Cradle is a truly important work.
March 23, 2025
A very painful, brutally honest, supportive, biblical book of practical steps to grieve well the loss of a baby. This touched on so many important themes I have faced myself after 3 losses, and is an important read for anyone who has either had a miscarriage/stillbirth or for those who know someone who’s had a loss. 100% recommend this book and am so thankful it was gifted to me after the deaths of my 3 precious babies.
Psalm 56:3-4 “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.”
Psalm 56:3-4 “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.”
October 15, 2022
Hallie is so honest about her heartbreaking motherhood journey that never resulted in a living child here on Earth. I would recommend to anyone dealing with the questions that arise after baby loss.
"We need to come to a place of accepting that we don't like God's plan and recognizing that it feels unfair, yet trusting him regardless. Just to be clear, God doesn't need this response from us. We need it, because it is healing for us."- Hallie Scott
"We need to come to a place of accepting that we don't like God's plan and recognizing that it feels unfair, yet trusting him regardless. Just to be clear, God doesn't need this response from us. We need it, because it is healing for us."- Hallie Scott
May 13, 2021
For every women who has lost a child through miscarriage or stillbirth, had a friend who has gone or is going through it, this is a must read! Hallie does an extraordinary job normalizing the feelings we (or our friends) go through during the grieving process.
She does a beautiful job of explaining the feelings you may go through and gives helpful thoughts on how to manage situations that may be a trigger, or a challenge, not to mention, a perspective from the loss mom so helpful for friends who may not know how to support their friend who has just lost.
Her perspective is one not seen in the conversations around loss. How I wish I had this book years ago. I could have done so much better for my friends who went through loss.
She does a beautiful job of explaining the feelings you may go through and gives helpful thoughts on how to manage situations that may be a trigger, or a challenge, not to mention, a perspective from the loss mom so helpful for friends who may not know how to support their friend who has just lost.
Her perspective is one not seen in the conversations around loss. How I wish I had this book years ago. I could have done so much better for my friends who went through loss.
January 31, 2026
I wanted to see if the library had any books on child/pregnancy loss at all and this was one of the few available. I immediately felt drawn to it because I also had a 39 week stillbirth in august, and felt even more seen because i also had a miscarriage after my stillbirth so it was somewhat nice to feel represented in that way as if i wasn’t alone, like many who may be seeking this book.
Sadly, the information available in this book was nothing less than I’d expect from any therapist. try yoga, journaling, etc. But what I did appreciate was the passages on how to stand up for ourselves and be honest when it came to hurts with others, and helped me understand a little more my own behaviors when it comes to consoling the grandparents of loss as a parentified child (and why it’s so triggering for me)
I’d say this book can’t fix anything, but can help give maybe some insights to our inner thoughts after we’ve experienced loss or recurrent losses.
Sadly, the information available in this book was nothing less than I’d expect from any therapist. try yoga, journaling, etc. But what I did appreciate was the passages on how to stand up for ourselves and be honest when it came to hurts with others, and helped me understand a little more my own behaviors when it comes to consoling the grandparents of loss as a parentified child (and why it’s so triggering for me)
I’d say this book can’t fix anything, but can help give maybe some insights to our inner thoughts after we’ve experienced loss or recurrent losses.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 29, 2023
I read this book over the course of a few months as I came to terms with a recent miscarriage. Although there were plenty of aspects of the book that didn’t apply to me or my situation, I appreciated the gentle, understanding tone of the book and many practical difficult scenarios that definitely resonated in my own experience.
February 2, 2023
Decided to read this today after having had a difficult month mentally as January would have been the month of my baby’s 1st birthday. Highly recommend this to those who are grieving a miscarriage or stillbirth. It was so helpful in multiple aspects, particularly regarding extended grief that continues to happen beyond when it is “acceptable” to grieve the baby who was lost.
September 17, 2025
I enjoyed this book and the only reason it's not a 5 star for me is that it felt like there was clinical knowledge and there was biblical truths but the two were kept separate. They were more intertwined towards the end of the book. I liked that it gave advice for friends who are going through child-loss.
August 4, 2022
New favorite alert. A Christian story on baby loss, which delves into so many angles that are often omitted in baby loss books (grandparents, dads, marriage, and fertility after a loss). I wish I had had this book when I left the hospital with my girl.
March 30, 2022
One of the best books on loss!! Ever!! And I’ve read a lot of them.
January 26, 2024
I loved this book so much. I sat and read it in less than 24 hours. So well written. Thoughtful. Relatable. Brought tears to my eyes.
January 22, 2025
4.5 ⭐️ would definitely recommend this book to anyone who has experienced a miscarriage or infant loss, as well as anyone walking alongside someone going through baby loss.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews