Book Report

ANDREW, YOU DIED TOO SOON: A Family Experience of Grieving & Living Again

Author: Corrine Chilstrom, Augsburg, 1993–Reviewed by: Jeanne Adams, SOS Support Group Facilitator, July 1996

When her son Andrew died by suicide, Corrine Chilstrom and her family were thrown into the
difficult grief experience that she shares in her book.

Corrine and her husband Herbert, both clergy in the Lutheran Church, were sustained by the strength that came from their Christian faith. She describes the experiences that came with being a highly visible family – sharing what was helpful, what was hurtful and their process of struggles and growth. She also addresses the issue of Andrew being an adopted child.

Although the author offers her story primarily for parents who grieve the loss of a child, it speaks to
all who have grieved or tried to hide their grief or have cared about the grief of others. The book reminds the reader that, “the journey of grief is helping the heart know what the head knows.”

SOS Newsletter Article, Mental Health Center of Dane County, Inc.