Book Review: The Hard Time: Getting Through Loss

BY: Molly Kohut, MA, PC, ATR-BC

CATEGORY: Grief and Loss
PUBLICATION: About Grief


​Help for the Hard Times: Getting Through Loss
By Earl Hipp

Earl Hipp's Help for the Hard Times: Getting Through Loss provides much insight into a teenager's journey through grief. In the introductory pages, the author explains the many different kinds of losses teenagers go through, and how "just living means experiencing loss."

Hipp identifies a "loss pot" as the storage for all of the losses and feelings that an individual experiences over time. If these emotional experiences are ignored, the reader learns, the pot continues to stew and bubble, adding to the pain. Hipp quotes bereaved teenagers to show that the feelings and behaviors which accompany grief are widely shared. He explains both healthy and not so healthy ways young people deal with the different territories of the "grief fog." Hipp ends the book with a hopeful message: loss can provide personal growth, emotional maturity, and healing adapting skills.

Humorous cartoon illustrations and diverse quotations break up the difficult subject matter. Written as a self-help book for youth, this resource can also aid parents and clinicians with helping teens cope.

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