Preserving Light by Gail Hartman (Paperback)

Gail Hartman's memoir, Preserving Light, is the self-portrait of a remarkable sensibility: keenly observant, able to wade into very deep waters, intelligent, articulate, and rich with wit, insight, and self-containment. "One Lucky Widow" is worth the book alone as it explores her desperate effort to save her husband's life from a rare disorder, the shock of loss, the grief and numbness after, and her capacity to reach within and access her own resources to lead her through and find the unthinkable: how rich her life became, even in the face of large loss. Other stories, all true, show the irony and mystery of this journey we share. In opening this window into her life, Hartman adds immeasurably to the journey we share with her.
--James Hollis, Ph.D., Jungian Analyst and author, Washington, D.C.

Rarely is there a book that offers humor to balance the pain of impending loss. Preserving Light is such a book! I highly recommend it to anyone who has lost someone to terminal illness -- or is currently on that heartbreaking journey. Hartman's vibrant writing hits just the right note -- funny yet compassionate, edgy but tender. This is the best book I have read for helping one to bear the ambiguous loss of a loved one who is slowly leaving -- and yes, for afterward, too.
--Dr. Pauline Boss, author, Ambiguous Loss, www.ambiguousloss.com

The beautifully written memoir pieces in Preserving Light track both the costs and rewards of what it is to be fully human, wide-open to pain and growth. Hartman is a writer of exceptional wisdom. The light from her deeply processed experiences shines throughout this fine book, luminous and illuminating.
--Paulette Alden is the author of several books of fiction and memoir, including most recently The Answer to Your Question, a Kindle Book Review Best Indie Book Award