In March of 2002, while in Italy on a year-long business stay with her husband and two young boys, Jill Kraft lost 5 members of her family in a tragic automobile accident. The accident not only stole the most beloved people from her life, but left her severely injured and without the will to live.

To lose one’s whole family in one ill-fated swoop is unfathomable to most people, but to also be one of the sole-survivors makes it even less comprehensible.

It was insightful, and at times difficult to read Jill’s story for we get a glimpse inside that awful, all-encompassing grief. Jill narrates the story from exciting beginnings — from meeting her husband Bart and the birth of her two boys — to the accident and its impact on her life, all the way through her grief recovery process. She asks tough questions, like why God allowed her to survive, and what was her role now that she no longer had a husband and children to be a wife and mother to, something she had previously lived everyday for.

The story is more than just about loss. It is about the will to live, and live joyfully. Jill’s strong faith and character enabled her to move forward and find happiness in the aftermath of such a horrific experience. She tells her story with brutal honesty. Her strength and perseverance are astounding. She kept moving forward when she could have easily given up. Through therapy, she realizes she shouldn’t have to hide her grief. It is part of her. Her message that grief never goes away is a somber one, but for people who have never experienced a loss of such proportions, it is helpful to understand. Possibly we may learn how to respond to others’ grief in a more helpful way.

Finding Jill was a poignant and thought-provoking read. ( )