A review by fleurdujour
Rosalie Lightning: A Graphic Memoir by Tom Hart

5.0

This book was probably the saddest book I've ever read. It also made me cry the hardest. Tom Hart beautifully chronicles the hellish turn his wife and his lives took when one morning their young daughter Rosalie suddenly and unexpectedly died. This was a haunting, beautiful, and completely devastating read. One moment that especially stood out to me is when Tom and his wife, Leela, go to a grief counselor where Tom says he wishes he could smash mountains in his rage at the loss of Rosalie- after the counselor encourages him to take up something physical to work through that rage, like chopping wood, Tom explains that his drawings are his way to work through his grief. Rosalie Lightning is a result of Tom's mountain smashing, and he left us with a stunning tribute to his daughter's short life and a meditation on the answer to the question no one ever wants to be faced with: What do you do when your child dies?