Option B by Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant ranks as one of my favourite books, maybe ever. Not only is it about the process of grief but it's about resilience and rebounding back from life's struggles. Option B was first released on the 24 April of this year and could not have been released at a more appropriate time in my life. Before it hit the shelves here in New Zealand I had heard so many good reviews and how the book had such impressionable effects on peoples lives. One of my favourite reviews is by YouTuber Rosianna Halse Rojas and I'll leave it linked if you'd like to look into her review of the book, which of course is amazing.
The following four paragraphs are from the website, optionb.org which I highly encourage you to check out. It discusses what's covered in Option B better than I ever could myself.
"After the sudden death of her husband, Sheryl Sandberg felt certain that her and her children would never feel pure joy again. Her friend Adam Grant, a psychologist at Warton, told her there are concrete steps people can take to recover and rebound from life shattering experiences. We are not born with a fixed amount of resilience. It is a muscle that everyone can build.
Option B combines Sheryl's personal insights with Adam's eye opening research on finding strength in the face of adversity. Beginning with the gut-wrenching moment when Sheryl finds her husband, Dave Goldberg, collapsed on a gym floor, Sheryl opens up her heart and her journal to describe the acute grief and isolation she felt in the wake of his death. But Option B goes beyond Sheryl's loss to explore how a broad range of people have overcome hardships including illness, job loss, sexual assault, natural disasters and the violence of war. Their stories reveal the capacity of the human spirit to persevere and to rediscover joy.
Resilience comes from deep within us and from support outside us. Even after the most devastating events, it is possible to grow by finding a deeper means and gaining greater appreciation in our lives. Option B illuminates how to help others in crisis, develop compassion for ourselves, raise strong children and create resilient families, communities and workplaces. Many of these lessons can be applied everyday struggles, allowing us to brave whatever lies ahead.
Two weeks after losing her husband, Sheryl was preparing for a father-child activity. "I want Dave", she cried. Her friend replied, "Option A is not available," then promised to help her make the most of Option B. We all live some form of Option B. This book will help us all make the most of it."
We all experience a variety of hardships in our lives and whether they happened six months ago or six years ago, I believe this book will be of significant help. Grief is a very apparent in my life right now and Option B made me feel understood and although I'm not the only one grieving in my family right now, it made me feel less alone and that what I'm experiencing and feeling is normal.
I'm going to write some other blogposts at some point covering some of the topics that Sheryl covered in the book, with my opinions and experience as well, so keep a look out for those.
Let me know if you've already read Option B and what your thoughts were on the book.
B x
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