A Year and a Day

Ian W. Toal is a nurse in Barrie, Ontario.

This rather frustrating book is ostensibly a chronicle of the author’s
emotional state following the death of his spouse. Written in diary
form, the book focuses on the common activities that make up his daily
life. Ross is a good writer and clearly an intelligent man, but the
central thrust of his book keeps slipping away. There is a dearth of
emotional content that suggests a man unable to fully acknowledge or
examine his feelings. For most of the book, he uses “her” or
“she” when referring to his late wife, as if to distance himself
from an unbearable reality.

There is no right or wrong way to grieve a loss. However, given
Ross’s intention in writing this book—to provide insight into the
emotions felt by a person after the death of a spouse—a more frankly
emotional content could reasonably have been expected.