Excerpt from Crossing the River by Carol Smith, plus links to reviews, author biography & more

Afterward, the room felt ready, ordered, welcoming. That made it worse. I craved the happy swirl of his energy when he'd come rushing home and the ensuing disarray. I missed the "campsite" he set up each night, preferring the adventure of sleeping on the floor to the comfort of his bed. I missed the lumpy piles of clothes and endless rearranging of toy train tracks that threaded through the room. His unchanging room taunted me with the truth of his absence. This is the paradox of grief. At first, I could not bear the thought of moving. Later, I could not bear to stay.

Excerpted from Crossing the River by Carol Smith. Copyright © 2021 by Carol Smith. Excerpted by permission of Abrams Press. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.