Description

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Though at times it may seem impossible, we can heal with help from our friends and community– if we know how to ask. This heartrending, relatable account of one woman’s reckoning with loss is a guide to the world of self-recovery, self-love, and the skills necessary to meeting one's own needs in these times of pain– especially when that pain is suffered alone. 

Grief is all around us. In the world of today it has become common and layered, no longer only an occasional weight. A book needed now more than ever, Forget Prayers, Bring Cake is for people of all ages and orientations dealing with grief of any sort—professional, personal, romantic, familial, or even the sadness of the modern day. This book provides actions to boost self-care and self-worth; it shows when and how to ask for love and attention, and how to provide it for others. It shows that it is okay to define your needs and ask others to share theirs. In a moment in which community, affection, and generosity are needed more than ever, this book is an indispensable road map. 

This book will be a guiding light to a healthier mental state amid these troubled times.

About the Author

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Merissa Nathan Gerson, author of Forget Prayers, Bring Cake: A Single Woman’s Guide to Grieving, is a New Orleans-based writer, professor and sex educator. Her written work has appeared in The Atlantic, The New York Times, Playboy, and Tablet, among others, and she was the inherited trauma consultant for Amazon’s Emmy Award winning television show, Transparent.

Praise For…

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"There’s someone in your life — maybe it’s you — who absolutely needs this book."
— Hey Alma

"Gerson debuts with an illuminating memoir-cum-guide to dealing with grief as a single woman...Gerson’s willingness to explore the depth and breadth of personal loss will help those grieving know they are not alone."
— Publishers Weekly

"Through her warm writing style, creative ideas and inviting visuals, Merissa Nathan Gerson strikes the perfect tone between 'commiserating woman who's been there' and 'practical grief doula.' As a former single grieving woman who flailed for a while before finding her way, where was this book when I needed it the most?"
— Rebecca Soffer, cofounder of Modern Loss and author of The Modern Loss Handbook: An Interactive Guide to Moving Through Grief and Building Your Resilience

"Merissa Gerson has created a neon treatise on the art and necessity of grieving. Forget Prayers, Bring Cake is a lushly crafted offering that we have never needed more than now. I've not read many books that made me write "Thank you" when I finished the last word. Thank you."
— Kiese Laymon, New York Times bestselling author of Heavy and Long Division

"Where the book truly shines as a “guide to grieving” is in showcasing the abundance of ways that readers can be in nurturing relationships in which they are called to care for mourners. This book is significant for anyone who may be accompanying a grieving family member, friend, or acquaintance and wants to do so with compassion. Gerson’s gift is to illustrate that mourners need not rely on a single person, and need not do their grieving in private, if there are partners, of all kinds, who are willing to meet them in their pain."
— Deborah Miller, The Jewish Book Council