The Widow’s Guide to Dead Bastards

Essayist Waite’s debut memoir details her journey through grief, rage, and compassion after her husband’s sudden death. Narrator Cassandra Campbell describes the author being confronted with the awful secrets that her husband had been hiding, from affairs and drug use to a substance use disorder and a draw to porn. These painful discoveries called into question their seemingly perfect marriage and complicated the grieving process. Campbell’s narration is as witty, lyrical, and raw as the author’s words about contemplating their life together and struggling to wade through waves of grief while caring for her son and desperately seeking closure. The audiobook stresses that grief is not linear, nor is it the same for everyone, as Waite tries everything from traditional group therapy to drum circling, yoga, Shamanic healing, and more. As she comes to the first anniversary of her husband’s death, listeners will hear how she’s healed yet is still impacted by his fraught legacy. In the epilogue, listeners are also given glimpses into how the various family members are doing.