The conclusion that the author is not in fact a hipster douchebag. He is a brutally, painfully honest real person. This book is the most accurate, honest and painfully raw accounts of grief. He was angry, bitter, devastated, broken, overwhelmed and unprepared to face single parenthood alone for the first time after his daughter's birth. He could have written how he was a saintly martyr navigating unchartered territory without his perfect woman. But he doesn't. He swears a lot. He rants. He raves. He is bitter at how those around him try to console him, or pretend nothing happened at all. He feels his in-laws don't grieve properly. He is a real person, with real emotions. He doesn't put his wife on a pedestal either. He portrays her as a real person someone with hopes, dreams, a big smile, but also a potty mouth, a bossy side and bitchy days. Anyone who has gone through a loss will appreciate the brutal honesty of the author's first painful year as a father and widow, learning how to do both as once, yet not wanting one role to define the other. It was very sad all tears when it came down to him describing his love to his daughter and how he would give anything to have his wife back, except for her. The author's means of survival do not meet their ideals of "acceptable grieving methods". Mostly, though, his ability to convey love for his daughter and late wife through words and the sheer dedication it must have taken for him to write a book is staggering. Bravo, Matt!
