Competitive Grieving

A Novel

By: Nora Zelevansky

Narrated by: Katie Schorr

Wren’s closest friend, her anchor since childhood, is dead. Stewart Beasley. Gone. She can’t quite believe it, and she definitely can’t bring herself to google what causes an aneurysm. Instead of weeping or facing reality, Wren has been dreaming up the perfect funeral plans, memorial buffets, and processional songs for everyone from the corner bodega owner to her parents (none of whom show signs of imminent demise).

Stewart was a rising TV star, who - for reasons Wren struggles to understand - often surrounded himself with sycophants, amusing in his life, but intolerable in his death. When his icy mother assigns Wren the task of disseminating his possessions alongside George (Stewart’s maddening, but oddly charming, lawyer), she finds herself at the epicenter of a world in which she wants no part, where everyone is competing to own a piece of Stewart’s memory (sometimes literally).

Remembering the boy Stewart was and investigating the man he became, Wren finds herself wondering, did she even know this person who she once considered an extension of herself? Can you ever actually know anyone? How well does she really know herself?

Through laughter and tears, Nora Zelevansky’s Competitive Grieving shines a light on the universal struggle to grieve amidst the noise, to love with a broken heart, and to truly know someone who is gone forever.

An Entertainment Weekly Pick

©2021 Nora Zelevansky (P)2021 Blackstone Publishing

Hits close to home

We don’t often talk about grief and how it affects us. All too often we keep it inside, private,only to be expressed when we’re alone.
A beautiful story of grief and learning about yourself and others. Definitely worth listening to.

The most riveting show story I’ve ‘read’ in a long time

I loved the story and the performance. It was a rollercoaster of emotion but such an insightful look into an individuals coming to grips with life and the complexity of the cause behind the image we project to the world. I don’t reread many books these days but this one will stay in my library.

Good story, worth a listen

The writing is a little twee for my taste but story was interesting and novel. I appreciated that the author unraveled the mystery of her friend’s death without leaning in to true crime troupes. Worth a listen, especially if the title is available as part of your subscription (as it was for me).

loved it

I really enjoyed reading this book. I look forward to reading more books by this author in the near future.

Relatable

Loved the readers voice and cadence. Very relatable story and common experience among mourners of friends w premature deaths. Also, spoke to shame and associated challenges around depression. Certainly not helpful for recovering.

ZeldaNerd

Excellent writing with thoughtful reflection and some lol moments- would recommend anyone looking to laugh a little and cry a little.

I can say so many things

To me this was a very good plot, with heavy themes so well written that made me extremely uncomfortable. To the point of having to take breaks, but without ever quitting, because I wanted to see where it'd go. With that being said, this book could definitely be 30% shorter and I believe its essence would not be lost at all. Lastly, I wish the narrator was someone with an older sounding voice. Don't take me wrong, she did an amazing job with what she did. But her voice made it sound more like young friends than those within the 30/40 range.

I love fiction that teaches life lessons

Judging books by their cover for example or giving myself grace but no one else.

Loved it

I laughed multiple times and my heart ached a time or two. Lovely writing and creative description.

Close to home.

As a man who lost a good friend of 40 years a few months ago, many parts of this book hit very close to home. From the funeral that was in no way for my friend, but rather his family, to the many facets of his personality and friendships beyond mine that I knew nothing about.

This book is an excellent representation of coming to terms with the fact that while we all know our friends, we really only know what we saw, what they showed us personally. There is no way to know everything about anyone. And everyone grieves in their own way.

I plan to listen to this book again in a year, when my own grief for the loss of my friend isn't as fresh, and see if it helps me look back on my friend as a whole.

This book contains about the most truth I've ever read in a novel of fiction. It seems likely that it's portrayal of grief is universal to everyone. Bravo to the author for translating something so universal, but yet so difficult to convey in words. Amazing.