Newly published by Palmetto Publishing, Picturing Grief pairs twenty striking images with reflective text to offer a visceral companion for those navigating profound loss.
Charleston, SC, July 14, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Palmetto Publishing has released Picturing Grief, a new book by Michelle Scoville that pairs twenty evocative images with accompanying text to illuminate the depth and complexity of traumatic grief. The book draws directly from Scoville’s experience of losing her husband of forty years and offers a unique and moving alternative to traditional grief literature.
Rather than following a conventional self-help format, Picturing Grief presents a series of image-and-text pairings designed to give shape to emotions that words alone struggle to convey. A tsunami poised to crash onto a quiet beach. A tunnel of fire with no shortcut through. A regiment of daily tasks dissolving like smoke before the griever can rise from bed. Each pairing emerged from Scoville’s own imagination and grief, offering readers mirrors that reflect experiences they may have felt but have never been able to articulate.
The book confronts what Scoville identifies as the central frustration of grief: the inadequacy of language. Traditional resources, from books to podcasts to counseling sessions, rely on words to translate a loss that reshapes a person’s identity, cognition, and sense of the world. Picturing Grief does not attempt to guide readers toward recovery or offer a timeline for healing. Instead, it sits with the weight of loss and validates the upheaval without rushing past it.
The book is positioned for adults navigating the aftermath of significant loss, particularly the death of a spouse or life partner, who have found conventional grief resources insufficient. It shares shelf space with titles such as Joan Didion’s The Year of Magical Thinking and Megan Devine’s It’s OK That You’re Not OK. Scoville, a certified Death Doula, editor, and graphic designer, brings both professional visual expertise and lived experience to the work. Her background in communications and design informs the book’s distinctive image-driven approach to a subject most literature addresses through prose alone.
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Picturing Grief is available for purchase online at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com.
To contact the author, please visit [email protected].
About the Author: Michelle Scoville is a certified Death Doula, author, editor, and graphic designer whose career has included publication development, communications and visual design. Following the death of her husband, she dedicated herself to supporting individuals and families navigating end-of-life challenges and profound loss. Combining her professional expertise with her personal experience of grief, she created Picturing Grief, a unique collection of evocative images and reflective text designed to express what words alone cannot.
Media Contact: [email protected]
Available for interviews: Author, Michelle Scoville
CONTACT: Leah Joseph
Palmetto Publishing
[email protected]
