The World Looks Different Now: A Memoir of Suicide, Faith, and Family

Description

On a glorious, if blisteringly hot, Saturday in August 2010, Margaret Thomson's world is suddenly shattered by the incomprehensible news that her twenty-two-year-old son, a medic in the army, has taken his life. In a deep state of shock, Thomson and her husband immediately travel to Fort Bragg, North Carolina, where their son Kieran was stationed, in an effort to assist their daughter-in-law. Upon their arrival, though, the couple find themselves plunged into a labyrinthine and, at times, seemingly bizarre world of military rules and regulations. Eventually, after the funeral and the memorial services are over, an even more challenging journey-emotionally as well as geographically-ensues, especially for Margaret, who, as a former journalist, is determined to find out more about the circumstances surrounding her son's death, no matter how high the cost. As she enters her second year of grieving, Thomson receives an unexpected invitation from an unlikely source-the army, which she's often blamed in many ways, whether fairly or not, for her son's death. Seizing upon this opportunity, Thomson finds that her perspective is changed-literally-and that as a result the world does indeed look different now.

Margaret Thomson is a journalist and television producer who's reported on a variety of subjects, from Middle East politics to the British royal family. As a radio correspondent for ABC News, she was the first American broadcast journalist to report the end of the Falklands War in May 1982; several years later she became the first radio correspondent to report on the AIDS epidemic in Africa.Upon returning to the United States in 1992, she taught journalism and television production at the University of Memphis. In 1993, she worked as a production associate on the HBO documentary The Trial of James Earl Ray. Thomson continues to write for print and online publications. In 2016, she and her husband Tim relocated from Memphis to Franklin, Tennessee. Their son Matt, a recent graduate of the United States Merchant Marine Academy, visits frequently from his job in the shipping industry.

2021 IBPA Benjamin Franklin Awards Gold Winner in Best New Voice: Nonfiction 2021 International Book Awards Winner in Health: Death & Dying 2021 International Book Awards Finalist in Best New Non-Fiction 2021 CIBA Military & Front Lines Book Awards Winner 2020 Shelf Unbound Best Indie Book Awards Finalist "An unflinchingly honest portrait of grief and survival that many fellow travelers will find comforting." -Kirkus Reviews "A beautifully written and harrowing tale of a mother coming to terms with her son's devastating suicide. The World Looks Different Now offers comfort and companionship to other parents grieving this unbearable loss." -Sarah Neustadter, PhD, author of Love You Like the Sky "Margaret Thomson has achieved the near-impossible by looking grief right in the eye and finding a story that illuminates us on the toughest topic there is. With grace, a light touch, and a great deal of truth, she moves us past the plot of her tale of loss and into a place of knowing." -Marion Roach Smith, author of The Memoir Project: A Thoroughly Non-Standardized Text for Writing & Life "Margaret Thomson's raw and intimate and eventually heartwarming story shows she has learned to survive. . . . I recommend The World Looks Different Now to other suicide survivors and parents who have lost their children by any means." -Madeline Sharples, author of Leaving the Hall Light On "This is a powerful book-Thomson's emotions crackle off the page. Survivors of suicide loss will find communion in her grief, and solace in her healing." -Kelley Clink, author of A Different Kind of Same "In this timeless memoir of tragic loss and exploration, author Margaret Thomson pulls back the curtain on life-altering experiences with courage and determination so that what wasn't seen . . . can be seen. Absolutely find a way to weave this riveting story into your life and heart." -D.A. (Daisy) Hickman, author of The Silence of Morning: A Memoir of Time Undone