Structured according to Elisabeth Kubler-Ross’ Five Stages of Grief (denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance), The Rules of Inheritance is author Claire Bidwell Smith’s story of dealing with the death of not one, but both of her parents before she reaches the age of twenty-six. In fact, death and the emotions surrounding it consume Claire for much of her young life. An only child, she was only fourteen when both of her parents were diagnosed with cancer.

Yes, the subject matter of this book is heavy. Yet, after reading it, I felt the same as Claire, now a grief counselor in Los Angeles, who writes of her hospice work, “The truth is that I don’t find it sad at all. When I talk to grieving people, it’s like looking at a negative image — the deeper the grief, the more evidence of love I see.”

About the loneliness of grieving, she writes, “It’s like living in a country where no one speaks the same language as you. When you come across someone who does, you feel as though you could talk for hours.” Isn’t that the way we all feel when we meet a kindred soul? As if they are a much-needed life raft?

After both of her parents have passed, Claire writes of her loneliness and how she literally has no one. “I feel like there’s something wrong with me because I’m no one’s special person. Like I’m damaged. Like I’m not worthy of being someone’s most important person.” I defy anyone to deny ever feeling such raw emotions.

In fact, Claire’s writing is absolutely relatable. As she moves through her teen years into adulthood, I relived my own years of growing up. Though I have yet to deal with the death of a parent, my journey is Claire’s journey. She took me back in time and I watched my younger self graduate high school, attend college, and painfully grow into independence. The one word that best describes The Rules of Inheritance is empathy. Claire writes with tons of it and, because of that, I traveled with her back through time, her recollections igniting memories of my own. Ultimately, I felt a kinship with Claire’s story, like she is the stranger in a foreign land who speaks my language; like she is my life raft, my friend.

Full Disclosure: Aging Gal was compensated for this review; however, that doesn’t mean her opinions aren’t 100% her own.