‘Stones in the Road was for me, at least in part, a shocking and upsetting account of the grief you’ve managed to overcome. I’ll struggle to forget sitting in the library unable to hold  back the tears as I slowly turned the pages.

I know this sounds cliché, but as I read it I definitely felt as though it tells your journey, as opposed to trying to be anything else. Future readers should know that you’re not trying to talk on behalf of anyone else. When you publish more, I’d love to read how your life develops, both in serendipitous ways one can never predict, and in the things you want to achieve and change.

The emotional resonance is hugely relatable, and I hope future readers will find some light in the fact you have been able to put down in words so eloquently what you’ve been through.

Whilst I think some of the poems were upsetting, I think this makes it all the more important that you carry on writing.’ – Sean Young

‘After reading the beautiful eloquence of Casey Bottono’s prose in her new book ‘Stones in the Road’, I have been greatly inspired and moved.  The depth of her work is profound with heartfelt vulnerablitily and fragility that is a rare pearl.

‘I’ve now spent the time to read some of your poems and I am moved! There is such a depth of grief, love and awareness…’

Caroline Wade, Wellbeing Mentor, Falmouth University

Stones in the Road is a straight forward, no-frills contemplation on loss and grieving. This does not mean that Bottono’s collection is lacking in emotional depth; rather, her work is unflinching in its honesty, exploring in plain and accessible language the complexities of her healing process. Anger, indecision, and even brief glimpses of relief crop up as the author grasps at memories, and considers the nature of memory itself. Far from a linear path through the stages of grief, Bottono offers a meandering and genuine representation of what happens to us as we process the loss of a loved one.

Full disclosure: I coordinate the Pen 2 Paper creative writing contest, which focuses on work that treats the topic of disability. I was introduced to Bottono’s work when she submitted a poem, “Dis-Ability,” to the 2014 contest, which was ultimately selected as a finalist. Read “Dis-Ability” at http://www.txdisabilities.org/pen-2-paper-2014-results