Media

Traveling with Ghosts

Excerpt in The Guardian – ‘I didn’t realise he was dying’: the day I lost my fiancé

Excerpt in YOU Magazine – Real lives: The deadly sting that destroyed our paradise

A Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers Spring 2017 Pick

One of Bustle’s Best Nonfiction Books for February 2017 – “Heartbreaking but beautiful. … As much as this is a tale of grief and loss, it’s one of love, too.”

Starred review in Booklist – “Fowler has turned her devastating, beautiful, honest, and personal story into something universal. Akin to Cheryl Strayed’s Wild, her book will appeal to globetrotters and readers of hopeful stories chronicling grief and recovery.”

The Washington Times – “Searing reading. This is a writer who is a wonder at conveying pain amid a rush of emotions. . . Blending her intensely personal pain with historic and current anguish is done with finesse and a fine sense of proportion, never competing, never diminishing or devaluing.”

USA Today – “Fowler shows none of the self-aggrandizement that saturates many memoirs, and she lived a far more interesting life — before and after Sean’s death — than do many who write about theirs. Her story — rich, unblinking and adroitly told — is one of strength, of getting past but not getting over.”

The Observer– “Gloriously rendered, beautifully written . . . an intimate and inspiring experience.”

Kirkus Reviews – “A courageous and finely crafted account soaked in tears of love and loss.”

BookPage – “[An] intensely personal and appealing memoir. … Bring along a world map, set aside everything you know about healing from heartbreaking loss, and have yourself an unforgettable read.”

Stylist – “A cross between H is for Hawk and Wild . . . beautifully written.”

Recommended by Ann Patchett on musing – “This book is a heartbreaker, but so beautiful, both haunted and haunting. I’ve never read anything quite like it.

Sunday Express – “A courageous memoir of love and loss.”

The Christian Science Monitor – “In her deft and lovely debut, the memoir Traveling with Ghosts, Fowler tells this wrenching story with grace and fortitude. … Just as Fowler’s difficult path after Sean’s death yields lessons about survival and resilience, her friendship with Anat and Talia, which continues to this day, yields its own lessons, of a kindness so extraordinary that it’s nearly as affecting as the tragedy at the book’s center.”

The Nervous Breakdown – “We see a disappeared relationship reconstructed and celebrated . . . there’s also true poignancy and insight into self and relationships here and enough clever linguistic turns to satisfy the most literary of readers.”

BookRiot – “Raw. … Powerful. … Redemptive.”

The Irish Times – “A well-written, moving and at times intensely dark account – certainly not for the faint-hearted.”

Harpers Bazaar – “A new novel that was worth waiting for. Our literary editor praises Shannon Leone Fowler‘s courageous book about the death of her fiancé in 2002.”

The Times – “This is a rich and absorbing memoir that shows the reader what it feels like to lose your future in a matter of seconds in a faraway land.”

Publisher’s Weekly – “Fowler’s moving account traces her grief. … She spent time with the two Israeli women who supported her throughout the ordeal in Thailand; she ventures to war-ravaged Sarajevo. … Wherever she travels, however, memories of her fiancé are with her.”

Bookshelf – “(Fowler’s) financé, Sean, is stung by a venomous box jellyfish while they were swimming in Ko Phan Ngan, Thailand, dying instantly. And this was only two pages in.  My immediate thought after this: can Fowler hold my interest for the rest of the book? Can a five-minute death stretch to 300 pages? The answer is, yes.”

The Times Literary Supplement – “Her voice is resonant, calibrated by loss . . . it pays coherent tribute to lives cut short.”

New York Post Must-Read – “Her future plans destroyed, her love lost, Fowler embarked on a trip around the world in an attempt to move past her grief.”

Daily Mail Must-Read – “This poignant memoir describes Shannon’s travels as she learned to live with her grief.”

17 Best Books on Grief – “Traveling with Ghosts is one woman’s journey of reflection, recovery, and solace after painful, sudden, loss.”

The World’s Video Wiki – 10 Personal Stories About Eye-Opening Travel: “A tale of self-discovery in the style of Cheryl Strayed’s “Wild,” this book takes readers on a rocky, emotional journey.”

Red – “Untethered and alone . . . she goes on a journey to make sense of her loss.”

Wanderlust – “Shannon Leone Fowler attempt(s) to make sense of her boyfriend’s shocking death by . . .  moving on to places that loudly resonate with mortality and grief.”

The Independent – “A moving account of grief.”

Big Issue in the North – “Grief propelled her not home but through Auschwitz, Romania, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Israel, witnessing post-conflict – and in some cases conflict – societies.”

Interviews

Coming soon!

Interview with Michael Berry (TBD)

Interview with Bookpodia (TBD)

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