#Microblog Monday 254: Book Grief
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When I was little, I never read the final page of the Phantom Tollbooth. I would read up until the last word on the final two-page spread, and then instead of turning the page and reading the final two paragraphs on the other side of the paper, I would skip back to the front of the book and start again, meeting Milo as if it was the first time.
I felt such a deep sense of book grief that our journey together was over.
I felt that after Brothers and Sisters ended. And House. And I’m feeling that way with Downton Abbey coming to an end for us. There are books I refuse to admit are over. I re-read and re-read The Magicians, so Quentin Coldwater is usually with me any time I have to wait.
Media grief, it’s a real thing.
What book or show are you sad is over?
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14 comments
I was a bit sad when Downton Abbey ended.
When I finished Lord of the Rings, I wound up reading a bunch of the other supplementary materials including The Silmarillion and The Book of Lost Tales because I wasn’t ready to leave Middle Earth.
I am always sad when I finish books that I love. I was sad when the Office ended and completely devastated when I found out Fringe wouldn’t be getting a new season. I am currently watching Jane the Virgin which is dumb but it reminds me of novelas playing in the background of my childhood so it brings me comfort, it is currently in its last season and I hate to see it go.
The Office and Gilmore Girls. Although I rewatch them both often.
There have been so many shows over the years I have really enjoyed that haven’t gotten renewed after the first season, ones that immediately come to mind are Mob Doctor, The Unusuals, and Prime Suspect.
Most longer-running shows tend to overstay their welcome and I stop watching long before they end (ER, Grey’s Anatomy, How I Met Your Mother)
However, Castle was a great show with a great cast and the always awesome and love-able Nathan Fillion, so I was sad when that got cancelled.
And currently, the two shows I’m mourning are Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, which was always supposed to be 4 seasons and ended this past spring on its own terms thanks to a great network supporting their vision, and Schitts Creek, which has just filmed its last season, also ending of its own accord. That one is going to hurt when it ends. Although thanks to Netflix I can just keep re-watching, which brings me so much comfort.
One recent book example: “Say Nothing” by Patrick Radden Keefe, which I recently read & reviewed on my blog. It was one of those books where I was simultaneously racing toward the end, wondering how it all turned out for everyone, and sad to finish, because it was just such an amazing reading experience. I am still thinking about it & all the issues it raised. It’s been called one of the best books of the year, and I fully concur.
I was sad when Downton Abbey ended, although I was fairly well satisfied with HOW it ended. (Lady Violet getting in the last word, as always, lol.) So many TV shows’ endings are disappointing. I’m looking forward to the DA movie coming up later this year!
I know the feeling you describe. I think more about not solely being sad that a book or show ended, but also feeling sad about the way the author ended it. (The last books in both the Hunger Games and Divergent series, and the Game of Thrones TV show spring immediately to mind, but there are others. So many others.)
I can remember as a child often walking out of a movie wondering “What happened next?”
When I was about 7 or 8 I read “Gone with the Wind.” I read all but the last few pages (I forget exactly how many, but less than a chapter) in a day, but then I couldn’t bring myself to read those last few pages for weeks, so I completely get it. I just couldn’t bring myself to have that book end. I’d been reading Nancy Drew where there was always another…and to realize this book I had just adored didn’t have a sequel (This was before Scarlett) just made me so sad I could not finish it. As for shows…. Friends, West Wing, The Class, Better With You (both of which lasted just a season)
Orphan Black. I wanted that to go on and on. And Brothers & Sisters, too.
I’m reading Eleanor Oliphant is Perfectly Fine, thanks to Loribeth, and I have a feeling I’m going to slow waaaay down as I get to the end.
Ah, book grief! I felt that way when The Raven Cycle series ended… I was so sad to read the last page and no longer live in that world, with those characters. I’ll have to reread those, a good way to resuscitate one more time! I rarely feel that way after tv shows for whatever reason. Although I did enjoy The Haunting of Hill House on Netflix almost to the same kind of feeling… The characters and story were so absorbing. I have to read The Magicians this summer, and finally check out Downton Abbey, which I’m ashamed to say I’ve not watched any of. Yet.
Funny you mentioned Brothers and Sisters, (I worked on that show behind the scenes for a year) and House, I was on one episode of that playing a Step Mom. Oh, Hollywood. I’ve had those “grief media” moments too..Friends was one of them and Seinfeld. But both of those shows still play constantly in syndication and I watch them religiously every night so I can’t grieve for them but I do wish for new episodes in the future.
Book Grief is a real thing. I’ve hugged books to my heart, sad they’re over. I frequently can’t start a new book for a while to let the characters slide away. Though I can’t name any one book or series specifically. And media grief – West Wing, though thanks to my husband gifting the box set, I can watch it again and again. And I have!
Harry Potter and Gilmore Girls comes to my mind. But every time I finish watching a show or reading book, I am left with a void. The more I loved the book or the show, the severe the heartbreak would be. More recent such an encounter was after finishing the show Midsomer Mysteries.
Tamsin by Peter s beagle
As a teen, I remember coming to the end of Clan of the Cave Bears (by Jean Auel) late at night, bawling my eyes out. My mom even came in to comfort me. 😀 I never have finished the entire series.
As for now, I’m already saddened by the eventual ending of Outlander series. Diana Gabaldon is currently writting the 9th book, so I still have a HUGE book to read and I believe a 10th book is to come…but someday it will have to end. And I’m sad already.