THE WIDOW'S GUIDE

Over the years, widow and former Look editor Taves has devoted herself to books on the subject of widowhood: personal recollections and such designed to offer comfort and companionship to the bereaved. This is a little more practical in approach--with tips on personal grief, health, money, children, and heading back out into the world alone. At a time when most writers on the subject are reluctant to mention time-designations for stages in the grieving process, it is refreshing to hear Tares insist--over and over, in fact--that one should not make far-reaching decisions until at least a year has passed, that in fact the worst of the grief has been overcome by then (though not when the mourning process is delayed by repression of feelings). Health tips are centered on exercise and stress-reduction, though there is one excellent suggestion for those who can't bring themselves to eat: go back to the favorites of childhood (peanut butter or what have you). laves' brief opinions of certain job categories (accountancy yes, advertising no) may prove helpful, though not nearly as much as the Catalyst job-hunting guides. The book's most explicit section--and probably the one destined to be the most thumbed-over--is that on money: who's the executor, how to research your own stock investments, the ins and outs of estate taxes, how to establish credit, etc. Each of these topics has been explored in more depth elsewhere, of course. But this has a good bibliography; and, in presenting the basics, it focuses the widow's attention on areas for further exploration.