独自哀悼

Mourning Alone
Sometimes grief is carried alone—when someone is far from family, doesn't feel understood, or chooses to keep their sadness private. This collection of Mandarin books and films, created by Chinese authors and artists, speaks gently to those who grieve in solitude. These stories recognize the quiet ways people process loss, offering thoughtful reflections, quiet companionship, and space to feel without pressure. They remind readers that even in isolation, they are not truly alone.
有时,我们在无人陪伴中悄悄地经历哀伤——可能是因为身在异地、情感难以诉说,或不愿让人知道。本书单收录由中国创作者以中文创作的图书与影视作品,温柔地回应那些独自承受失落的人。这些故事理解人们在沉默中面对哀伤的方式,提供内省的文字、安静的陪伴与情绪的释放空间,让读者在孤独中也能感受到被理解与连接的力量。
Curated by Luming Zhang, MLS (University of Washington), hosted by the Grievers Library.
If you, or someone you know, is experiencing grief, the Grievers Library offers a range of resources to support you.
本书单由华盛顿大学图书馆与信息学硕士Luming Zhang策划,收录于哀悼者图书馆。
如果您或您身边的家人、朋友正在经历哀伤,悼亡者图书馆提供丰富资源,陪伴您度过难关。
Title: 長假:母親的故事 (The Long Holiday: A Mother's Story)
Director/Screenwriter: 鄭芬芬 (Zheng Fenfen)
Description:
English: Diagnosed with terminal cancer, Meigui prepares her family for life without her. The film focuses on anticipatory grief, emotional preparation, and leaving love and order behind for her young son and troubled husband.
中文简介: 玫瑰是一位罹患绝症的母亲,在生命的最后阶段,她努力为家庭安排后事,特别是年幼儿子的情感照顾与丈夫的改过自新。影片描绘哀伤前的预备过程,既现实又感人。
Why I Recommend It:
English: This film captures the emotional and practical complexity of preparing for loss within a family.
中文推荐理由: 展现家庭如何面对预期性丧失,适合理解“临终准备”与世代间的爱与传承。

Title: 我的父亲母亲 (The Road Home)
Director: 张艺谋 (Zhang Yimou)
Description:
English: When his father dies, a man returns to his hometown, where his mother tells the story of how she fell in love with his father. The film gently unfolds memory, love, and mourning through beautifully composed flashbacks and simple rural life.
中文简介: 父亲去世后,儿子回到农村老家,聆听母亲讲述年轻时与父亲的爱情故事。影片以优美的镜头语言与宁静节奏,勾勒哀伤、记忆与爱的延续。
Why I Recommend It:
English: This film portrays grief as a return to memory and love.
中文推荐理由: 以温柔诗意方式再现丧亲后对往昔爱与生活的追忆。

Title: 落叶归根 (Getting Home)
Director: 张扬 (Zhang Yang)
Description:
English: After his friend dies unexpectedly, Zhao vows to carry his body back to their hometown. With no money, he sets out on foot. Based on a true story, Getting Home is a journey filled with humor, absurdity, loyalty, and grief—all woven into a tribute to friendship and ritual.
中文简介: 本片改编自真实故事,描绘中年工人赵得用徒步将亡友遗体送回故乡的旅程。幽默中带着沉重,呈现友情、责任与中国式“落叶归根”的文化哀悼方式。
Why I Recommend It:
English: This film uniquely expresses grief through humor, loyalty, and cultural ritual.
中文推荐理由: 用诙谐方式表现沉重哀伤,反映文化中“送别”与归乡的深意。

Title: 慢別書 (The Long Farewell)
Director/Producer: 陳怡分 (Chen Yifen)
Description:
English: The Long Farewell is a video letter created by filmmaker Chen Yifen after the sudden death of her father and during her mother’s terminal illness. Blending home footage with quiet observation, it captures her emotional journey through loss, care, and ritual.
中文简介: 本片为导演陈怡分创作的“影像书信”,记录她父亲猝逝与母亲罹患绝症后的生活点滴。影片以家庭影像与日常片段展现缓慢离别的情感过程,呈现记忆、告别与爱的凝视。
Why I Recommend It:
English: This film uses the act of filming to navigate loss, anticipatory grief, and memory-making.
中文推荐理由: 影像作为哀悼方式,展现拍摄者如何透过镜头处理失落与情感修复。

Title: 這兒是香格里拉 (Finding Shangri-la)
Director/Screenwriter: 丁乃筝 (Ding Naizheng)
Description:
English: Finding Shangri-la tells the story of a young mother shattered by the sudden death of her child. In search of peace and meaning, she travels to Shangri-la, a place imbued with spiritual symbolism and silence. Through breathtaking landscapes and internal dialogue, the film explores how grief can isolate, transform, and—eventually—allow for healing. It is a cinematic meditation on loss, motherhood, and the universal longing for reconnection with what was lost.
中文简介: 本片讲述一位年轻母亲在失去孩子后,独自前往香格里拉寻找内心安宁与人生意义的旅程。影片透过静谧自然景观与内在独白,展现哀伤如何让人封闭、自我探索,进而促成转化与疗愈。这是一部关于失落、母爱与精神重生的影像冥想作品。
Why I Recommend It:
English: This film portrays maternal grief with sensitivity and poetic depth, making it an essential visual resource for understanding how loss can shape emotional landscapes and spiritual reflection.
中文推荐理由: 影片以诗意细腻的影像语言描绘母亲哀痛与自我疗愈的过程,是理解悲伤如何转化为精神重建的绝佳媒介。

Title: 心灵时钟 (Packages from Daddy)
Director/Screenwriter: 蔡银娟 (Cai Yinjuan)
Description:
English: After the sudden death of his father, 9-year-old Ye Lan receives an antique clock posthumously sent by his dad—a mysterious object that appears broken, its second hand frozen like the moment his father's life stopped. As Ye Lan sets out to fix the clock, he embarks on a journey of emotional discovery, family reconnection, and hope.
中文简介: 9岁男孩叶蓝在父亲去世后收到一只古董钟作为遗物。这只钟的秒针停在某一刻,就像父亲生命停止的瞬间。他决定修好钟,也踏上了一段疗愈哀伤、重新理解亲情的旅程。
Why I Recommend It:
English: This film portrays childhood grief with sensitivity and poetic depth.
中文推荐理由: 细腻描绘儿童如何理解与修复丧亲之痛,是家庭哀悼对话的理想媒介。

Title: 诀离记 (Miss Mom Forever)
Author: 钟文音 (Zhong Wenyin)
Description:
English: In this literary memoir, Zhong Wenyin reflects on the death of her mother with lyrical intensity and psychological depth. Blending essay, diary, and philosophical musing, Miss Mom Forever traces the emotional landscape of loss, from unresolved tension to spiritual closeness after death.
中文简介: 本书结合散文、日记与哲思,描写作者钟文音在母亲过世后所经历的情感波动与灵魂对话。探讨母女关系中的复杂情感、悲伤与和解,是一部深具文学性的哀悼之作。
Why I Recommend It:
English: A great work with touching reflections on maternal grief and emotional transformation.
中文推荐理由: 富有诗意与深度,适合思考母爱、遗憾与爱的延续。

Title: 歸海 (Where Waters Meet)
Author: 张翎 (Zhang Ling)
Description:
English: In Where Waters Meet, a woman in the Chinese diaspora reflects on her late mother’s life while uncovering secrets and long-buried grief. The novel navigates complex emotional terrain—how memory, silence, and geography shape the grieving process. Through lyrical storytelling and emotional depth, Zhang Ling examines what it means to mourn someone you never fully understood.
中文简介: 本书描绘一位身在海外的华人女性,在母亲去世后回首过往生活,揭开旧伤与家族秘密。作者以细腻笔法探讨跨地域、代际与文化背景中的哀悼与认同,是一部有关母女关系与记忆修复的感人小说。
Why I Recommend It:
English: This is a powerful portrait of transgenerational grief, diaspora identity, and emotional reconciliation.
中文推荐理由: 深刻反映海外华人在亲情与身份认同中处理哀伤的心理与文化矛盾。

Title: 大約在冬季 (Somewhere in Winter)
Author: 饒雪漫 (Rao Xueman)
Description:
English: Nian has lived in Los Angeles since childhood, but after her father's death, her relationship with her mother becomes distant and strained. When the two return to China together, old wounds are reopened and emotional rifts deepen. Set against the backdrop of winter and migration, this novel explores grief through silence, cultural memory, and the difficulty of reconnecting with those we love most.
中文简介: 女孩年年从小在洛杉矶长大,父亲去世后,她与母亲关系疏离。返乡之旅令积压已久的情绪爆发。这本小说透过迁徙背景与寒冷冬季的象征,刻画了家庭哀伤、代际距离与情感修复的艰难过程。
Why I Recommend It:
English: A fitting addition for readers navigating loss through identity, memory, and emotional estrangement.
中文推荐理由: 揭示移民背景下哀伤的沉默与隔阂,适合面对跨文化哀悼与家庭冲突的读者。

Title: 某一天,聽說爺爺走了 (One Day, I Heard Grandpa Was Gone)
Author: 李笛 (Li Di)
Description:
English: This gentle picture book narrates a child’s emotional response to learning that their grandfather has died. Through soft, expressive illustrations and simple language, it explores the confusion, sadness, and quiet moments of memory that follow such a loss. The story invites reflection and family dialogue, offering children both emotional validation and a culturally sensitive introduction to mourning.
中文简介: 本绘本透过柔和细腻的插画与朴实语言,描绘一个孩子得知爷爷去世后的情感反应。书中呈现悲伤、困惑与回忆交织的时刻,引导孩子反思并与家人展开对话,是一部兼具情感共鸣与文化敏感度的哀悼入门读物。
Why I Recommend It:
English: This resource offers a sensitive approach to discussing loss with children.
中文推荐理由: 以温柔真实的方式描绘丧祖之痛,适合亲子共读,帮助儿童建立对死亡与失落的理解。

Title: Morning Sun in Wuhan
Author: Ying Chang Compestine
Description:
English: Set at the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak, Morning Sun in Wuhan tells the story of 13-year-old Mei, who finds strength and connection through cooking during a time of widespread panic and isolation. As Wuhan grapples with the emerging crisis, Mei helps feed healthcare workers and community members while confronting her own fears and sense of helplessness. The book delicately explores grief, resilience, and healing through culture and food, offering readers—especially young ones—a tender glimpse into loss, hope, and the bonds that form in tragedy.
中文简介: 本书以新冠疫情爆发初期的武汉为背景,讲述13岁女孩梅在封城期间透过烹饪重建人与人之间的情感连结。面对恐惧与孤独,梅一边照顾家人,一边为医护人员与邻里烹饪食物,从中找回意义与希望。小说以温柔的笔触呈现哀伤、复原与文化中的治愈力量,特别适合年轻读者认识创伤中的希望与团结。
Why I Recommend It:
English: This novel offers a narrative that aligns with themes of grief and resilience, particularly in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
中文推荐理由: 以青少年的视角描绘疫情时期的哀伤与韧性,是理解现代集体悲伤与情感支持的佳作。

Title: 目送 (Watching You Go)
Author: 龙应台 (Lung Ying-tai)
Description:
English: Watching You Go is a deeply reflective series of essays that explore the pain of parting, the unspoken love between generations, and the slow farewell of watching parents age. Touching on themes of parental loss and emotional solitude, it offers powerful insight for those experiencing grief, especially across physical or generational distance.
中文简介: 《目送》是一部深刻反思离别的散文集,描绘了 作者面对父亲老去、儿子成长过程中所经历的无声告别与跨代情感。书中探讨了失亲、孤独与爱的深沉表达,是许多读者面对哀伤时的心灵读本。
Why I Recommend It:
English: This collection offers profound reflections on the slow grief of watching loved ones age and depart.
中文推荐理由: 对亲人逐渐离去过程的细腻描写,让人深刻体会哀伤与爱的力量。
