Living Brave: Lessons from Hurt, Lighting the Way to Hope

For all women looking to find “hope in a hopeless world and bravery in an age that seems to lack it,” comes a searing memoir by Shannon Dingle, a writer and disability advocate who has navigated loss, trauma, abuse, spiritual reawakening, and deep pain—and come out the other side still hopeful.

Shannon Dingle has experienced more than her fair share of tragedy and trauma in her life, including surviving sexual abuse and trafficking as a child that left her with lasting disabilities and experiencing faith shifts that put her at odds with the evangelical church that had been her home. Then, in July 2019, Shannon’s husband was tragically killed by a rogue wave while the family was on vacation. The grief of the aftermath of losing her love and life partner sits at the heart of Living Brave, where Shannon’s searing, raw prose, illustrates what it looks like to take brave steps on the other side of unimaginable loss.

Through each challenge, she reveals the ways she learned to walk through them to the other side, and find courage even through the darkest moments. Living Brave gives women permission to wrestle with difficult topics, to use their voice, to take a stand for justice, to honor the wisdom of their bodies, and to enact change from a place of strong faith. 

How do you keep going when unimaginable loss is piled on top of old trauma?

• Trauma Survivor: An unflinching look at surviving childhood sexual abuse and trafficking, and learning to honor the wisdom of a body that has kept the score.
• Grief and Loss: The raw, minute-by-minute reality of losing a husband to a freak accident—a rogue wave on a family vacation—and facing life as a young widow and single mother to six.
• Spiritual Deconstruction: A courageous exploration of faith shifts that challenge the evangelical church, giving women permission to wrestle with difficult questions and find a more authentic faith.
• Disability Advocacy: A powerful call to take a stand for justice, born from the author’s own experience with lasting disabilities from trauma and raising children with diverse needs.
• Chosen Family: Discovering the fierce, life-saving love of a chosen “framily” when the family you were born into was the source of your deepest pain.