the story behind the story
My book is a love story in three intertwined parts:
1 • love Lee & I shared ,
2 • love for myself developed in surviving & healing
3 • my love for you, reader, like a close friend rooting for your own survival & healing.
Glennon Doyle, author of #1 New York Times Bestseller UNTAMED and the founder of Together Rising, agrees:
"I won’t read about 'being brave' from anyone who hasn’t experienced the fire from which real brave is forged. I’ll read about Shannon Dingle’s brave every damn day. Dingle’s struggle, defiance, strength, and power emanate from every page of LIVING BRAVE. Her version of brave is dusty, tired, honest, raw: real. That kind of brave can be trusted."
what others say about it…
"Dingle debuts with a powerful blend of memoir and self-help in this account of how she overcame immense loss. Dingle's narrative offers a raw, affecting examination of what it takes to heal. Publishers Weekly
"Living Brave is a gift. Written from the center of loss and grief, Shannon gives us permission to heal and hope, acting as a trustworthy guide and companion to those of us learning how to live brave, not in spite of our complicated stories, but precisely because of them. Sarah Bessey, author of New York Timesbestselling A Rhythm of Prayer and Miracles and Other Reasonable Things
"In a world that thinks of the journey of loss as a linear process, it's refreshing for a book willing to delve into the realities of complicated grief and passionate hope. Living Brave is a testament to the stories living inside of us that heal ourselves and others when told." Nelba Márquez-Greene, Founder of The Ana Grace Project, LMFT
"Shannon Dingle does not want your pity. She has a story to tell and you should know it, because it will change you for the better and arm you for the future." Maysoon Zayid, Comedian, Disability Advocate
Shannon Dingle's bravery, her willingness to speak truth to power in her life and in the world, has made me a stronger person and advocate. This book will inspire you to live bravely in challenging times. Rev. Jennifer Butler, author of Who Stole My Bible and CEO of Faith in Public Life
"Living Brave is necessary, even life-altering, for every human, especially those coming to terms with the most painful aspects of life. You'll come away with a new definition of brave, one that invites you to write your own story of recovery, renewal, and hope." Rachel Macy Stafford, New York Timesbestselling author and Certified Special Education Teacher
"Dang, Shannon can write and more than that, Shannon can live. In Living Brave, she offers her life with an openness often reserved for the raw screams in the privacy of one's shower. I'm here for it." Melanie Dale, author and speaker
This is the single most powerful book that I have ever read. Two things will happen when you read this memoir: It will hurt, and you will grow as a person. Mike McHargue, bestselling author and host of The Cozy Robot Show
"Heart-rending and thought-provoking, unsettling and wholly unrepentant, Shannon Dingle holds space for those who know what it is to battle the dark night of the soul--again and again and again. Her story is a testament to the transformative power of deeply human love." Alice Greczyn, Author of Wayward: A Memoir of Spiritual Warfare & Sexual Purity
"Shannon Dingle's propulsive memoir will break your heart wide open from the very first page. Shannon has endured more pain and trauma than any woman should have to bear, but in spite of it all she delivers a profound message in beautiful prose for how to live a purposeful life." Jo Piazza, Author of Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win
"With breathtaking generosity, Shannon Dingle invites us to find courage to tell the truth, the sound of own voices, what it is we want, and a complex and rich faith, not in spite of trauma and grief, but right in the middle of it." Dr. Hillary McBride, Psychologist, Speaker, Author, Podcaster
I won't read about 'being brave' from anyone who hasn't experienced the fire from which real brave is forged. I'll read about Shannon Dingle's brave every damn day. Shannon's struggle, defiance, strength, and power emanate from every page. That kind of brave can be trusted. Glennon Doyle, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author of Untamed and Founder of Together Rising
Shannon Dingle has faced more challenges and losses than most people who have lived twice as long, and instead of taking the easy or comfortable path, she chooses courage. She's been a wise teacher for me and so many, especially as she's modeled how to grieve with courage and open-heartedness. Shauna Niequist, New York Times Bestselling Author of Present Over Perfect
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 share the ways she learned to walk through them, even when there is no rescue coming, and find slivers of hope, even when nothing else makes sense. 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.
biography
Shannon Dingle is a disabled activist, freelance writer, sex trafficking survivor, young widow, & recovering perfectionist. While she knows the societal rules about which topics to avoid in public settings, she breaks them regularly and teaches her six children to get into "good trouble, necessary trouble," in the words of civil rights icon John Lewis.
Shannon has written for USA Today, The Washington Post, and Teen Vogue, and her work has been featured by TODAY.com, The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, Daily Kos, Christianity Today, and NPR. Her memoir Living Brave is available wherever books are sold.