My brother's death — writing the story of a family's grief and loss

Conversations

For decades, Gideon Haigh and his mother were the only two people who really knew what happened on Jaz's last night. This year, it all poured out.

Gideon Haigh's brother Jasper was 17 years old when he died in a car crash.

Until this year, Gideon and his mother were the only two people who really knew what happened to Jaz on that tragic night.

Gideon has spent decades perfecting answers to questions about his brother — answers that never invited further discussion.

This year, something peculiar happened, and in 72 hours Gideon poured his pent-up recollections onto the page, to be turned into a book about the story of his brother, Jaz.

This episode touches on grief, family stories, loss, mothers, brotherhood, love, life, death, writing, reflection, secrets, storytelling, memoir, life stories, family dynamics and personal stories.