Like a River

Country music singer Granger Smith tells the story of how he worked through his grief and found his way back toward God. The book is a faith-based memoir about facing personal failure and pain, and about reconnecting with God as the true source of life.

The account begins on June 4, 2019. Smith was spending one of his final evenings with his children before leaving for Nashville, where he was due at the CMT Music Awards and then on his next tour. While he helped his daughter London with her gymnastics, his youngest son, River, fell into the family pool. Smith rushed to reach him but arrived too late, and River drowned.

The weeks and months that followed sent Smith into a bleak and agonizing stretch. Each time he shut his eyes, the scene replayed in his mind, and each time he went online he faced a flood of people who held him responsible for the accident. He returned to the stage and tried to perform with cheer, but the cheerfulness hid a man who was falling apart inside.

Smith now devotes himself to helping people around the world find strength, peace, and hope after their own hardships. Using the image of a river that draws its power from its source, he contends that people who try to carry on by their own strength will fall short, while those who connect with a greater source can find the faith and resilience to keep living after loss.