A personal look at the books that have shaped Liam’s identity, worldview, and work as a therapist—from queer futurity to disability justice to philosophical horror. These titles reflect where he comes from, what he cares about, and how he shows up with the people he works with.

Loss is extraordinarily painful and real. There is no pain quite like that of losing someone you love. It’s a pain you cannot know until you do, and then you can’t un-know it, no matter how badly you might want to. In western culture, the depth of pain one feels in loss is also uncomfortable and unwelcome—people just don’t want to think about it. It’s unyielding weight is very quickly considered impolite, and our cultural push toward collective denial can be so painful for those in the midst of a loss who can no longer deny its existence.