Grief is the Thing with Feathers

2015 book by Max Porter

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Grief is the Thing with Feathers is the debut book by Max Porter, a novella about grief, published in 2015.^[1]^[2]^[3]

Details

Grief is the Thing with Feathers is a "book about death and its grief-stricken consolations – love and art" through the story "of a grieving writer and father of two young boys, who is coming to terms with the death of his wife while writing a book about Ted Hughes". It uses text, dialogue and poetry.^[4] The book is narrated from rapidly alternating perspectives: the Dad, the Boys, and Crow—a human-sized bird that can speak, "equal parts babysitter, philosopher and therapist" to the family.^[5]^[6]

The title refers to a poem by Emily Dickinson, ""Hope" is the thing with feathers".^[7] Crow is the Crow from Ted Hughes' 1970 poetry book.^[8]

Play

Grief is the Thing with Feathers was adapted into a play of the same name, directed by Enda Walsh and starring Cillian Murphy.^[9] In 2024, a film adaptation, The Thing with Feathers began production, starring Benedict Cumberbatch. ^[10]^[11]

Awards

2015: Longlisted, Guardian First Book Award^[12]
2015: Shortlisted, Goldsmiths Prize^[13]^[14]
2016: Winner, Dylan Thomas Prize. A £30,000 award.^[15]

References

^ Kitamura, Katie (1 July 2016). "Their Grief Counselor Is a Crow. It's Fiction". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
^ Hulbert, Ann (17 May 2016). "Exploring the Facets of Grief". The Atlantic. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
^ Wade, Francesca (22 September 2015). "Grief Is the Thing with Feathers by Max Porter, review: 'deeply comic, hopelessly sad'". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
^ Gunn, Kirsty (18 September 2015). "Grief Is the Thing with Feathers by Max Porter review – words take flight". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
^ Devers, A. N. (3 June 2016). "Review: Max Porter's debut 'Grief Is the Thing With Feathers' soars with complexity". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
^ East, Ben (11 September 2016). "Grief Is the Thing With Feathers review – a fable of magic and mourning". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
^ "Grief is the Thing with Feathers, by Max Porter - book review: In". The Independent. 13 September 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
^ "Ted Hughes' 'Crow' provides backbone for 'Grief Is the Thing With Feathers'". Chicago Tribune. 7 June 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
^ Lukowski, Andrzej (29 March 2019). "'Grief is the Thing with Feathers' review". Time Out London. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
^ Yossman, K.J. (16 November 2023). "Benedict Cumberbatch Says Participating in His 'Letters Live' Stage Show Is 'An Immediate Shot in the Arm for a Performer'". Variety. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
^ "Benedict Cumberbatch transforms into a grieving father as he films sombre scenes with two child actors for his new role in The Thing With Feathers". whatsnew2day. 24 February 2024. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
^ "Guardian first book award 2015 longlist – in pictures". The Guardian. 14 August 2015. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
^ "The Goldsmiths Prize 2015 shortlist". New Statesman. 1 October 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
^ Armitstead, Claire (1 October 2015). "Goldsmiths book prize shortlist: Lennon, Jesus and life at the edges". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
^ Flood, Alison (14 May 2016). "Dylan Thomas award goes to Max Porter's 'extraordinary feat'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 3 November 2023.