Max Porter
Grief is the Thing with Feathers by Max Porter is a powerful, moving portrayal of grief at the death of a loved one. The narrative alternates between three perspectives: the father who lost his wife; their two young sons; and Crow. The character of Crow is inspired by the 1970 poetry collection “Crow” by Ted Hughes. The father, writing a book about Ted Hughes called “Ted Hughes’ Crow on the Couch: A Wild Analysis,” is visited by Crow who functions as a coping mechanism for the grieving father.
Unfolding in a series of dialogues, introspections, and snippets of poetry, the novel gradually builds up to capture the process of grieving as the family struggles to come to terms with the mother’s death. Taking on the role of a therapist, Crow, in all his pungent, feathered glory, draws out snippets of memories and fragments of conversations. He is a strange mixture of a no-nonsense therapist, comforter, babysitter, bully, and compassionate griever. He articulates the anger, despair, and self-loathing experienced by the father. He watches over the two little boys during the father’s emotional absence. Crow promises to stay until he is no longer needed.
This complex novel illustrates the difficulties in articulating feelings of love, loss, and grief. The text is chaotic, fluctuating between extremes of despair, rage, grief, colloquialisms, confrontation, hallucinations, humor, and poetry. It is hard to pin down exactly why it works, but it does. It comprises a profound meditation on the chaos and disorientation that ensues the shock of losing a loved one. This is not so much a novel about grief as it is a novel that immerses the reader in the experience of grief.
Highly recommended.