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A review by kelly_e
A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
3.5
Title: A Grief Observed
Author: C.S. Lewis
Genre: Non Fiction
Rating: 3.5
Pub Date: 1961
T H R E E • W O R D S
Personal • Raw • Reflective
📖 S Y N O P S I S
A Grief Observed is a collection of thoughts, reflections, and meditations written by C.S. Lewis in a journal during his bereavement following the death of his wife. A narrative on the natures of death and mourning from the initial shock to acceptance and moving through grief.
💠T H O U G H T S
Firstly, if you're reading this it is quite likely you've experienced some form of death in your life, and for that I am sorry. In February 2020, my partner and best friend, Geoff, died unexpectedly. When someone is able to put into words some of the things I have felt over the past 18+ months of my own grief journey, I am forever grateful. This story collection is both comforting and compelling. It is very raw, and yet very real, which is what makes it so worth reading. Not only is this book valuable because it puts into words what you may be feeling, but it also lets you know your are not alone.
As someone who isn't religious, the focus on faith was something I couldn't relate to and so it did take away some of the power I imagine it offers to many others. Each grief journey is different but this is a solid place to start if you're looking for reading material.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• grievers
• classic fans
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"There is a sort of invisible blanket between the world and me. I find it hard to take in what anyone says. Or perhaps, hard to want to take it in. It is so uninteresting. Yet I want the others to be about me. I dread the moments when the house is empty. If only they would talk to one another and not to me."
"But I know this is impossible. I know that the thing I want is exactly the thing I can never get. The old life, the jokes, the drinks, the arguments, the love-making, the tiny, heartbreaking commonplace. On any view whatever, to sat 'H. is dead', is to say 'All that is gone'. It is a part of the past. And the past is the past and that is what time means, and time itself is one more name for death, and Heaven itself is a state where 'the former things have passed away'."
"And grief still feels like fear. Perhaps, more strictly. like suspense. Or like waiting; just hanging about waiting for something to happen. It gives life a permanently provisional feeling. It doesn't seem worth starting anything. I can't settle down. I yawn, I fidget, I smoke too much. Up till this I always had too little time. Now there is nothing but time. Almost pure time, empty successiveness."
"One flesh. Or, if you prefer, one ship. The starboard engine has gone. I, the port engine, must chug along somehow till we make harbour. Or rather, till the journey ends."
Author: C.S. Lewis
Genre: Non Fiction
Rating: 3.5
Pub Date: 1961
T H R E E • W O R D S
Personal • Raw • Reflective
📖 S Y N O P S I S
A Grief Observed is a collection of thoughts, reflections, and meditations written by C.S. Lewis in a journal during his bereavement following the death of his wife. A narrative on the natures of death and mourning from the initial shock to acceptance and moving through grief.
💠T H O U G H T S
Firstly, if you're reading this it is quite likely you've experienced some form of death in your life, and for that I am sorry. In February 2020, my partner and best friend, Geoff, died unexpectedly. When someone is able to put into words some of the things I have felt over the past 18+ months of my own grief journey, I am forever grateful. This story collection is both comforting and compelling. It is very raw, and yet very real, which is what makes it so worth reading. Not only is this book valuable because it puts into words what you may be feeling, but it also lets you know your are not alone.
As someone who isn't religious, the focus on faith was something I couldn't relate to and so it did take away some of the power I imagine it offers to many others. Each grief journey is different but this is a solid place to start if you're looking for reading material.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• grievers
• classic fans
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"There is a sort of invisible blanket between the world and me. I find it hard to take in what anyone says. Or perhaps, hard to want to take it in. It is so uninteresting. Yet I want the others to be about me. I dread the moments when the house is empty. If only they would talk to one another and not to me."
"But I know this is impossible. I know that the thing I want is exactly the thing I can never get. The old life, the jokes, the drinks, the arguments, the love-making, the tiny, heartbreaking commonplace. On any view whatever, to sat 'H. is dead', is to say 'All that is gone'. It is a part of the past. And the past is the past and that is what time means, and time itself is one more name for death, and Heaven itself is a state where 'the former things have passed away'."
"And grief still feels like fear. Perhaps, more strictly. like suspense. Or like waiting; just hanging about waiting for something to happen. It gives life a permanently provisional feeling. It doesn't seem worth starting anything. I can't settle down. I yawn, I fidget, I smoke too much. Up till this I always had too little time. Now there is nothing but time. Almost pure time, empty successiveness."
"One flesh. Or, if you prefer, one ship. The starboard engine has gone. I, the port engine, must chug along somehow till we make harbour. Or rather, till the journey ends."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, and Grief
death of a partner