Grief Is the Thing with Feathers

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

Grief Is the Thing with Feathers

Author	Max Porter
Language	English
Publisher	Faber and Faber
Publication date	2015
Publication place	United Kingdom
Awards	Dylan Thomas Prize
ISBN	9780571323760
Followed by	Lanny

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]

Awards

Year	Award	Category	Result	Ref
2015	Guardian First Book Award	—	Shortlisted	[9]
	Goldsmiths Prize	—	Shortlisted	[10][11][12]
2016	Books Are My Bag Readers' Award	Fiction	Won	[13][14]
	Dylan Thomas Prize	—	Won	[15][16]
	Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award	—	Won	[17]
2017	Europese Literatuurprijs	—	Won	[18]

Adaptions

Grief Is the Thing with Feathers was adapted into a play of the same name, directed by Enda Walsh and starring Cillian Murphy.^[19]

In 2024, a film adaptation starring Benedict Cumberbatch, titled The Thing with Feathers, began production. Principal photography was underway by early 2024.^[20][21]

References

1. 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.
2. Hulbert, Ann (17 May 2016). "Exploring the Facets of Grief". The Atlantic. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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.
6. 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.
7. "Grief Is the Thing with Feathers, by Max Porter - book review: In". The Independent. 13 September 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
8. "Ted Hughes' 'Crow' provides backbone for 'Grief Is the Thing With Feathers'". Chicago Tribune. 7 June 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
9. Lea, Richard (25 November 2015). "Guardian first book award 2015 goes to poet Andrew McMillan". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
10. "Goldsmiths Prize 2015 Shortlist". Goldsmiths Prize. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
11. "The Goldsmiths Prize 2015 shortlist". New Statesman. 1 October 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
12. 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.
13. "Books Are My Bag Readers' Award 2016". Books Are My Bag. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
14. "Books Are My Bag Reading Awards". National Book Tokens. Retrieved 22 June 2019.
15. "Dylan Thomas Prize 2016 Winner". Dylan Thomas Prize. Retrieved 10 August 2024.^{[dead link‍]}
16. Flood, Alison (14 May 2016). "Dylan Thomas award goes to Max Porter's 'extraordinary feat'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
17. "Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award 2016 Winner". The Times. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
18. "Europese Literatuurprijs 2017 Winner". Europese Literatuurprijs. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
19. Lukowski, Andrzej (29 March 2019). "'Grief Is the Thing with Feathers' review". Time Out London. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
20. 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.
21. "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.