Grief Is the Thing with Feathers

Who it's for

After their mother's sudden death, a father and his two young sons are visited by Crow, who moves into their London flat as babysitter, trickster and therapist, and stays until they no longer need him.

Feelings it meets

• Grief
• Depression

What it is

Max Porter's debut novella follows a grieving father, a writer working on a book about the poet Ted Hughes, who is raising two young sons after his wife's death. A human-sized talking Crow, part babysitter, part philosopher, part therapist, comes into their lives. The book is a mix of prose, dialogue and poetry, and its narration moves quickly between three voices: Dad, the Boys and Crow.

Where to find it

In print; widely available from libraries (Libby/Hoopla) and as an audiobook. Still in copyright, so not on Project Gutenberg.

Before you start

Heads up: Sudden death of a mother.

Age: Ages 16+

'Tis better to have loved and lost Than never to have loved at all.Alfred, Lord Tennyson, In Memoriam A.H.H., canto 27