A Heart That Works

Hard turn to the right...from beach reads to real life in jarring fashion. My next auditory adventure was this little book (only 3 hours on Libby) called A Heart That Works by Rob Delaney.

Goodreads Stats

Why I Read This Book/How I Heard About It

My husband is what you'd call a comedy nerd. He must know nearly every stand-up comic there is and I've known for years that he enjoys Rob Delaney's humor. I, personally, haven't seen Rob in much. But you would probably most likely recognize him in his role as Peter in Deadpool 2, the middle-aged average guy without superpowers that joins Deadpool's X-Force. He's also pretty well known for his co-creator and co-starring role in the Apple TV+ show, Catastrophe.

Basic Summary

In 2016, Rob and his family had relocated to London, so he could film Catastrophe. Rob talks about moving across the ocean with his pregnant wife and two young children. After the birth of their third son, Henry, the family begins to settle into life in London.

But, when Henry is only a year old, he is diagnosed with a brain tumor. Henry’s illness completely blindsides the family. Rob meticulously walks the reader through the awful journey of Henry's cancer, treatment, and multiple surgeries. Two years later, Henry passes away and the Delaney family foundation crumbles. Rob delves deep into his grief and gives an intimate, bare bones, sometimes darkly humorous, brutally honest account of the rage, despair, depression, and shock that follows the loss of a child.

From the book cover, "In the madness of his grief, Delaney grapples with the fragile miracle of life, the mysteries of death, and the question of purpose for those left behind. Delaney’s memoir—profound, painful, full of emotion, and bracingly honest—offers solace to those who have faced devastation and shows us how grace may appear even in the darkest times."

First Impressions

I knew this was going to be heartbreaking, but I just couldn't stay away. I was glad to see that this one was narrated by the author. It seems like any other narrator would have been inappropriate for a story like this.

Final Thoughts

There's not really a way to sum up a person's individual experience of grief. Over the past several years, so many of us have grappled with death...or at least those in my world have (as we come off the first worldwide pandemic of our age and as my contemporaries and I slowly age and realize that our remaining time is shorter than it has ever been). There were familiar notes of grief in this that I could identify with, and some things I couldn't. I could never fully grasp the nightmare of losing a child and I don't like to think of it in too much depth. This was an interesting read, though. I feel Rob must have found it very cathartic to walk through the whole experience again. I hope he found healing in it's creation.

Rating on Goodreads

I rated this book 4 out of 5 stars. Bittersweet.

My rating method:

• I rarely rate books 5 stars. I save this for the absolute best books I've read. You know the ones...the ones that you can't get out of your head, even after you've finished them. The ones you think about for weeks afterwards.

• If a book is really, really good, I'll give it 4 stars. If you see a 4-star rating from me, I'd definitely recommend it to you to read.

• If it's just OK, it gets 3 stars. Basically, it means I could take it or leave it. I'd probably read it again because it wasn't terrible. But not like a favorite or anything.

• If I rate it 1 or 2 stars, I would not recommend anyone read it. It either didn't hold my interest or I couldn't relate to the characters/plot.