"I am grateful to Lewis for having the courage to yell, to doubt, to kick at God in angry violence. This is a part of a healthy grief which is not often encouraged." - Madeline L'Engle
Written with love, humility, and faith, this brief but poignant volume was first published under a pseudonym, as it was considered too raw. Written moment-to-moment as Lewis processed the loss of his wife to cancer, this is more than a mere book on grief, but a visceral hand outstretched in the darkness, a reluctant guide through the "mad midnight moments" of mourning and loss.
Key learnings that Lewis discusses are:
- Pain is instrumental in the process of spiritual growth
- Through hardship we often gain the best wisdom
- Memories are treasures that will comfort you tomorrow
This work inspired the award-winning film The Shadowlands, starring Anthony Hopkins. Writing A Grief Observed as "a defense against total collapse, a safety valve," he came to recognize that "bereavement is a universal and integral part of our experience of love." A Grief Observed reminds us that, “Grief is like a long valley, a winding valley where any bend may reveal a totally new landscape.”
The Spiritual Journey of Grief
A Grief Observed is C.S. Lewis's honest reflection on the fundamental issues of life, death, and faith in the midst of loss. Written after his wife's tragic death as a way of surviving the "mad midnight moments," A Grief Observed is an unflinchingly truthful account of how loss can lead even a stalwart believer to lose all sense of meaning in the universe, and how he can gradually regain his bearings.
