A Grief Observed

By: C. S. Lewis

Narrated by: Ralph Cosham

Length: 1 hr and 50 mins

Publisher's summary

Written after his wife's tragic death as a way of surviving the "mad midnight moments", A Grief Observed is C.S. Lewis's honest reflection on the fundamental issues of life, death, and faith in the midst of loss. This work contains his concise, genuine reflections on that period: "Nothing will shake a man, or at any rate a man like me, out of his merely verbal thinking and his merely notional beliefs. He has to be knocked silly before he comes to his senses. Only torture will bring out the truth. Only under torture does he discover it himself."

This is a beautiful and unflinchingly honest record of how even a stalwart believer can lose all sense of meaning in the universe, and how he can gradually regain his bearings.

©1961 C.S. Lewis Pte., Ltd. (P)2005 Blackstone Audiobooks

Critic reviews

"A very personal, anguished, luminous little book about the meaning of death, marriage, and religion." (Publishers Weekly)

A Grief Observed

I read this book when my husband died. It comforted me then. I wanted to hear it. I enjoyed listening to it. It brought back memories.

No one ever told me that grief felt so like fear

“No one ever told me that grief felt so like fear…” Have you lost someone you love recently? Have you struggled to process the feelings and thoughts that come with loss? Me too. Lewis too. This short book records his thoughts and railings during his grief caused by the death of his wife. As a parent, some of the most comforting moments I have had are to see other parents struggling like I do and in that moment to realize that I am not alone. As a griever, it is powerful to know that you are not alone in those feelings. Lewis journals his thoughts, and feelings as he works through the healing process. In the end, only time has the power to start to heal the hurt.

I recommend this to the grievers, and those supporting them.
(Rated G, Score 7/10)

emotionally challenging yet essential read

Lewis finds the words nobody else can. his descriptions of the feelings associated with grief accurately portray what it means to lose someone you love. there are things he's able to put to paper that I never thought would be explained

Real stuff for the hurting

My husband passed away 14 months ago from yesterday with Cancer. I just finished my second reading of this book. It helped my feelings by identifying some of my feelings as the same Lewis was experiencing at the loss of his wife. He was a very smart man. I will read again in a few months.

Wonderful

This is a wonderful raw set of letters or journal entries from a mourning man.

, and when there are..no words

... and when there are no words, c.s.lewis lays a foundation for comfort - courage

So Beautiful!

I know I've read this before, but it means much more after someone you love dies. I totally get the rant-----as if I could fall in love with a memory; I don't want the memory, I want H----C.S. Lewis said something to that effect and now I completely understand what he meant. And then the image of her at the end and the road to healing---the book was fantastic. It's all so beautiful, he says it so well, and I am very grateful that someone like C.S. Lewis lived and wrote such beautiful, profound things.

The most articulate expression of grief I’ve ever heard

Grief is not something to be easily understood, if ever, in its entirety, but the master C.S. Lewis certainly pays it the respect it is due in this book. Highly recommended.

A must listen

So very powerful. The way C.S Lewis let’s words flow from such a powerful mind….just incredible

A Brutally Honest Experience with Loss

This is not the familiar intellectual C.S. Lewis that is expressed in his other works. Rather, this is Lewis at his lowest and at a time when academic truths seem to be at odds with the pain of reality. In loss he states what he truly feels but most dare not speak and examines himself in what he believes to be his naked form. It is a beautiful book about the reality of grief and loss with a great performance that brings the tone that is needed.