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A Grief Observed
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A Grief Observed Paperback - 2015 - 1st Edition

by C. S. Lewis

This is the poignant account of how the great theologian faced the doubt, anger, and grief he experienced after losing his beloved wife to cancer. This book wrestles with the meaning of loss or lack of meaning with unswerving honesty.


About this book

A Grief Observed comprises the reflections of the great scholar and Christian on the death of his wife after only a few short years of marriage. Painfully honest in its dissection of his thoughts and feelings, this is a book that details his paralyzing grief, bewilderment and sense of loss in simple and moving prose.

Invaluable as an insight into the grieving process just as much as it is as an exploration of religious doubt, A Grief Observed will continue to offer its consoling insights to a huge range of readers, as it has for over fifty years.” From publisher Faber and Faber.


From the publisher

A classic work on 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 an unflinchingly truthful account of how loss can lead even a stalwart believer to lose all sense of meaning in the universe, and the inspirational tale of how he can possibly regain his bearings.

From the rear cover

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 of 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.

First Edition Identification

The book was first published in 1961 by Faber and Faber, London, under the pseudonym N.W. Clerk. Lewis wished to avoid identification as the author and referred to his wife as only ‘H’.

Details

  • Title A Grief Observed
  • Author C. S. Lewis
  • Binding Paperback
  • Edition number 1st
  • Edition 1
  • Pages 112
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher HarperOne, New York, New York, U.S.A.
  • Date 2015-04-21
  • ISBN 9780060652388 / 0060652381
  • Weight 0.22 lbs (0.10 kg)
  • Dimensions 8.02 x 5.45 x 0.33 in (20.37 x 13.84 x 0.84 cm)
  • Themes
    • Religious Orientation: Christian
    • Theometrics: Catholic
    • Theometrics: Evangelical
    • Theometrics: Mainline
    • Topical: Death/Dying
    • Topical: Family
  • Library of Congress subjects Consolation, Lewis, C. S - Religion
  • Library of Congress Catalog Number 00063227
  • Dewey Decimal Code 242.4

Media reviews

Citations

  • Christianity Today, 09/01/2010, Page 80
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A Grief Observed
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