Reviews tagging 'Car accident'

A Heart That Works by Rob Delaney

6 reviews

balfies's review against another edition

emotional funny sad fast-paced

4.0

Devastating, funny, deeply moving memoir about the grief of losing a child. Comedian Rob Delaney speaks so vividly about the trauma of losing his son Henry to brain cancer, and so warmly about Henry himself. In the same vein as No One Is Talking About This and Crying In H Mart for modern opuses on grief.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Car accident, Cancer, Child death, Death, Suicide, and Medical trauma

caseythereader's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

 - I am writing this review of A HEART THAT WORKS while curled up crying on the floor forever. What an incredible, painful, beautiful gift to the world this book is.
- I knew Delaney primarily as a comedian on Twitter, and that joyful, weird spirit of his is present in this writing, even on such a horrific topic.
- And Delaney does not hold back on the unending horrors of what he and his family went through. This is one the hardest books I’ve ever read, and I don’t even have children.
- Through it all, even as Delaney unleashes this primal scream, he still shows us the love and joy he found in his son. This book is full of pain, yes, but we also learn about all the little everyday things about a child that only their parent knows, and I will carry a small piece of Henry with me now. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Cancer, Child death, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Medical content, Pregnancy, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Alcoholism, Blood, Car accident, and Chronic illness

Moderate: Vomit

carriepond's review against another edition

emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

In the opening chapter of A Heart That Works, Rob Delaney asks us to imagine our child is dead, providing specific details that twist the heart. "That is one thing grief does to me," he says, "It makes me want to make you understand. It makes me want you to understand. I want you to understand." Here, and in many moments throughout this devastating memoir, it feels as if Delaney is there, grabbing your shoulders, staring at you with a look of open grief tinged with an undercurrent of rage. I want you to understand.

As one might expect, Delaney's memoir about his son Henry dying from brain cancer before his third birthday is gut-wrenching, heartbreaking and, at times, nearly unbearable to read. It is devastatingly sad. For those unfamiliar with Delaney's work as a comedian, what might be unexpected is how truly funny it is. And it really is. The book is sad, joyous, full of righteous anger, and absurdly funny, sometimes nearly simultaneously. While reading this book, I laughed out loud, I smiled in recognition at Delaney's reflections on the joys of parenting and his deep love for his family, and I cried, almost crawling out of my skin with sadness. 

This book is heartbreaking, yes, but it is also a life-affirming and honest portrayal of grief born out of devastating loss. A Heart That Works is a marvel and a gift. Thank you, Rob Delaney, for sharing sweet Henry with us. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness, Child death, Medical content, Suicide, and Grief

Moderate: Mental illness and Cursing

Minor: Car accident, Vomit, and Alcoholism

brooklynchaise's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

Wow. I’m blown away by my overall experience with this book. It was a beautifully crafted story about grief, with some stand-out passages that were touching, devastating and insightful. Not a book I will soon forget. Delaney bravely shared this story and his son, Henry, with us — I will think of them often 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Cancer, Terminal illness, Grief, and Medical content

Moderate: Suicide, Vomit, and Blood

Minor: Car accident and Addiction

Detailed depiction of childhood cancer, the death of a child a grief

kcarney86's review

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Death, Cancer, Child death, Terminal illness, and Medical content

Moderate: Death of parent, Car accident, and Alcoholism

aetataureate's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny fast-paced

5.0

beautiful, funny, but relentless -- take care with yourself.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death

Moderate: Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcoholism

Minor: Suicide and Car accident