Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by erica_o
H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald
4.0
I highly recommend listening to this if you can. It's read by the author and whereas many authors do just fine reading their own work, Macdonald is superb. She reads like a classically-trained narrator. You can hear a sample here to give you an idea of her voice, though not necessarily of the mesmerizing nature of her tale the further it progresses.
I remember when this came across my desk. There hadn't been much information for it available, at the time, and it looked like a children's book on falconry or somesuch, due to the woodcut nature of the cover illustration. I went to my trusty source, Goodreads, to find out more and immediately saw Greg's review, which was, I think, the only review available at the time, but it's a beautiful review, I gleaned all the info I needed, and those pictures! I've thought of this book ever since.
This month, I finally took the time to listen.
This deserves all the praise it has received. It's a complex book broken down simply. It covers grief and depression, falconry, regrets, the ways in which we deceive ourselves, love, healing, and lessons-learned through both Macdonald's struggle after her father dies and T. H. White's struggle with self via his [b:The Goshawk|1188127|The Goshawk|T.H. White|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1547026454s/1188127.jpg|105249], which Macdonald re-reads when she decides the best thing for her to do is train a goshawk.
And that goshawk. Mabel.
This story isn't actually about her, even though most everything centers on her. And yet, she steals the show. She's misunderstood in that Macdonald seems to not see her as a bird of prey but as a challenge whose solution will fix Macdonald's myriad of problems. Mabel becomes a surrogate for life, a vicious, primal life, devoid of feelings. She's a distraction, a joy, a focal point, but, for much of the book, she's not a hawk, not a wild animal who just happens to have been bred in captivity much like Macdonald is not suffering from being overwhelmed after the loss of her father, is not falling apart, is not letting everything go. The listener knows, though, that Mabel is a hawk and Macdonald is in terrible pain.
H is for Helen as much as it is for Hawk and Macdonald manages to finally see both of them, their true natures, their real situations.
She is so elegant and honest about this journey. There’s deep self-knowledge and understanding both of herself and her counterpart, T.H. White. His story is sad and troubling but a wonderful backdrop to Macdonald’s own sad and troubling trials.
Here's an interview with Macdonald, in case you want more from the author, herself.
In related news, Helen Macdonald is someone karen can never, ever visit. Her house is full of birds. (Source)
I remember when this came across my desk. There hadn't been much information for it available, at the time, and it looked like a children's book on falconry or somesuch, due to the woodcut nature of the cover illustration. I went to my trusty source, Goodreads, to find out more and immediately saw Greg's review, which was, I think, the only review available at the time, but it's a beautiful review, I gleaned all the info I needed, and those pictures! I've thought of this book ever since.
This month, I finally took the time to listen.
This deserves all the praise it has received. It's a complex book broken down simply. It covers grief and depression, falconry, regrets, the ways in which we deceive ourselves, love, healing, and lessons-learned through both Macdonald's struggle after her father dies and T. H. White's struggle with self via his [b:The Goshawk|1188127|The Goshawk|T.H. White|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1547026454s/1188127.jpg|105249], which Macdonald re-reads when she decides the best thing for her to do is train a goshawk.
And that goshawk. Mabel.
This story isn't actually about her, even though most everything centers on her. And yet, she steals the show. She's misunderstood in that Macdonald seems to not see her as a bird of prey but as a challenge whose solution will fix Macdonald's myriad of problems. Mabel becomes a surrogate for life, a vicious, primal life, devoid of feelings. She's a distraction, a joy, a focal point, but, for much of the book, she's not a hawk, not a wild animal who just happens to have been bred in captivity much like Macdonald is not suffering from being overwhelmed after the loss of her father, is not falling apart, is not letting everything go. The listener knows, though, that Mabel is a hawk and Macdonald is in terrible pain.
H is for Helen as much as it is for Hawk and Macdonald manages to finally see both of them, their true natures, their real situations.
She is so elegant and honest about this journey. There’s deep self-knowledge and understanding both of herself and her counterpart, T.H. White. His story is sad and troubling but a wonderful backdrop to Macdonald’s own sad and troubling trials.
Here's an interview with Macdonald, in case you want more from the author, herself.
In related news, Helen Macdonald is someone karen can never, ever visit. Her house is full of birds. (Source)