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A review by dianahincureads
H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.25
“There is a time in life when you expect the world to be always full of new things. And then comes a day when you realise that is not how it will be at all. You see that life will become a thing made of holes. Absences. Losses. Things that were there and are no longer. And you realise, too, that you have to grow around and between the gaps, though you can put your hand out to where things were and feel that tense, shining dullness of the space where the memories are.” (p. 171)
“H is for Hawk” is unlike anything I read before. It mixes genres effortlessly, eluding all labels. Is it a nature book? Is it a memoir? Is it a deep dive into T. H. White’s work (the author of “The Sword in the Stone”)? Is it an exploration of grief? For me, it’s all of the above plus the bonus that it reads like a journal. It does not have the form of one but I kept thinking of journals whilst reading. I felt like I was trespassing, witnessing the author’s deepest thoughts. Helen loses her father unexpectedly and her grief is palpable. The book is about loss, healing, humanity, and goshawks.
The writing is dense, full of vivid imagery. It demands attention. I was so absorbed by it, I finished it in 2 days. It left me floating, in a sort of a stunned daze. It made me want to travel, learn more about goshawks (I knew nothing about them before reading the book), keep a journal, pay attention to my surroundings. I’m pretty sure I’ll reread this one.
“H is for Hawk” is unlike anything I read before. It mixes genres effortlessly, eluding all labels. Is it a nature book? Is it a memoir? Is it a deep dive into T. H. White’s work (the author of “The Sword in the Stone”)? Is it an exploration of grief? For me, it’s all of the above plus the bonus that it reads like a journal. It does not have the form of one but I kept thinking of journals whilst reading. I felt like I was trespassing, witnessing the author’s deepest thoughts. Helen loses her father unexpectedly and her grief is palpable. The book is about loss, healing, humanity, and goshawks.
The writing is dense, full of vivid imagery. It demands attention. I was so absorbed by it, I finished it in 2 days. It left me floating, in a sort of a stunned daze. It made me want to travel, learn more about goshawks (I knew nothing about them before reading the book), keep a journal, pay attention to my surroundings. I’m pretty sure I’ll reread this one.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Animal death and Blood