H is for Hawk

An extraordinary book, filled with poetry from the first page. Helen Macdonald seamlessly links a chain of things that seem unconnected: her grief over her father's death, training a goshawk, the strange life of the author TH White, perspectives on nature and nationalism, and magic.

Aside from the electric storytelling, the prose throughout is poetic and poignant. The links to disparate things are seamless. And the linked processes of grief are explored delicately right to the end. Even when I don't agree with some of Macdonald's perspectives, I am very grateful to her for sharing this journey as such a literary wonder.

A fascinating and powerful read, moving between wonderful moments of nature and deep dark times of grief-driven near-madness and obsession. For me it captured that sense of unmooring one feels after the death of a parent and how Macdonald tried to gather meaning back into her life by devoting itself into the training of a goshawk. Rich and lyrical prose captures the feeling of being out in the eastern countryside and the freedom that can be found there to leave an old self behind. A book that will speak to people in different ways, just as the story of TH White resonates with Macdonald through their shared belief in the power of a hawk to make them whole.