A Heart That Works - by Rob Delaney

Book Synopsis

New York Times Bestseller * New Yorker Best Books of 2022 * Entertainment Weekly Best Books of 2022 * USA Today Best Books of 2022 * Time 100 Must-Read Books of 2022 * Mother Jones Books We Needed in 2022 * People Fall Must Read * 2022 BuzzFeed Fall Reading Pick * New York Post Best Books of 2022 * New York Times Editors' Choice

This is the story of what happens when you lose a child, and everything you discover about life in the process, by the star of the Amazon Prime series Catastrophe.

In 2018, Rob Delaney's two-year-old son, Henry, died of a brain tumor. A Heart That Works is Delaney's intimate, unflinching, and at times fiercely funny exploration of Henry's beautiful, bright life and the devastation of his loss--from the harrowing illness to the vivid, bodily impact of grief and the blind, furious rage that followed through to the forceful, unstoppable love that remains. In the madness of his grief, Delaney grapples with the fragile miracle of life, the mysteries of death, and the question of purpose for those left behind.

Profound, painful, full of emotion, and bracingly honest, Delaney's memoir offers solace to those who have faced devastation and shows us how grace may appear even in the darkest times.

Review Quotes

"As heartbreaking as the book may be, Delaney's pitch-black humor buoys even the toughest moments. . . . Delaney's book is ultimately about all-encompassing, heart-exploding love."--New York Times

"Written in beautiful prose that occasionally veers into justifiable rage, Delaney's words are rich with sorrow while also managing the even more astonishing feat of often being legitimately funny."--San Francisco Chronicle

"To those who have felt the icy grip of grief around their own throats, it is a relief to read an account of grief that is not a series of hard-won life lessons wrapped in a gratitude journal. . . . The result is a book that sings with life."--Washington Post

"Inspirational . . . Read this book not for Delaney's celebrity nor even for a good cry but for something more: a rare picture of the family coping with the worst thing that can happen, with love and humor, all illuminated by a kind of costly grace."--Mother Jones, "The Books We Needed in 2022"

"A devastatingly candid account of a parent's grief that will have readers laughing and crying in equal measure . . . Heart-wrenching and impressively self-aware."--Kirkus (starred review)

"Frank, razor-sharp writing . . . Delaney digs deep on every page, baring his soul and sharing a remarkable range of emotions while relating the worst moments of his life. His is truly a heart that works." --BookPage (starred review)

"A generous gift--he invites us into places of wrenching, claustrophobic grief and the most intimate family joys. We come away feeling a little stronger, like we can somehow handle life a little better. . . . May well be the best thing published in 2022."--Esquire

"[Delaney's] writing had me drawn in from page one, and the book is written with gut-wrenching honesty. . . . I put this on a shelf with The Year of Magical Thinking, When Breath Becomes Air and Until I Say Goodbye. These books remind me to take time to experience every day with as much joy as I can."--Book Reporter

"Delaney is a phenomenal storyteller, and this memoir is tender, vulnerable, warm, and darkly funny. A Heart That Works is in the same league as The Year of Magical Thinking in its stark, clarified articulation of grief, and the delusion and disbelief that accompany the tragedy."--BuzzFeed

"Profound, crushing, and wrenching, this account of a father's love takes the full measure of grief."--Publishers Weekly

"Your heart will soar with the twinkly wonder of parenthood and humanity."--Amazon Book Review

"An essential exercise in empathy."--Hollywood Reporter

"A wrenching, unflinching and somehow often funny memoir."--USA Today

"An affecting portrait of a father's love for his son."--Time, 100 Must-Read Books of 2022

"Brave, harrowing, inspiring . . . A wonder."--People

"Overwhelmingly moving . . . Vital and very, very funny."--The Guardian

"Beautiful and vital."--Maria Shriver's Sunday Paper

"An intense, heartbreaking memoir about the illness and death of his toddler son. Will resonate deeply [with anyone] who's lost a loved one, especially a child."--Margaret Atwood on Twitter

"I could have read about Henry for a thousand pages. It is impossible not to share in Delaney's tenderness, his attention, his anger, his night-black humor, and impossible not to see his son through his eyes: loved, learning, smiling ecstatically. I will turn to this book again and again, to feel deeply and to learn about this world from Henry."--Patricia Lockwood, author of No One Is Talking About This  and Priestdaddy

"This book is so rich with grief and love and pain and humor and an incandescent, purifying, flame-throwing wrath. Though Delaney can't bring Henry back, he can--and does--show enough of him to the world to make a reader see him a little bit, know him a little bit, and fully love him. What an unbelievable gift."--Lauren Groff, author of Fates and Furies and Matrix

"I don't think I've ever read anything before that captures the enormity and power of parental love, how radical it is, how transformative and total."--Eleanor Catton, author of  The Luminaries, winner of the Man Booker Prize

"What a read. Its beauty and pain and humor and anger will help many people. This is a beautiful monument."--Richard Osman, author of The Thursday Murder Club

"Emotionally raw, yet masterfully told, A Heart That Works is the incredibly rare book that can move the reader to tears or fury or laughter within moments, if not at the same time. At the heart of this intimate story of coming to terms with death is a stubborn embrace of life itself."--Mat Johnson, author of Invisible Things and Pym

"I love this book, and it is a tough ride, filled with grace and beauty and unimaginable pain. I cried a number of times, laughed a lot, grieved with the Delaneys, and underlined so many moments of courage, exposure, humanity, and the deepest meaning. All I can say is, Wow."--Anne Lamott

"This book is unlike anything I've ever read. Brutally honest, powerful, like a beautiful howl. A love letter to Delaney's precious boy. To his wife. His family. To parenthood. It is a book that will help so many grieving parents. I loved everything about it."--Laura Zigman, author of Separation Anxiety and Small World

About the Author

Rob Delaney is a comedian, actor, and writer. He is widely known as the award-winning co-creator and co-star of the critically acclaimed Amazon Prime comedy Catastrophe. He is the author of the memoir Rob Delaney: Mother. Wife. Sister. Human. Warrior. Falcon. Yardstick. Turban. Cabbage.