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A Heart That Works

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A Heart That Works

By: Rob Delaney
Narrated by: Rob Delaney
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About this listen

WINNER OF THE BRITISH RADIO ACADAMY ARIAS AWARD FOR BEST AUDIOBOOK

The comedian and star of Catastrophe's devastatingly moving memoir about his young son's death.

In this devastating, beautiful and deeply moving memoir of the loss of his son, Rob Delaney explores what life really means, and why it matters.

When you're a parent and your child gets hurt or sick, you not only try to help them get better but you also labour under the general belief that you can help them get better. That's not always the case though. Sometimes the nurses and the doctors can't fix what's wrong. Sometimes children die.

Rob's beautiful, bright, deeply alive son Henry died. This is the story of what happens when you lose a child, and everything you discover about life in the process. Why does he feel compelled to talk about it, to write about it, to disseminate information designed to make people feel something like what he felt? What his wife feels? What his other sons feel? Done properly or well, it will hurt them. Why does he want to hurt people?

Because, despite the death of his son, Rob still loves people. For that reason, he wants them to understand.

©2022 Rob Delaney (P)2022 Hodder & Stoughton Limited Entertainment & Celebrities Grief & Loss Indigenous Creators Mental Health Awareness Personal Development Relationships Celebrity Funny Heartfelt Inspiring Witty Thought-Provoking

Critic Reviews

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)
What a read. Its beauty and pain and humour and anger will help many people. This is a beautiful monument (Richard Osman)
The weaving of the joy and pain, the love and loss, the absurdity of grief, is done so beautifully. It feels like a message in a bottle, a despatch, a communication from the depths of suffering and despair that ultimately brings a message of great hope (Cathy Rentzenbrink)
All stars
Most relevant  
This book is probably the best book I’ve ever read. I cried and laughed so hard and felt so so many emotional s. I’m so grateful for the few hours I got to spend with it.

Beautiful and heartbreaking

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Beautifully written and read story that is as life affirming as it is heartbreaking. Highly recommended

Beautiful and heartbreaking

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This book is a privilege to read/listen to.
Rob Delaney’s brutal honesty, sharp intelligence and ability to cope by employing dark humour, is a gift.
Our own family is no stranger to this experience or grief and I found his words and emotions incredibly real and honest.
Thank you so much for sharing and providing a funny, non-saccharine account of unfathomable loss and grief.

An incredibly moving and important book

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This was equal parts devastating and inspiring. Very moving. Thank you for sharing your story with us

Deeply sad and beautiful

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Scroll through the reviews, all those stars multiply them, this book is worth the galactic numbers.
Like many others I cried, then laughed and then pulled the car over to sob in a side street and went to work red eyed and wobbly. Also like so many others I was uplifted, educated and fell in love with this sweet sweet boy and his beautiful family.
Can’t not recommend highly enough but fair warning it’s a heart breaker!

Incredible storytelling

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This book made me cry, made me laugh, made me rethink a lot of things, made my heart hurt and made me hold onto my child really tight.
This is one of those books that will stay with you forever.
Don't wonder any longer if you should listen to this book, just do it.

Incredibly moving book

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What a tribute from a loving father to his sweet sweet boy. I laughed, I cried. Not a few tears, but a deep sobbing pull over and park under a tree on the way home from work kinda cry. Children are incredible. Our love for them infinite. I feel so blessed to have read this book, thank you Rob for sharing your love with us all.

My heart works too

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Not a fan of the clunky, unfunny attempts at humour that are crowbarred into the story (particularly at the beginning), but these do not derail what is an otherwise devastatingly beautiful, painful story. I can’t remember the last time I cried reading/listening to a book, but as a father of a two year old boy this really hit home and had me pulling over whilst driving to have a good sob. Very well narrated too.

A Book All Dads Should Read

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This book was so touching, a very vulnerable retelling of his journey through his child's death.

Beautiful and raw!!

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It's raw and brutally honest peppered with witty and sometimes laugh out loud remarks. It is the reality of Robs life from when he found out his baby boy Henry had a brain tumor. I am a bereaved parent and related to so much in this book. I think it would be a great read/listen for anyone in this situation to feel understood but also those who haven't been through something similar to gain an ounce of understanding. I also loved Robs remarks on other hard topics, alcoholism, suicide, cancer, NHS vs American health care. And all throughout the book his son Henry shone, what a gorgeous wee man who will be so missed

Brutally honest and funny on life's hard topics

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