Notes on Grief

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is quite possibly my favourite writer of all time. Full stop. Anyone who knows me would claim I am a fan of Tolkien, and this is true, but no one can write like Adichie.

How to Write Grief

I was not sure what to expect when I picked up Adichie's reflection, Notes on Grief, which is also a short memoir about her relationship with her father. I know Adichie to be a talented and imaginative author, as well as a strong feminist writer, but this book was unlike anything I have read from her. Somehow, she captured her grief on paper, and chose to share it with the rest of the world.

Grief, it turns out, is extremely complicated, and I found it interesting how grief manifests not only as pain, but as fond memories of the person who is gone. The stories she succinctly articulated in these pages were touching, and I ended up dwelling on the beautiful relationship she shared with her father rather than the feeling of grief itself. Although I know I will never meet him (and I probably won't meet her, but I can dream), I felt like I was getting to know them both. This is a sign of a truly talented writer.

It is impossible to give such work a rating out of five stars, because you cannot rate someone's feelings, and that is ultimately what is captured in these pages. I do believe it is worth reading, like anything Adichie writes.

If you have any thoughts, questions or review requests you would like to share, please comment below, email me (theopinionatedbookworm@gmail.com) or follow me on Instagram (@theopinionatedbookworm1).

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