A Heart That Works

November 7, 2022
Delaney (Rob Delaney: Mother. Wife. Sister. Human. Warrior. Falcon. Yardstick. Turban. Cabbage.), cocreator and costar of the sitcom Catastrophe, recounts the death of his toddler son, Henry, and the aftermath in this heartrending memoir. In 2014, Delaney and his wife, Leah, moved to London for his work; two years later, Henry was born. Toward the end of his first year, Henry underwent an MRI, and a brain surgeon discovered a tumor near his brain stem. Following a successful surgery to remove the tumor, Henry lost the ability to swallow and received a tracheostomy, and health complications kept him in the hospital for 14 months. After Henry finally went home, Delaney writes, he basked in the “unalloyed beauty of his personality.” But it was a short-lived idyll: Henry’s cancer returned, and he died several months later, at home in Leah’s arms. Delaney is reflective (“It physically pained me to sign the consent forms each time he got chemo”), and his raw emotionality captures the enormity of his loss (“I was ready to love this boy forever”). Profound, crushing, and wrenching, this account of a father’s love takes the full measure of grief. Agent: Pilar Queen, UTA.

Starred review from October 15, 2022
A devastatingly candid account of a parent's grief that will have readers laughing and crying in equal measure. Delaney is no stranger to balancing grief and humor, and it shows in this heartbreaking yet often darkly funny recounting of how he lost his third son, Henry, to brain cancer. The author's work as a writer and actor in the dramedy series Catastrophe clearly primed him to share these poignant recollections. Few would attempt to bring humor and levity to such an unbearably sad story, but Delaney manages to do so with grace, sincerity, and warmth. His ability to weave laughter into something so dark also makes the book accessible for a wide audience, as the author gives readers permission to fully absorb his family's story, to empathize and understand, without having to remain straight-faced and downcast. Throughout, Delaney includes playful but sincere asides: "Advice to people who have a friend or relative with a very sick kid: get right up their ass and go spend time with them. They'll kick you out if they need to, but don't waste their time by saying, 'If there's anything I can do, just let me know.' That's for you, not for them. You might as well yawn in their face while looking at something more exciting over their shoulder." The narrative takes place mostly in London and serves as a sharp criticism of the American health care system in comparison to the British National Health Service, underscoring the additional strain many families of sick children suffer in the U.S. It is also a tender tale of how a family can remain loving and connected during and after tragedy, and Delaney pulls no punches in highlighting his own perceived shortcomings as a father and husband throughout the unimaginable ordeal. His raw honesty and ability to inject humor into the narrative are both charming and refreshing. A heart-wrenching and impressively self-aware story of a father living through the death of his young child.

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