In The New York Times Sunday Book Review cover story, Susan Cokal applauds the internationally acclaimed novel The Grief of Others by Leah Hager Cohen, Jenks Chair in Contemporary American Letters at the College of the Holy Cross. The Grief of Others, in which the death of a newborn leads to the unraveling of a family, is Cohen’s fourth novel. She is also the author of several noteworthy non-fiction books.
Cokal praises Cohen’s development of the six principal characters through her “crisp but compassionate, lyrical only so far as is necessary” style.
The novel’s plot is driven by the hurt that the six complex characters endure from each other and from forces that are “greater than themselves.”
“For all its deep-seated sorrows, this is a hopeful book,” writes Cokal, “A series of striking vignettes illuminating the humanity of these fully realized characters.”
This Holy Cross in the News item is by Sara Bovat '14.
