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Coronet has signed A Heart That Works, a memoir from actor, comedian and writer Rob Delaney about the experience of losing his son Henry.
Harriet Poland, editorial director, acquired UK and Commonwealth rights from Meredith Miller at United Talent Agency, working in partnership with Avalon. The book, which goes “from the harrowing events, to the vivid, bodily impact of grief and the blind, furious rage that follows, through to the forceful love left behind”, will be published in hardback, e-book and an audiobook read by the author in October 2022.
In 2016, Delaney’s one-year-old son Henry was diagnosed with a brain tumour, dying two years later. A Heart That Works is Delaney’s written expression of the experience.
In the madness of his grief, the publisher said, Delaney grapples with the fragile miracle of life, the mysteries of death and the question of purpose when you’re the one left behind. It said: “This memoir will offer solace to those who have faced devastation and help those who haven’t understand where the true meaning of life is found.”
Delaney said: “My son Henry’s illness and death put our family through the shredder. We’re still here somehow but we are different now. Loving and then grieving Henry has changed us and how we look at the world. I hope our story can shine a little light into some very dark corners.”
Poland said: “There is little balance to be struck when it comes to grief, and yet Rob Delaney manages to express the contours of loss in a way that reflects the starkest truth with the deepest care. This is a work of visceral grace and deeply personal humanity – a testament to an experience beyond comprehension and a book I’m truly honoured to publish.”