Of the numerous books that have been written about loss, Matthews has given us an original, startling and deeply thought-provoking work. . . What we are left with is a sense of peace -- the kind that comes with the knowledge that, even in the darkest places, we are not alone. -- Eve Joseph, author of In the Slender Margin Minerva's Owl is a memoir that celebrates marriage and explores bereavement a stage of married love. It includes literary references, conversations, letters and memories that are framed in six sections: grieving, longing, belonging, mourning, cleaving and, ultimately, surviving. It does not offer easy answers or a step-by-step guide to grief -- rather, Minerva's Owl provides an unforgettable account of great love and loss.