[1][2][3] Grief Is the Thing with Feathers is a "book about death and its grief-stricken consolations – love and art" through the story "of a grieving writer and father of two young boys, who is coming to terms with the death of his wife while writing a book about Ted Hughes".

[4] The book is narrated from rapidly alternating perspectives: the Dad, the Boys, and Crow—a human-sized bird that can speak, "equal parts babysitter, philosopher and therapist" to the family.

[5][6] The title refers to a poem by Emily Dickinson, ""Hope" is the thing with feathers".

[8] Grief Is the Thing with Feathers was adapted into a play of the same name, directed by Enda Walsh and starring Cillian Murphy.

[19] In 2024, a film adaptation starring Benedict Cumberbatch, titled The Thing with Feathers, began production.