Book Review: “Looking Up: A Birder’s Guide to Hope Through Grief” by Courtney Ellis

Looking Up: A Birder’s Guide to Hope Through Grief by Courtney Ellis is an exciting book on a confluence of subjects of interest to me. I have been birding for decades, a hobby my mom got me into. While I wouldn’t consider myself an expert, by any means, I have found enormous joy in spotting feathery friends and taking note of their mannerisms. I also am interested in theologically informed spiritual practices. Ellis introduces a kind of amalgam of birding and spirituality with Christian hope.

The combination seems unlikely, but Jesus himself told us to “consider the birds.” Clearly, this was meant in context of a broader point, but Ellis asks us to slow down and really take the time to do just that, consider the birds, and the ways their activities might guide our own thoughts and actions. It is so easy today to get caught in the cacophony of social media, work, whatever social life is left over, and more. But what if we really thought about grief and gave it space, or what if we could learn from the differing activities of birds themselves?

How does this play out in the text? Ellis highlights a type of bird in each chapter, presents a narrative having to do with grief (often related to her own loss with the death of her grandfather and dealing with the complicated nature of grief), and weaves these together with seeing God’s work in our lives and the world. The book could introduce readers to a practice of birding, or those already into birding to see more beyond the birds themselves.

Looking Up was by turns insightful, delightful, and informative. It does speak to the soul for learning about hope in grief, even while turning to the skies and looking up. I recommend it.

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SDG.

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