Held by the Sea: What It Means to Really Give Yourself to Someone

Evincing the deep despair that accompanies bereavement, this autobiographical account follows the author’s loss of her husband to cancer after a 25-year marriage. The process of learning who she is alone is captured in detail, describing her grief and shock amid regaining her own ambitions and creativity as a painter, filmmaker, writer, and mother. The narrative chronicles her return to the house that belonged to generations of her late husband’s family, relating how she begins to create her own history and identity in Cornwall, the city her husband loved. Depicting the English countryside and sea as sources of solace, this story shows how one can face widowhood with humor and strength.