Mrs. Death Misses Death
A young person invites Death to share her wisdom in Salena Godden’s ethereal novel Mrs. Death Misses Death.
Wolf is a writer trying to write about what they have known since they were nine: Death. Indeed, after impulse buying an antique desk, Wolf begins to see and hear Mrs. Death, a Black woman who tells Wolf about her past and present. Alternating between long walks around London and writing at the desk, Wolf records Mrs. Death’s stories.
Like many of Wolf’s experiences with Mrs. Death, the book exists in a liminal space, as both a novel and an exhortation to embrace life and all of its feelings, good and bad. Mrs. Death is a philosophical woman, and in explaining herself, she also discusses personhood and the necessity of connections. The book takes on several forms in order to do this work, including Mrs. Death’s stories, poetry, songs from Mrs. Death and Wolf, letters, and diary entries. In between these is the story of Wolf and their family, and of their trauma and its reverberating effects.
Wolf is not the most reliable narrator. They are haunted by the death of their mother. That death hangs over the entire novel; it makes Wolf susceptible to long stretches of severe depression. Wolf’s quiet meandering around London, which is alive with ghosts, reflects their fragile mental state.
Everything is connected, and the book charts deliberate paths for Mrs. Death and Wolf. It is subtle in its revelations, building repetitions of phrases in taut moments of anxiety and panic attacks, leading to the quiet shock of an unveiling. Depression is an insular and singular experience, and the book is masterful at describing that foggy state of being from the inside.
Mrs. Death Misses Death is a unique novel about depression and recovery.
Reviewed by
Dontaná McPherson-Joseph
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. No fee was paid by the publisher for this review. Foreword Reviews only recommends books that we love. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
