'Powerful, humane and deeply affecting, Lister's wise and truthful writing makes this essential reading for anyone touched, and utterly confused, by grief.' Sali Hughes

'The must-read memoir' Red

What does it mean to become a widow at 35?

In her mid-thirties Kat Lister lost her husband to brain cancer. After five years of being a wife and one of being a carer, in love and in and out of hospitals, she became a widow.

In the year following his death Kat seeks refuge in stories of grief and widowhood, but struggles to find a language that can make sense of her experience and the physicality of bereavement. Instead, she turns to the elements - fire, water, earth, air - on her quest to come to terms with her grief, to inhabit her body again, and to find out who she is now.

The Elements is a story of love, pain, hope and, ultimately, transformation.

"'The must-read memoir. A moving, bruising and meditative memoir and love story ... Beautifully written, The Elements, will strike a chord with anyone who's been touched by grief.'" - Red Magazine

"'Strikingly honest'" - The Times

"'Such a searingly honest book that will stop you cold with its beauty. Kat's unique voice and perspective on death, love and womanhood really get under your skin. This is a book about grief but it's also about finding a sense of self after a deep loss, and hoping above everything for something wonderful that feels very much like joy.'" - Tigers Are Better Looking