‘Books picked me up on bad days’: how reading romance helped Lucy Mangan through grief
After the death of her father, the writer took refuge in the kinds of stories she had once written off – discovering a comforting world of funny heroines and happy endings
February 2025
Ask Annalisa Barbieri
My partner’s unresolved grief is putting a strain on our relationship
The memories lost when a sibling dies
When my sister died, it wasn’t just her own childhood memories that disappeared. Mine did too
Jason Hazeley
Life’s not easy for those like Bridget Jones, but older widows are left in no man’s land
‘Tears were running down my face’: why Bridget Jones 4 is the most moving romcom of modern times
The new Bridget Jones film shows the messy, funny, mistake-filled reality of widowhood
Stacey Heale
Ask Annalisa Barbieri
I lost my partner, but our relationship was a secret so I can’t talk to anyone
The modern mind
Sandra was estranged from her mother after experiencing childhood trauma. The grief when she died was complicated
Ahona Guha
January 2025
How to build a better life
Do you run away from feelings of emptiness? It’s time to face them head-on
Why I quit
After my mother died, I dreaded my stepfather moving on. Then I realised love isn’t limited
Iman M'Fah-Traoré
The modern mind
From carer to carefree? How to move on from years of devotion after a loved one dies
Gaynor Parkin
Summer essentials
My brother and father drowned on a bright summer day. Swimming brings me closer to the two men I’ve lost
Indigo Perry
After Dad died I dressed like an extra from The Matrix. Now I’m blooming again like the flowers on my psychedelic new vest
Nick Buckley
Kindness of strangers
The kindness of strangers: I had a fear of flying – and as the plane shook and plummeted, she held my hand
UK women who suffer miscarriage should get two weeks’ paid leave, MPs say
Guardian Australia's headline act
Mallrat was poised for pop domination. Then tragedy struck
‘I became an optimist the night my wife died’: a science writer on loss and letting go of rationalism
Andrew Garfield on weepie rom-com We Live in Time: ‘I love that this film wears its heart on its sleeve’
Book of the day
Playing Possum by Susana Monsó review – do animals understand death?
