From the belovedNew York Timesopinion writer & bestselling author of Late Migrations comes a "howling love letter to the world" (Ann Patchett): a luminous book that traces the passing of seasons, personal and natural.InThe Comfort of Crows,Margaret Renklpresents a literary devotional:fifty-two chaptersthat follow the creatures & plants in her backyard over the course of a year. As we move through the seasons—from a crow spied on New Year's Day, its resourcefulness & sense of community setting a theme for the year, to the lingering bluebirds of December, revisiting the nest box they used in spring—what develops is a portrait of joy & grief: joy in the ongoing pleasures of the natural world, & grief over winters that end too soon & songbirds that grow fewer & fewer.Along the way, we also glimpse the changing rhythms of a human life. Grown children, unexpectedly home during the pandemic, prepare to depart once...