Nick Barlow reviewed Delicacy by Katy Wix
A moving memoir about grief and loss
5 stars
This was an interesting memoir, and one that really resonated for me because, like Wix, I've lost relatives to dementia and brain tumours, so I could strongly relate both to her stories of losing them and how to deal with the grief that comes over you after that. It covers a lot of ground other than that, though, and structuring it around memories of cake is an interesting way to frame a life, but it brings in her other themes of body image and mental health. It's easy for a story like this to sprawl into lots of different parts that don't cohere or just become a series of anecdotes, but there's a strong shape to this even if it only comes together towards the end as she begins to understand and process everything that's happened to her. One thing worth noting is that yes, this is Katy Wix the …
This was an interesting memoir, and one that really resonated for me because, like Wix, I've lost relatives to dementia and brain tumours, so I could strongly relate both to her stories of losing them and how to deal with the grief that comes over you after that. It covers a lot of ground other than that, though, and structuring it around memories of cake is an interesting way to frame a life, but it brings in her other themes of body image and mental health. It's easy for a story like this to sprawl into lots of different parts that don't cohere or just become a series of anecdotes, but there's a strong shape to this even if it only comes together towards the end as she begins to understand and process everything that's happened to her. One thing worth noting is that yes, this is Katy Wix the actor (from Ghosts, Not Going Out, Stath Lets Flats etc) but no, this isn't a typical celebrity memoir or autobiography, and if you come here looking for amusing insights into life behind the scenes on that show you like, you're not going to find it. Acting and writing, are her job, not her entire life, and where they do intrude on this story it's because they connect to her wider life, not as a focus in themselves.