“Unveiling Grief: Eiren Caffall Reveals the Hidden Wisdom in ‘The Mourner’s Bestiary'”
AE: I think the book does that really, really beautifully. It doesn’t feel like it’s a manifesto. I do think it’s a powerful tool for changing hearts and minds on things environmentally because of that exact thing. Which is, I think, in the larger scope, not just the environment, but all the things we’re up against right now. Stop trying to convince the other side they’re wrong. Stop trying to convince people to see what they don’t want to see.
EC: I want to write books that show the interconnectedness of different oppressions. My life story shows the multiple ways in which the disregard for the planet, for the climate, for the ecosystem and its animals is the same type of disregard for disabled bodies, for different neurologies, for chronic Illness, for diversity of race and religion and gender, for the imbalance in power between men and women. It’s essentially a fear of death and loss and vulnerability that a patriarchal fascist cult will exploit in people.
