- Title:
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My Name Is Why
- Written by:
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Lemn Sissay
- Read by:
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Richard Burnip; Lemn Sissay; Zoe Mills
- Format:
-
Unabridged CD Audio Book
- Number of CDs:
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5
- Duration:
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5 hours 19 minutes
- Published:
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August 29 2019
- Available Date:
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August 29 2019
- Age Category:
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Adult
- ISBN:
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9780655626251
- Genres:
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Non-fiction; Memoirs
- Publisher:
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Bolinda/Canongate audio
Qty
Format
Price
Bolinda price
Award winning author
A memoir with a message – about growing up in care and finding hope, determination and creativity – from British poet and national treasure Lemn Sissay.
At the age of 17, after a childhood in a foster family followed by six years in care homes, Norman Greenwood was given his birth certificate. He learned that his real name was not Norman. It was Lemn Sissay. He was British and Ethiopian. And he learned that his mother had been pleading for his safe return to her since his birth.
This is Lemn's story; a story of neglect and determination, misfortune and hope, cruelty and triumph.
Sissay reflects on a childhood in care, self-expression and Britishness, and in doing so explores the institutional care system, race, family and the meaning of home. Written with all the lyricism and power you would expect from one of the nation's best-loved poets, this moving, frank and timely memoir is the result of a life spent asking questions, and a celebration of the redemptive power of creativity.
'Hugely enjoyable, inventive, funny and touching.'
Guardian
'His gift as a writer – of plays, poetry, documentaries – is for turning life's base metal into gold.'
The Observer