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Author

Lemn Sissay

Lemn Sissay is an award-winning poet, writer and popular broadcaster. He is the author of seven poetry collections including, most recently, Gold from the Stone, as well as a number of plays. He was made an Honorary Doctor of Letters by the University of Huddersfield and the University of Manchester, and was awarded an MBE for services to literature in 2010. He was the official poet for the London 2012 Olympics and his Landmark poems can be found in London, Manchester, Huddersfield and Addis Ababa. Sissay is patron of the Letterbox Club, supporting children in care and in 2018 his documentary Superkids was nominated for a BAFTA award. In 2019, he was awarded the PEN Pinter Prize. He is currently Chancellor of the University of Manchester. He is British and Ethiopian.

Search Results

Title:

My Name Is Why

Written by:

Lemn Sissay 

Read by:

Richard Burnip; Lemn Sissay; Zoe Mills 

Format:

Unabridged CD Audio Book 

Number of CDs:

5 

Duration:

5 hours 19 minutes 

Published:

August 29 2019 

Available Date:

August 29 2019 

Age Category:

Adult 

ISBN:

9780655626251 

Genres:

Non-fiction; Memoirs 

Publisher:

Bolinda/Canongate audio 

Qty

Format

Price

Bolinda price

AUD$ 39.95

AUD$ 39.95

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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