Description
Book SynopsisJohn Burnside was among the most acclaimed writers of his generation. His novels, short stories, poetry and memoirs won numerous awards, including the Geoffrey Faber Memorial, Saltire Scottish Book of the Year and, in 2023, he received the David Cohen Prize for a lifetime's achievement in literature. In 2011
Black Cat Bone won both the Forward and the T.S. Eliot Prizes for poetry.
Trade ReviewThere is no truer writer than John Burnside...[A] searching enquiry into a life: bruised, filled with grace and as plangent and haunting as any plainsong -- Catherine Lockerbie * Scotsman *
Burnside's memoir deserves to become a classic. Has anyone written about the direct experience of mental illness with such scrupulous observation and wit? * Daily Express *
A brilliant portrait of isolation... This sophisticated study of the human mind argues for our right "to continue in the pursuit of whole-heartedness. To be not-normal after all" -- Fiona Sampson * Independent *
Beautifully written and observed memoir ... an affecting book from a writer of manifest talent; a compellingly readable memoir possessed of a genuine spiritual and intellectual depth -- Adam O'Riordan * Sunday Telegraph *
This is an extraordinary book and one so honest it scorches -- Carlo Gebler * Irish Times *
