My Name Is Why cover art

My Name Is Why

 Preview

Get 30 days of Standard free

£5.99/mo after trial. Cancel monthly.
Try for £0.00
More purchase options

My Name Is Why

By: Lemn Sissay
Narrated by: Lemn Sissay, Richard Burnip, Zoe Mills
Try for £0.00

£5.99 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for £11.66

Buy Now for £11.66

THE NUMBER ONE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
A BOOK OF THE YEAR IN THE TIMES, GUARDIAN, DAILY TELEGRAPH, SUNDAY TIMES, OBSERVER, NEW STATESMAN, METRO, DAILY MAIL, SUNDAY EXPRESS and HERALD

‘A quest for understanding, for home, for answers’ Matt Haig

How does a government steal a child and then imprison him? How does it keep it a secret? This story is how.

At the age of seventeen, 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 his childhood, 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.

 Black Creators Racism & Discrimination Social Sciences Discrimination Inspiring Heartfelt Thought-Provoking
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1

Critic reviews

"A lyrical, painful and yet hope-filled memoir . . . Shattering, light-searching"
"Searing . . . Unputdownable . . . My Name Is Why is authentic and beautiful, a potential game-changer in public attitudes to children raised in care. It’s about bureaucratic cruelty and what happens when love is absent. Don’t miss it"
"An extraordinary story"
"The most amazing thing about this book is that it’s not made up. This actually happened. It is an incredible story" (BENJAMIN ZEPHANIAH)
"I have never read a memoir like it. A blistering account of a young life in the hands of neglectful authorities. It’s a quest for understanding, for home, for answers. Grips like a thriller. Astounding" (MATT HAIG)
"The great triumph of this work comes from its author’s determination to rail against what he rightly diagnoses as this institutionally endorsed disremembering of black and marginalised experience. It is a searing and unforgettable re-creation of the most brutal of beginnings" (Michael Donkor)
"Utterly devastating and beautiful . . . Breathtakingly written" (DOLLY ALDERTON)
"This is a deeply moving memoir that speaks with incredible poeticism. A staggering exposé of colonial theft and abandonment, this book is grippingly heartbreaking" (DAVID LAMMY)
"A fascinating memoir . . . So powerful" (ELIF SHAFAK)
"The engaging transfiguring truth of My Name Is Why is like a baptism of truth – leaving you washed clean of lies and reborn in love. Profound in its kindness, intelligence and unselfish heart, this book is important and unputdownable" (JESSICA HYNES)
All stars
Most relevant
What strength of character does this man show! Though this is a very upsetting ‘history ‘ I hope its’ author has found some peace and love in this world x Lemn you are a credit to yourself - and to the woman who gave you life x

Makes me SO ANGRY

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A wonderful gripping memoir for anyone who cares about children's lives, how badly "agents of the state" can get things wrong and how important it is to really listen to children.

WOW a must read for all social workers.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I loved the real life this book gives a truly moving insight into the experience of being outside and inside the uk care system

Great book moving and a true inspiration

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A remarkable story of perseverance and the power of finding strength in numbers in the face of personal, systemic and institutional racism. Shame on all those who robbed him of his human rights, his dignity, and tried to silence his voice. He retained agency.

Triumph over tragedy

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I loved this memoir. A few things came to mind throughout, Lemn Sissay was a small boy who should never have been put in the places he found himself in. He is my generation and while I went back from the Blackpool theatre with my dad, he went back to a children’s home and that felt very sad and very wrong. You have to remind yourself throughout that terrible decisions were made and that he was not a criminal (as you will suspect that Wood End is a prison and not the ‘care’ home it was supposed to be) but a young boy that had no say or control over his own life. I just wanted to hug the little boy, to jump in the story and take him from those people. The inspiring part comes from what Lemn Sissay has ultimately achieved, but not all children from the care system will be able to do that which makes his story and the telling of it is so important. It is also important that we listen.

An incredibly moving memoir.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews