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A review by bookphenomena_micky
My Name is Why by Lemn Sissay
sad
fast-paced
5.0
It's not often I rate a memoir at all, nevermind rate one 5 stars. There's always something a bit uncomfortable about judging someone's life experiences with a star rating but Lemn Sissay's story and the rawness with which he shares his childhood was hugely impactful.
Inside the walls of these pages is a childhood of trauma. Rejection, fostering, life in care, bullying, beating, mental illness and abuse are featured and my heart broke again and again. The setting of Wigan seemed very close to home as did the era, not that far from my own childhood. Lemn's teenage years were the hardest to witness, especially the injustice of the institutions he was eventually transferred to. Each one seemed expontenially worse than the last and none were a home for any boy or young man.
I'm left needing to know if there is a Lemn memoir 2.0. What happened after he reached adulthood and how did he become the influential man he is today? I have so much admiration for him and much to learn as I read his books.
I'll always choose audio for any of Lemn's books because he always narrates himself and that added spark of humour and poignancy he brings is fantastic.
Inside the walls of these pages is a childhood of trauma. Rejection, fostering, life in care, bullying, beating, mental illness and abuse are featured and my heart broke again and again. The setting of Wigan seemed very close to home as did the era, not that far from my own childhood. Lemn's teenage years were the hardest to witness, especially the injustice of the institutions he was eventually transferred to. Each one seemed expontenially worse than the last and none were a home for any boy or young man.
I'm left needing to know if there is a Lemn memoir 2.0. What happened after he reached adulthood and how did he become the influential man he is today? I have so much admiration for him and much to learn as I read his books.
I'll always choose audio for any of Lemn's books because he always narrates himself and that added spark of humour and poignancy he brings is fantastic.