A powerful, personal, agenda-changing work of non-fiction on poverty in Britain from acclaimed novelist, activist and columnist Kerry Hudson
Kerry Hudson was born in Aberdeen. Her first novel, Tony Hogan Bought Me an Ice-cream Float Before He Stole My Ma, won the Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust First Book Award and was shortlisted for an array of prizes including the Guardian First Book Award and the Sky Arts Awards. Thirst, her second novel, won the prestigious prix Femina etranger. Her memoir Lowborn was her highly acclaimed first work of non-fiction, and is followed by Newborn. She currently lives in Glasgow.
I loved Lowborn... A powerful exploration of Hudson's
working-class childhood and its legacy -- David Nicholls, author of
One Day
Elegant, compassionate and powerful... tells the hidden story of
what it means to be poor in Britain today -- Charlotte Heathcote *
Sunday Express *
Compelling, fascinating and well-written, undeniably grim but
peppered with humour and tenderness...Hudson demonstrates that only
by lifting whole communities out of poverty...can we hope to avoid
consigning children and young people like her - vulnerable and
blameless - to the worst of lives -- Kit de Waal * Daily Telegraph
*
Lowborn is an insider's view of the complexities of
modern-day poverty, written with humour and compassion, but without
judgement. It should be required reading for anyone who unknowingly
believes poverty is a personal choice and that if you work hard
enough you'll avoid its fate... a fearless writer, an inspiring
woman -- Jackie Annesley * Sunday Times *
Lowborn is in part an indictment of a country that claims to
still have a functioning welfare state... Most of all, it is
a moving portrait of the survival and eventual flourishing of a
remarkable spirit -- John Harris * Guardian *
Totally engrossing and deliciously feisty...It really brings home
how under-represented working class lives and impoverished
childhoods have been in our literary culture' * Bernadine Evaristo
*
Where there are few working-class stories, there are fewer still
from working-class women. Lowborn stands out as rare, as
well as compassionately and skilfully told... Some books help us
understand the world around us. Others do that, and make us feel
less alone in it, too. Lowborn is one such book, holding out
a hand of friendship to anyone who might pick it up and find
something forgotten or familiar among its pages -- Laura Waddell *
Scotsman *
Beautifully written but with emotional hand grenades detonating on
almost every page...a breathtaking odyssey -- Stephen McGinty *
Sunday Times *
Kerry Hudson invites us to really understand the complexities of
being born working class in Britain. Buy it, read it, tell everyone
about it -- Jack Monroe
I wish I'd had access to such honest and relatable work as Hudson's
when I was younger. She proves that successful women can have a
working-class story -- Hollie Richardson * Stylist *
Kerry Hudson blew me away, opened my eyes -- Philippa Perry, author
of The Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read * You're Booked *
Hudson has written a moving and readable account of growing up in
the poorest section of society. Her book is also a meditation on
social mobility... Hudson's life is proof that a person can,
against the odds, make a success of themselves. In Lowborn,
she shows us very clearly why so many do not -- James Bloodworth *
The Times *
Lowborn is the opposite of a misery memoir. The chapters
alternate between Hudson's raw memories and accounts of her
present-day attempts to confront them. There's warmth and courage
as well as pain and ultimately triumph here * New Statesman *
A book that cuts like a knife * Spectator *
Paints a near-dystopian portrait of Brexit-age Britain...
Lowborn is a powerful testimonial... Here's hoping it gives
others the courage to tell their version of this story, at high
volume -- Peter Murphy * Irish Times *
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