A story of an extraordinary childhood and how a girl who grew up in a house where the Bible was the only book on offer went on to discover a love of reading that inspires her to this day.
Tuesday, 13 September, 18.30 London
The next event in The Beaumont's series of popular literary evenings, bringing together the best and brightest British non-fiction writers, will be on Tuesday 13 September with a reading of Without Warning and Only Sometimes (Tinder Press) by author Kit de Waal.
"Vivid and compelling and so moving... Kit's depiction of her parents' dynamic is both painful and comforting to read" - Marian Keyes
Prior to each reading and discussion, guests are invited to enjoy a drinks reception with canapés in the Lotos Room. Each guest will also receive a copy of Without Warning and Only Sometimes as part of their ticket, with an opportunity for signing after the talk.
Event
Ticket Price: £35, including a hardback copy of the book
Time: 18.30pm - drinks reception with canapés | 19.15pm - reading, discussion and Q&A
Location: The Lotos Room at The Beaumont
The Author
Kit de Waal is the author of the novels My Name is Leon, which was shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award and won the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year, and The Trick To Time, which was longlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction. Kit is also the author of the short story collection Supporting Cast. Additionally, she is the editor of the Common People anthology, and co-founder of the Big Book Weekend festival. My Name is Leon is currently being adapted as a one-hour film for BBC1.
The Book
Kit de Waal grew up in a household of opposites and extremes. Her haphazard mother rarely cooked, forbade Christmas and birthdays, worked as a cleaner, nurse and childminder sometimes all at once and believed the world would end in 1975. Meanwhile, her father stuffed barrels full of goodies for his relatives in the Caribbean, cooked elaborate meals on a whim and splurged money they didn't have on cars, suits and shoes fit for a prince. Both of her parents were waiting for paradise. It never came.
Caught between three worlds, Irish, Caribbean and British in 1960s Birmingham, Kit and her brothers and sisters knew all the words to the best songs, caught sticklebacks in jam jars and braved hunger and hellfire until they could all escape.
Without Warning and Only Sometimes is a story of an extraordinary childhood and how a girl who grew up in a house where the Bible was the only book on offer went on to discover a love of reading that inspires her to this day.