The uncomfortable truth about race in Britain today
Afua Hirsch is a writer, journalist and broadcaster. She is a columnist for the Guardian, and appears regularly on the BBC, Sky News and CNN. Brit(ish) is her first book and was awarded a Royal Society of Literature Jerwood Prize for Non-Fiction.
Brit(ish) is a wonderful, important, courageous book, and it could
not be more timely: a vital and necessary point of reference for
our troubled age in a country that seems to have lost its bearings.
It’s about identity and belonging in 21st-century Britain: intimate
and troubling; forensic but warm, funny and wise.
*Philippe Sands*
Brit(ish) brings together a thoughtful, intelligent, accessible,
informative investigation on Britain as a nation not only in the
midst of an identity crisis but in denial of what it has been and
still is.
*Dolly Alderton*
Highly personal and yet instantly universal, this is a book that
millions will instantly relate to. Hirsch places her own lifelong
search for identity and a sense of Britishness against the backdrop
of our national identity crisis. Part historical exploration, part
journalistic expose of racism and class disadvantage in modern
Britain, this is a book searching for answers to some very big
questions. Delving behind words like 'prejudice', 'disadvantage',
'structural-racism' Hirsch unpacks the real world impact of these
forces and on the lives of real people. Written with passion not
anger, insight rather than resentment, on the issues of race,
identity and the multiple meanings of Britishness this is the book
for our divided and dangerous times.
*David Olusoga*
Memoir, social analysis and an incisively argued challenge to
unconscious biases: this is a truly stunning book on racial
identity by a remarkable woman.
*Helena Kennedy*
[A] bracing and brilliant exploration of national identity …
Through her often intensely personal investigations, she exposes
the everyday racism that plagues British society, caused by our
awkward, troubled relationship to our history, arguing that liberal
attempts to be colour-blind have caused more problems than they
have solved. A book everyone should read: especially comfy, white,
middle-class liberals.
*The Bookseller, Editor's Choice*
This is less a polemic about the past than an attempt to illuminate
the problems of the present. Hirsch is exacting in her observations
of how this history manifests itself today... This is a fierce,
thought-provoking and fervent take on the most urgent questions
facing us today.
*Financial Times*
A warm, informative and occasionally heart-wrenching blend of the
personal and the political, and the messiness in between the two...
She asks some uncomfortable questions, challenging us as
individuals, the government, institutions and society at large, to
think carefully about what constitutes Britishness and how it can
be a term that embraces communities of colour in the UK... Hirsch’s
book is more than a countrywide conversation-starter, though: it’s
a deeply personal look at who she always knew she was, but didn’t
feel ready to say yet.
*Observer*
Skilfully blending memoir, history and social commentary around
race, culture and identity. Hirsch writes with an incisive honesty
that disproves the idea that privilege can be easily reduced to
racial binaries... Hirsch shows us that the issues are complicated,
that blackness is no more homogeneous than whiteness, and that we
do need to talk about it if anything is to change.
*Times Literary Supplement*
A dazzling book of stories ... Brit(ish) is, despite everything, a
hopeful book ... It is impossible to do justice to the scope of
this book ... The book teems with fascinating and uplifting as well
as tragic stories ... This is writing that really shines.
*Irish Times*
Brit(ish) is the work of a confident social guide ... The power of
her writing matches that of other important black writers, among
them [Paul] Gilroy and, going back two centuries, the American
abolitionist John Brown Russwurm.
*Guardian*
Searing ... Afua Hirsch's memoir adds a new chapter to the body of
work on race in the UK.
*New Statesman*
What truly rings loud throughout Brit(ish) is Hirsch's refusal to
believe Britain's accepted version of our turbulent racial history
... If you're looking for a deeper delve into our hidden past,
Brit(ish) is the book for you.
*Stylist*
An admirable guide to our mixed-up, mixed-race modern nation.
*Spectator*
Engaging and thought-provoking… Hirsch skillfully demonstrates how
racism is so intrinsically embedded in our culture
*Nudge*
Hirsch’s writing is powerful, and ranges across a good number of
subjects... Beyond the personal experiences, there are lots of
pertinent observations in Brit(ish). There are nuggets of history
and eye-opening details about the slave trade, the American South
and Hollywood ... Brit(ish) is a fiery essay.
*Sunday Times*
This is essential reading on identity, and how what it means to be
British perhaps needs to be recalibrated.
*Stylist*
Brilliant... Hirsch outlines a compelling vision for change... Her
writing is both intensely personal and incredibly resonant:
whatever your background and racial identity, Brit(ish) will make
you think.
*Refinery29*
Sure to be a conversation starter.
*Metro*
Blazingly intelligent and beautifully written ... To those of us
who swan easily through life, our place in it never questioned,
Hirsch's book is both a sharp rejoinder and necessary wake-up
call.
*i News*
A stirring interrogation of race and identity from an exciting,
sharp mind.
*Tablet*
Heart-warming, heart-breaking and informative.
*Melan Mag*
Engrossing ... we daresay that [Brit(ish) is] essential
reading.
*Pride Magazine, The Buzz List*
Tackles our squeamishness about race with wit and wisdom.
*CultureWhisper*
An utterly fascinating book on important aspects of contemporary
Britain.
*The Arts Desk*
An alarming and essential read.
*Esquire **10 Books We're Looking Forward To In 2018***
London's Big Read wants to get the capital talking about
[Brit(ish)] ... a personal and provocative exploration of British
history, race, identity and belonging.
*Evening Standard*
Afua Hirsch's new book uses the personal and political to take a
good look at what it's like to be a person of colour here, now.
Here's where you'll get an insight into what it means to be a mixed
race and univocally British, yet continuously plagued with the
question 'but where are you really from?'
*Debrief*
An excellent read.
*Telegraph*
[A] personal and admirably honest account of her journey towards
self-realisation as a woman of colour.
*Camden New Journal*
A fascinating...deeply intelligent, witty and often moving
exploration of race in modern Britain
*Mail on Sunday*
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