I'm Black So You Don't Have to Be

Colin Grant writes about the characters in his family with the mischievous, dramatic flair of a natural storyteller. This is a compelling and charming read. – Bernardine Evaristo, Booker Prize-winning author Girl, Woman, Other
An important and timely book for an increasingly diverse and diffuse set of communities, a reminder of those questions of home and belonging, an invitation to parse them. * Guardian *
Fascinating, brilliant, subtle, educative book. – Michael Rosen, author of We’re Going on a Bear Hunt
This outstanding memoir contains a beautiful tenderness and a courageous realness. Vibrant, poignant and brutally frank, it is rooted in authenticity and wisdom, the details of a world well-observed. Grant’s work here is powerful, evocative, empowered and forthright. – Salena Godden, author of Mrs Death Misses Death
Grant’s most revealing work… This compelling and poignant book gives a convincing answer to the first question: that there is more than one way to be black. * New Statesman *
A memoir told through Grant’s interaction with his family and others, but presented in impeccable prose and woven together with all the tensions and humour of the best fiction. A hugely enjoyable read. Get it now. – Roger Robinson, author of A Portable Paradise
Thoughtfully and meticulously constructed… A refined yet unflinching book. * Sunday Times *
Thought-provoking… Witnessing the next generation acquaint themselves with their Caribbean heritage, without perceiving it a burden, fills the author, and the reader, with hope. * Times Literary Supplement *
Colin Grant takes us round his family and to the Caribbean and back, exploring deep feelings to do with memory, hope, loss and a determination to survive. There are great moments of sadness and humour. * New Statesman, Books of the Year *
I want everyone to read this book. Not only for the transformative powers of its humanity and lucidity, but because it is brimming with life. Tender yet shocking, funny yet sad, compelling and yet challenging too. It’s revelatory. It’s unsettling. And so utterly vivid with character and talk. I loved it more than I can say. But more than that, it changed my perception of how things really are. Colin Grant opened the door to me. – Keggie Carew, author of Dadland

Colin Grant is an author, historian, and critic. He has written acclaimed biographies of the Wailers and of Marcus Garvey.

• Bageye at the Wheel, his memoir of growing up in a Caribbean family in 1970s Luton, was shortlisted for the PEN Ackerley Prize.
• A Smell of Burning, his history of epilepsy, was a Sunday Times Book of the Year.
• Homecoming - Voices of the Windrush Generation was a BBC Radio 4 Book of the Week and Daily Telegraph Book of the Year.
• His most recent book, I’m Black So You Don’t Have to Be, was a New Statesman Book of the Year.

He is director of WritersMosaic, a division of the RLF, and a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

This item is eligible for free returns within 30 days of delivery. See our returns policy for further details.