Born A Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood (Paperback)
  • Born A Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood (Paperback)
zoom

Born A Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood (Paperback)

(author)
£12.99
Paperback 304 Pages
Published: 21/09/2017
  • 10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 working days

  • This item has been added to your basket
Waterstones Says

An incisive, charming memoir from the host of The Daily Show, Born a Crime details Noah’s unconventional upbringing during the dog days of apartheid in South Africa, spotlighting in particular his formidable mother and the illegal basis of his conception. Inspiring and very funny, Born a Crime is a scintillating slice of autobiography.     

The compelling, inspiring, (often comic) coming-of-age story of Trevor Noah, set during the twilight of apartheid and the tumultuous days of freedom that followed.

One of the comedy world's brightest new voices, Trevor Noah is a light-footed but sharp-minded observer of the absurdities of politics, race and identity, sharing jokes and insights drawn from the wealth of experience acquired in his relatively young life. As host of the US hit show The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, he provides viewers around the globe with their nightly dose of biting satire, but here Noah turns his focus inward, giving readers a deeply personal, heartfelt and humorous look at the world that shaped him.

Noah was born a crime, son of a white Swiss father and a black Xhosa mother, at a time when such a union was punishable by five years in prison. Living proof of his parents' indiscretion, Trevor was kept mostly indoors for the first years of his life, bound by the extreme and often absurd measures his mother took to hide him from a government that could, at any moment, take him away.

A collection of eighteen personal stories, Born a Crime tells the story of a mischievous young boy growing into a restless young man as he struggles to find his place in a world where he was never supposed to exist. Born a Crime is equally the story of that young man's fearless, rebellious and fervently religious mother - a woman determined to save her son from the cycle of poverty, violence and abuse that ultimately threatens her own life.

Whether subsisting on caterpillars for dinner during hard times, being thrown from a moving car during an attempted kidnapping, or just trying to survive the life-and-death pitfalls of dating in high school, Noah illuminates his curious world with an incisive wit and an unflinching honesty. His stories weave together to form a personal portrait of an unlikely childhood in a dangerous time, as moving and unforgettable as the very best memoirs and as funny as Noah's own hilarious stand-up. Born a Crime is a must read.

Publisher: John Murray Press
ISBN: 9781473635302
Number of pages: 304
Weight: 210 g
Dimensions: 196 x 126 x 24 mm


MEDIA REVIEWS

An engaging, fast-paced and vivid read . . . Essential reading not only because it is a personal story of survival, leavened with insight and wit, but because it does more to expose apartheid - its legacy, its pettiness, its small-minded stupidity and its damage - than any other recent history book or academic text - GUARDIAN

It's no surprise that Trevor Noah, the slyly suave successor to Jon Stewart as host of The Daily Show, should write a smart book. But 'smart' doesn't begin to cover what he pulls off in Born a Crime . . . Noah's memoir is extraordinary . . . essential reading on every level. It's hard to imagine anyone else doing a finer job of it - SEATTLE TIMES

Powerful... The story of his life is full of chase scenes in which he runs, hell for leather, from spankings, from the long arm of the law, and from the swinging fist of his stepfather... a unique perspective - THE TIMES

A soul-nourishing pleasure, even with all its darker edges and perilous turns, reading Noah recount in brisk, warmly conversational prose how he learned to negotiate his way through the bullying and ostracism . . . is an enormous gift - USA TODAY

A BOOK TO READ NOW - WALL STREET JOURNAL

A memoir with heft... The interracial coupling that produced him really was a crime, making him an outsider. But he thrives with the help of his astonishingly fearless mother. (At one point she tosses him from a moving car -- driven by gangsters -- to save his life.) However brutal South African history is, their fierce bond makes this story soar - PEOPLE, Best New Books

Noah has a real story to tell -- and tells it well... A little scary, but trust me -- it's funny - NEWSDAY

An affecting memoir. . . a love letter to his mother - WASHINGTON POST

Mind-blowing as f*** - COSMOPOLITAN

Noah proves a gifted storyteller, deftly lacing his poignant tales with amusing irony - ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

Incisive, funny, and vivid, these staggering true tales are anchored to Noah's portrait of his courageous, rebellious, and religious mother who defied racially restrictive laws to secure an education and a career for herself - and to have a child with a white Swiss/German even though sex between whites and blacks was illegal. . . . Trevor Noah's electrifying memoir sparkles with funny stories . . . and his candid and compassionate essays deepen our perception of the complexities of race, gender, and class - BOOKLIST

A gritty memoir . . . studded with insight and provocative social criticism . . . and brilliant storytelling and acute observations - KIRKUS

Sharp, at times harrowing ... The Daily Show host Trevor Noah reveals his coming-of-age as the son of protective interracial parents in apartheid South Africa - HARPER'S BAZAAR

Humble, candid and funny - ELLE (South Africa)

Thoughtful, observant and empathetic...a warm and human story of the type we will need to survive the Trump presidency's imminent freezing of humane values - MAIL & GUARDIAN (South Africa)

Compelling . . . By turns alarming, sad, and funny, his book provides a harrowing look through the prism of Noah's family, at life in South Africa under apartheid and the country's lurching entry into a post-apartheid era in the 1990s . . . Born a Crime is not just an unnerving account of growing up in South Africa under apartheid, but a love letter to the author's remarkable mother - Michiko Katutani, New York Times

Treats what could be a dark topic with humour and light. - Oyinkan Braithwaite, author of My Sister the Serial Killer

You may also be interested in...

The Third Gilmore Girl
Added to basket
£20.00   £16.99
Hardback
T.V.
Added to basket
£9.99   £7.99
Paperback
You Need To Exist
Added to basket
£12.99
Paperback
Lucky
Added to basket
£22.00   £17.99
Hardback
Boy From the Valleys
Added to basket
£22.00
Hardback
Just Kids
Added to basket
£12.99
Paperback
Sonny Boy
Added to basket
£25.00   £19.99
Hardback
From Here to the Great Unknown: A Memoir
Added to basket
Abroad in Japan
Added to basket
£10.99   £8.99
Paperback
Karma
Added to basket
£10.99
Paperback
Never
Added to basket
£25.00
Hardback
Greenlights
Added to basket
£10.99
Paperback
And Away...
Added to basket
£9.99
Paperback
Cher: The Memoir
Added to basket
£25.00   £21.99
Hardback
Diddly Squat: Pigs Might Fly
Added to basket
£10.99   £8.99
Paperback
The Twat Files
Added to basket
£9.99   £8.49
Paperback

“A Truly Gifted storyteller”

My New Year's resolution was to start reading biographies, and what a one to start with.

Beautifully and loving written, Trevor Noah takes us on a journey through his childhood, and shows us the power of Mother.... More

Hardback edition
Helpful? Upvote 112

“Moving and captivating autobiography”

Being the new host of The Daily Show in the United States, Trevor Noah is known among many now. Not everyone may know that he is from South Africa and lived through the last years of Apartheid as a child. Born a Crime... More

Hardback edition
Helpful? Upvote 110
Heather

“Brutally Honest”

A glimpse into Trevor Noah's childhood, sparing no detail, regardless of embarrassment or shock. With quirky lines of humour, he brings to life his history and culture blended with his childhood hopes for the... More

Hardback edition
Helpful? Upvote 101

Please sign in to write a review

Your review has been submitted successfully.