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Not My Father's Son: A Family Memoir (Paperback)
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Not My Father's Son: A Family Memoir (Paperback)

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£10.99
Paperback 304 Pages
Published: 07/05/2015
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DISCOVER THE NEW MEMOIR FROM ALAN CUMMING. BAGGAGE: TALES FROM A FULLY PACKED LIFE PUBLISHES 28 OCT '21

'One of the most memorable, heart-stopping autobiographies I have ever read' STEPHEN FRY

WINNER OF THE SLIGHTLY FOXED BEST FIRST BIOGRAPHY PRIZE 2015
THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
ATTITUDE MAGAZINE'S BOOK OF THE YEAR

A beloved star of stage and screen, Alan Cumming's life and career have been shaped by a complex and dark family past - full of troubled memories, kept buried away. But then an unexpected phone call from his long-estranged father brought the pain of the past hurtling back into the present, and unravelled everything he thought he knew about himself. Not My Father's Son is the story of his journey of discovery, both a memoir of his childhood in Scotland, and an investigation into his family history which would change him forever.

Publisher: Canongate Books
ISBN: 9781782115465
Number of pages: 304
Weight: 205 g
Dimensions: 198 x 129 x 18 mm
Edition: Main


MEDIA REVIEWS

What a shattering, compelling and extraordinary story Alan Cumming has to tell. And he does so with such style and grace . . . Beautifully and cunningly structured, Not My Father's Son is one of the most memorable, heart-stopping autobiographies I have ever read - STEPHEN FRY

Do you know the old line "I laughed, I cried, it became a part of me"? Alan Cumming's moving memoir Not My Father's Son is all that and more. This is a beautiful book-sad, funny, haunting, surprising, suspenseful, gut-wrenching, endearing. It will linger inside of you long after you turn the final page - HARLAN COBEN, author of New York Times bestsellers MISSING YOU and SIX YEARS

In beautiful, honest, arresting prose, he offers a tale you'll never forget. A real diamond of a book. - ANDREW O'HAGAN

Incredibly affecting - DAMIAN BARR, Books of the Year, Herald

A poignant chronicle of damage sustained in youth and his recovery - MARIELLA FROSTRUP, Observer

Powerful . . . the result is both heart-breaking and brave . . . A thoroughly gripping read, one that keeps its biggest revelation until the very end - Sunday Times

Moving - Observer

You'll like him a lot . . . Compelling - Evening Standard

A clear-eyed, often moving account of both his terrifying childhood and his recent attempts to come to terms with his past [. . .] Not My Father's Son moves elegantly and with an occasional dash of humour between Cumming's childhood and the revelations of the more recent past [. . .] memorable - Chicago Tribune

One of the most fun people in show business - Time

Cumming's eccentric style and assured voice shine brightly on every page, while escorting readers and fans on a memorable journey that is simultaneously insightful, brave, moving, and witty - Book List

Not My Father's Son shows Cumming to be a particularly skilled storyteller. His personal story is spun out in a thrillingly mysterious way . . . in this deeply touching memoir, Cumming has certainly marked himself out as one of our bravest and most perceptive writers, and an unexpected literary talent - The List

Powerful and shocking . . . That he can write isn't a surprise . . . He delves into his own history and leaves no stone unturned, no dark corner unprodded . . . What Cumming knows better than most is that you can never tell from the surface what's going on beneath - Scotland on Sunday

An open and honest memoir with some extraordinary twists - Easyjet Traveller

Powerful - Big Issue

Compelling . . . a frank, twisting book . . . a page-turner - Metro

A brave and thoughtful book - Spectator

Cumming's bravery is breathtaking . . . this is a brave book, airing fundamental agonies of the human condition with as light a touch as is possibly possible - Sunday Express

Best of all, [Not My Father's Son's] emotional intelligence is high - Glasgow Sunday Herald

Cumming is a good writer and keeps us guessing . . . the book grips like a neo-noir thriller . . . He knits together the various strands of his life with remarkable assurance. The occasional flashes of lightness in the dark, the few, very few, happy times with his father glow like embers, only to be extinguished by the overwhelming memory of the dark beast that kept him in a constant state of terror . . . What might have been a misery memoir is anything but. The bracing honesty and humour plus the fact that there is not a scintilla of self-pity makes this a tremendously encouraging book - Daily Express

This year's best memoir - The List

A haunting family history woven with empathy for his soldier grandfather but without a trace of self-pity about his abusive father - Independent on Sunday, Best Memoirs of 2014

A brilliantly vivid and heartrending account of Cumming's early life, interspersed with some well-observed, comic and intriguing scenes from his more recent past - Sunday Business Post

A great read - Connaught Telegraph

Cumming's unsurprising gift for drama never overwhelms the realities of the damage done, nor his joyous determination to crush bad memories by living a good life - Guardian

With a completely captivating style, Cumming cleverly interfaces events from his past with the present - Broadway World

Gripping, well-composed and moving, this memoir is impossible to put down and remains with you well beyond the last page - Pride Life

This is such a great book: a memoir written with style and depth - Sunday Business Post

I very seldom cry but Alan Cumming's Not My Father's Son took me pretty close . . . Reads with the intensity of great fiction even though it's true - IAN RANKIN, Mail on Sunday

Alan's powerful story is one which stays with the reader long after the final page has been read - Attitude

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“Engrossing Story of Rising Above Abuse”

This book grabbed me right away. His experiences with his unpredictable, abusive father were shockingly similar to my childhood with my mother . It was fascinating to read about how someone else dealt with the... More

Hardback edition
Helpful? Upvote 65

“Beautifully written and a page turner”

What a great book. Alan shares his incredible life story in way that is candid, disarming and surprisingly gripping- his ability to tell the story and engage the reader shines through. I've recommended this to... More

Paperback edition
Helpful? Upvote 29
Deanne  Wallace

“Great learning about Alan’s history”

Right, we all know and love Alan Cumming right? Well now I love him even more. I listened to this on Audiobook and I’m so glad I did.

Alan was asked to be on ‘Who Do you Think You Are’, the TV show where they help... More

Paperback edition
Helpful? Upvote 7

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