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A Lie About My Father

By John Burnside
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Brief Description
John Burnside recalls the failed relationship with his father, in the first of his trilogy of exquisite memoirs - with a new introduction by Megan Nolan. A Lie About My Father is a beautifully written evocation of a lost and damaged world of childhood and the... Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$3000
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John Burnside recalls the failed relationship with his father, in the first of his trilogy of exquisite memoirs - with a new introduction by Megan Nolan.

A Lie About My Father is a beautifully written evocation of a lost and damaged world of childhood and the constants of his father's world — men defined by the drink they could take and the pain they could stand, men shaped by their guilt and machismo.

'A master of language' — Hilary Mantel

He had his final heart attack in the Silver Band Club in Corby, somewhere between the bar and the cigarette machine. A foundling; a fantasist; a morose, threatening drinker who was quick with his hands, he hadn't seen his son for years.

John Burnside's extraordinary story of this failed relationship is about forgiving but not forgetting, about examining the way men are made and how they fall apart, and about understanding that in order to have a good son you must have a good father.

'Memoir this good illuminates something larger than itself. It is an exercise in understanding, compassion and forgiveness' — Sunday Telegraph

A Lie About My Father was awarded the Saltire Scottish Book of the Year and the Scottish Arts Council Non-Fiction Book of the Year.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781529962888

Publisher: Vintage Publishing

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 07 August 2025

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Vintage

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 35.0mm

Width: 129.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 500g

Pages: 352

Collections

Biography & Memoir Health & Wellness John Burnside Musicians, Movie Stars & Creative Biographies Non-Fiction Penguin Books Self-Help & Personal Development

About the Author

John Burnside was among the most acclaimed writers of his generation. His novels, short stories, poetry and memoirs won numerous awards, including the Geoffrey Faber Memorial, Saltire Scottish Book of the Year and, in 2023, he received the David Cohen Prize for a lifetime's achievement in literature. In 2011 Black Cat Bone won both the Forward and the T.S. Eliot Prizes for poetry. He died in 2024.

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