I'm Supposed to Protect You from All This by Nadja Spiegelman, out in paperback
“Seven years in the writing, [I’m Supposed To Protect You From All This] is both piercingly honest and uncommonly generous, allowing space for the vagaries of memory and different generational spins.”
“Spiegelman’s prose is witty, tender, assured and poetic…The unexpected symmetries between the generations, as well as the inevitable insults and pains, make this artful memoir feel like the story of every family.”
“Nadja Spiegelman has written a richly detailed memoir about the contradictory life narratives that connect and divide four generations of women on her mother’s side.”
Published 25 January by Text Publishing in Paperback, priced at £9.99
A memoir of mothers and daughters, traced through four generations, from Paris to New York and back again.
More than most, Nadja Spiegelman’s parents, her father, Maus creator Art Spiegelman, and her mother, French-born New Yorker art director Françoise Mouly, exerted a force over reality that was both dazzling and daunting. And as Nadja’s body changed and ‘began to whisper to the adults around me in a language I did not understand’, her relationship with her mother grew tense. Unwittingly, they were replaying a drama from Françoise’s past. The weight of the difficult stories Françoise told her daughter shifted the balance between them. Nadja’s grandmother’s memories then contradicted her mother’s at nearly every turn, but beneath them lay a difficult history of her own.
Nadja emerged with a deeper understanding of how each generation reshapes the past and how sometimes those who love us best hurt us most. Readers will recognise themselves and their families in this moving, heart-breaking memoir.
Nadja Spiegelman will be in the UK 16-20th March.
About the Author:
Nadja Spiegelman has written three graphic novels for children. She grew up in New York City and now divides her time between Paris and Brooklyn.
International Praise for I’m Supposed To Protect You From All This
“Stunning and artistic…touching, surprising consideration of the unclear inheritances of family, and the certain fallibility of memory.” BOOKLIST, Starred Review
“Spiegelman writes candidly and beautifully about the complex relationship between mothers and daughters.” PureWow
“Spiegelman takes on the onerous task of picking at the narrative threads of her mother’s adolescence and unravelling it to find the truth. The result is this memoir, which is a beautiful thing. A word to the wise: your inclination will be to read this as fast as possible, but take your time. The language and the story both deserve your patience.” The Frisky
“Spiegelman deftly narrates her mother’s life, as well as her childhood, and explores the ways we idolize and finally come to understand the women who shape us. A beautiful, insightful read.” Travel and Leisure
“A fascinating, gracefully written glimpse into the complexities of family life, full of secrets, hidden wounds, and survival tips.” Kirkus Reviews
Spiegelman's intimate portrait of female identity and idolatry is intelligent, forthright and heartbreaking. Her sentences will haunt me forever.” Heidi Julavits, author of The Folded Clock
About Text Publishing:
A leading Australian independent publisher, winner of Small Publisher of the year 2012, 2013 and 2014. Text publishes the finest Australian writers, both old and new. Launched in 2012, the Text Classics list champion Australian greats including Thomas Keneally and Kate Renville, while Text is also committed to finding and publishing the best contemporary writing for an international audience. Text publishes internationally acclaimed authors including Herman Koch, Ruth Ozeki, Yann Martel, Geoff Dyer, Jeanette Winterson, Lionel Shriver, Ali Smith, Julian Assange and J.M. Coetzee in the local market, while selling numerous leading authors to publishers around the world. They include Tim Flannery, Graeme Simsion, Lloyd Jones, Toni Jordon and Peter Temple. Text is distributed by Turnaround in the UK.
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For all media enquiries please contact Sophie Goodfellow or Roxane Reich at FMcM Associates on0207 405 7422 or email sophieg@fmcm.co.uk or roxaner@fmcm.co.uk
