Letters From Brenda

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What to expect

After her mother, Brenda, passed away and her father sold the family home, broadcaster and writer Emma Kennedy found herself floundering, unable to make peace with the complex, charismatic woman who had been her mum. And then they found the letters . . .

This heartbreakingly funny book about the impact of discovering lost letters is a celebration of correspondence; those lost acts of penned love, the vivid snapshots in time scattered back through a life.

It is also about a childhood shrouded in shame, the lies Brenda told her family, the madness that set in, and ultimately what it means to be a daughter and a mother. Finally, Emma allows herself to explore what she couldn't while she was growing up: the question of who her mother really was.

(P) 2022 Hodder & Stoughton Limited

Critics Review

  • Beautiful . . . insightful, fascinating and moving. It’s a lovely LOVELY book

    Marian Keyes
  • Remarkable

    Dawn French
  • A very personal and poignant detective story

    Sue Perkins
  • A beautiful, hilarious and bittersweet book

    Mel Giedroyc
  • This book made me cry

    Sara Cox
  • Absolutely stunning

    Emma Freud

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