All at Sea by Decca Aitkenhead
Thanks to Sarah Engelmann of Doubleday Publishing, I am giving away two print copies of All at Sea by Decca Aitkenhead.
Description of All at Sea by Decca Aitkenhead
‘The thing to remember about this story is that every word is true. If I never told it to a soul, and this book did not exist, it would not cease to be true. I don’t mind at all if you forget this.
The important thing is that I don’t.”
On a hot still morning on a beautiful beach in Jamaica, Decca Aitkenhead’s life changed for ever.
Her four-year-old boy was paddling peacefully at the water’s edge when a wave pulled him out to sea. Her partner, Tony, swam out and saved their son’s life – then drowned before her eyes.
When Decca and Tony first met a decade earlier, they became the most improbable couple in London. She was an award-winning Guardian journalist, famous for interviewing leading politicians. He was a dreadlocked criminal with a history of drug-dealing and violence. No one thought the romance would last, but it did. Until the tide swept Tony away, plunging Decca into the dark chasm of random tragedy.
Exploring race and redemption, privilege and prejudice, ALL AT SEA is a remarkable story of love and loss, of how one couple changed each other’s lives and of what a sudden death can do to the people who survive.
Praise for All at Sea by Decca Aitkenhead
“[A] heart-wrenching tale of race, unlikely love (Tony was a former criminal) and how grief changes everything. It’s unforgettable.”—People
“An inspired portrait of their unconventional love story—he a drug-dealing ex-con, she an intellectual free spirit—stretching across lines of class, race, family history, and temperament. This is a star-crossed yet triumphant tale, “bless-ed,” as the Jamaicans would say, by Tony’s legacy and Aitkenhead’s unabashed resilience.”—Elle Magazine
“A remarkable story of sudden tragedy and grief, of love and resilience.”—Arianna Huffington
“[Aitkenhead’s] remarkable memoir recounts the emotional toll [her partner’s] death takes on her and her two sons. The narrative explores how the foggy lens of truth, through which she, as a journalist, previously viewed tragedy, can shatter when tragedy hits home. . . . Aitkenhead’s tightly written memoir looks beyond commonly held truths, taking readers deep into the morass of human emotion and leaving them gasping for air.”—Publishers Weekly, STARRED review
About Decca Aitkenhead
DECCA AITKENHEAD is an award-winning journalist who conducts interviews with leading figures in public life for The Guardian. She lives in rural Kent with her two young sons.
Giveaway of All at Sea by Decca Aitkenhead
This giveaway open to the U.S. only and ends on September 9, 2016 midnight pacific time. Entries are accepted via Rafflecopter only.
What a tragic story and even more so because it’s all true. Thanks for the chance to win it.
Profound and memorable. Thanks.
It does sound tragic. I’m interested in reading this true account.