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I Belong Here
- A Journey Along the Backbone of Britain
- Narrated by: Anita Sethi
- Length: 7 hrs and 59 mins
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I Belong Here
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Summary
Bloomsbury presents I Belong Here by Anita Sethi, read by Anita Sethi.
One of Waterstones Best Books to Look Forward To in 2021
The Bookseller's Book of the Month
A Guardian 2021 Literary Highlight
'I knew in every bone of my body, in every fibre of my being, that I had to report what had happened, not only for myself but to help stop anyone else having to go through what I did. I knew I could not remain silent, or still, I could not stop walking through the world.'
A journey of reclamation through the natural landscapes of the North, brilliantly exploring identity, nature, place and belonging. Beautifully written and truly inspiring, I Belong Here heralds a powerful and refreshing new voice in nature writing.
Anita Sethi was on a journey through Northern England when she became the victim of a race-hate crime. The crime was a vicious attack on her right to exist in a place on account of her race. After the event, Anita experienced panic attacks and anxiety. A crushing sense of claustrophobia made her long for wide open spaces, to breathe deeply in the great outdoors. She was intent on not letting her experience stop her travelling freely and without fear.
The Pennines - known as 'the backbone of Britain' runs through the north and also strongly connects north with south, east with west - it's a place of borderlands and limestone, of rivers and 'scars', of fells and forces. The Pennines called to Anita with a magnetic force; although a racist had told her to leave, she felt drawn to further explore the area she regards as her home, to immerse herself deeply in place.
Anita's journey through the natural landscapes of the North is one of reclamation, a way of saying that this is her land, too, and she belongs in the UK as a brown woman, as much as a white man does. Her journey transforms what began as an ugly experience of hate into one offering hope and finding beauty after brutality. Anita transforms her personal experience into one of universal resonance, offering a call to action, to keep walking onwards. Every footstep taken is an act of persistence. Every word written against the rising tide of hate speech, such as this book, is an act of resistance.
Critic reviews
"I Belong Here is a brilliant, brave and important book, which tells the story of two intertwining journeys: one made on foot and the other made in the heart; one across the rock and rivers of the Pennines, and another traversing the hard ground from hatred to forgiveness. Both challenging and beautiful to read, it is a book that calls out wrongness and is full of openness and hope. The cries of curlew and lapwing, the slow growth of lichen, the tending of flowers, the clarity of running water; these are formidably evoked against the forces of discrimination and prejudice. Anita's is a vital and resonant voice in the writing of place and nature in Britain, and here she powerfully and movingly reclaims the landscape of the North as hers to love and belong in." (Robert Macfarlane)
"In gorgeous prose that rolls along like the uplands, Anita Sethi opens our eyes to the beauty of our countryside and the hurt and healing found therein. It is rare to find writing that evokes landscape so finely but also conveys our inner world with such power, emotion, vulnerability and truth. I Belong Here deserves its place alongside the Macfarlanes and Macdonalds as a classic of modern British nature writing." (Patrick Barkham)
"Excellent.... A powerful memoir about nature and belonging and racism and Britishness, as Anita Sethi undertakes a journey to reclaim her space in Britain following a terrifying hate crime on public transport. A brilliant writer." (Nikesh Shukla, author of Brown Baby)
What listeners say about I Belong Here
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Lizzy h
- 10-08-21
Travel along the Pennines
Author utlises walking to reclaim identity in natural landscape after the trauma of a racial attack.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Sarah
- 12-09-21
Wonderful - to listen to and read
I loved listening to the audiobook of this brilliant and moving book, as well as reading it.
A beautifully written book - and a powerfully read audiobook.
Highly recommended.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Ruth
- 01-07-22
Interesting Listen but......
I confess had I not been listening to this for a Book Group I would not have persisted, but I'm glad I did. It is a tribute to the content and style that despite the whining, listless narration of the author, the intelligent, poignant story still shone through. It is very much the work of a fledgling author and is rather repetitive and juvenile in parts but the story, that of a brave woman who feels she has always been excluded finding her equilibrium through nature, is one worth hearing. Oh but I do so wish it had been read by an actor.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- stephen davies
- 15-05-22
A travel book with a difference
Thought provoking ideas about belonging and some lovely poetic descriptive writing about the Pennines and life.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 29-08-21
Inspirational story
I had the privilege of meeting Anita when we were both on our travels on the Yorkshire coast. After meeting her, I really wanted to read her book and she really is as incredible as I thought in our brief encounter. Her book describes her journey of how nature can help us heal. I learnt so much from her personal story and really recommend this book!
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Ing
- 04-12-23
Loved it
I learned so much from this. There’s so much in it including information about the land- scape .
Well researched by the author /reader who clearly has a love of knowledge.
I’ll listen again so as to pick up the nuances or any anything I’ve missed.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 04-03-23
Lost interest
Unfortunately, I lost interest in this book and didn’t finish it - as did my friend!
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