William Leith12 April 2012
Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?
by Jeanette Winterson
(Vintage, £8.99)
Jeanette Winterson writes a memoir. It’s spiky. She grew up in Accrington. She was adopted. Stepmother: big, religious, unhappy. Stepfather: sucked polo mints. He was in the Normandy landings. He killed six men with his bayonet. She tells us about him telling her this; it’s moving. She’s good on Manchester; there’s a real sense of place. She’s a connoisseur of stories; loves them and needs them. She tells stories to get a sense of identity, to counter the versions of other people. She’s combative. She says: “There are people who could never commit murder. I am not one of those people.” She’s got an interesting take on the passing of time.
