S14, BONUS EPISODE! How To Fail: Kit de Waal

Our extra-special bonus guest today is the author Kit de Waal. Her debut 2016 novel, My Name Is Leon, told the story of a mixed-race nine-year-old boy and his quest to reunite his family after being taken into care. It won the Irish Book of the Year Award and has recently been adapted for TV starring Lenny Henry. Her second novel, The Trick to Time was longlisted for the 2018 Women’s Prize. A short story collection followed, and now de Waal has turned her gaze onto her own life. Her memoir, Without Warning and Only Sometimes, is out next month and tells the moving story of being raised by a Caribbean father and an Irish Jehovah's Witness mother who believed Armageddon was coming.Kit joins me to talk about how reading became her salvation, the experiences of being mixed race and working class, her failure to read enough women and her failure to adopt a child. Plus - and here's the big one - her failure to ride a bicycle.--Without Warning and Only Sometimes by Kit de Waal is available for pre-order here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/without-warning-and-only-sometimes/kit-de-waal/9781472284839--How To Fail With Elizabeth Day is hosted by Elizabeth Day, produced by Naomi Mantin and Chris Sharp. To contact us, email [email protected] Media:Elizabeth Day @elizabdayHow To Fail @howtofailpod Kit de Waal @KitdeWaal Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Om Podcasten

How To Fail with Elizabeth Day is a podcast that celebrates the things in life that haven’t gone right and what we might learn from them along the way. Every week, Elizabeth’s guest explores three failures, and what these failures have taught them about how to grow and succeed, better. We’d love to hear from you! Get in touch with Elizabeth to share your failures, problems or questions - anonymously or otherwise. She'll go through these each week with the help of her very special guests. And remember: a fail shared is a fail halved. https://forms.sonymusicfans.com/campaign/how-to-fail-uk-2023/ An Elizabeth Day and Sony Music Entertainment Original Production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts and follow @sonypodcasts To bring your brand to life in this podcast, email [email protected]