PERHAPS A GIFT VOUCHER FOR MUM?: MOTHER'S DAY
Osman Yousefzada was born in Birmingham to migrant parents who were illiterate both in English and their mother tongue. An artist and writer who studied at SOAS and Central Saint Martins, he has an MPhil from Cambridge University. His visual art practice - of sculpture, moving image and textile installation - has been showcased in international programmes at the Whitechapel Gallery, MCA Sydney, Dhaka Art Summit, Ikon, V&A and more. He has made clothes for Beyonce, Lady Gaga, Lupita Nyong'o, Gwen Stefani, Emma Watson and many more. His experience within the fashion industry continues to inform the politics of his practice concerned with the rights of the anonymous worker and disposable consumerism. He edits The Collective and has written for Vogue, the Guardian and Observer. Osman is currently a research practitioner at the Royal College of Art and visiting fellow at Jesus College, Cambridge. The Go-Between was longlisted for the Polari First Book Prize in 2022.
'I don't think I properly understood the true nature of multiculturalism before reading Osman Yousefzada's The Go-Between. Only really good writing can bring alive the truth, the colour, the reality and the meaning of an experience like Osman's. I read with such pleasure, terror, amusement, admiration and fascination - it is surely one of the great childhood memoirs of our times' -STEPHEN FRY 'A beautifully observed and funny book' - Guardian 'Osman's compelling and humane memoir shines light into a hidden world I didn't realise existed down the road from me. It's an essential book that will help you understand multiculturalism in all its complexities' - SATHNAM SANGHERA 'A poetic and moving book. Osman paints pictures with words, unfolding hidden stories that stay with you beyond the final page' - HANIF KUREISHI 'That rare thing, a memoir that reads like a novel; a page-turner full of love, wisdom and yearning that examines what it means for the outsider to belong and the winding route that takes us there. I loved it' - KIT DE WAAL 'Yousefzada's funny and fascinating story of moving between two cultures . . . this memoir is a welcome exploration of time and place' - Stylist
