''Rememberings'' is a memoir by

Sinéad O'Connor Shuhada Sadaqat (born Sinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor on 8 December 1966; ) is an Irish singer-songwriter. Her debut album, ''The Lion and the Cobra'', was released in 1987 and charted internationally. Her second album, ''I Do Not Want What ...

published on 1 June 2021 by Sandycove, an imprint of Penguin Books.

Background

O'Connor started writing the book in January 2015. In August that year, she underwent

hysterectomy Hysterectomy is the surgical removal of the uterus. It may also involve removal of the cervix, ovaries (oophorectomy), Fallopian tubes (salpingectomy), and other surrounding structures. Usually performed by a gynecologist, a hysterectomy may b ...

, which was followed by a breakdown and long recovery, leaving her "unable to remember anything much that took place before it". She also attributed memory loss to excessive

cannabis smoking Cannabis smoking (or colloquially smoking pot) is the inhalation of smoke or vapor released by heating the flowers, leaves, or extracts of cannabis and releasing the main psychoactive chemical, Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is absorbe ...

. O'Connor resumed writing after a few years' break, and the book's release was announced in December 2020. The memoir is dedicated primarily to "all staff and patients at St Patrick's University Hospital, Dublin".

Critical reception

The memoir received favourable reviews. '' The Independent'' included it in their Books of the Month list, saying that ''Rememberings'' was "a riveting account of modern celebrity and a deeply candid account of her own “trainwreck” life", adding that O'Connor addresses "the grim truths of sex and power in the modern world". '' The Christian Century'' opined that "''Rememberings'' reveals her to be a gifted storyteller as well as a tenderhearted contrarian with a knack for poking a finger in the eyes of the powerful". Writing for

RTÉ.ie RTÉ.ie is the brand name and home of Irish broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ)'s online activities, located at the URL https://www.rte.ie/. The site began publishing on 26 May 1996. According to RTÉ, it operates on an entirely comme ...

Sinéad Crowley Sinéad Crowley (born 1974) is an Irish journalist and novelist. She is Arts and Media Correspondent for RTÉ News and is a lecturer in journalism at Dublin City University. She has published three crime novels, ''Can Anybody Help Me?'' (2014 ...

complimented the book's "beautifully direct style". The book was also described as "uniquely sharp, insightful, (...) funny", " spiring, liberating, hilarious and fascinating", and as a "hard-fought, self-built monument to someone who did it her way".

Commercial performance

The book debuted at number one on the Irish bestsellers list, selling 2,982 copies in the first week.

References

{{Sinéad O'Connor 2021 non-fiction books Irish memoirs Penguin Books books Show business memoirs Sinéad O'Connor