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A Thousand Threads

Shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction 2025

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A Thousand Threads

By: Neneh Cherry
Narrated by: Neneh Cherry
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Brought to you by Penguin.

**Shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction 2025**

A deeply personal and powerful memoir from beloved music icon Neneh Cherry.

*A GUARDIAN AUDIOBOOK OF THE WEEK*
*A GUARDIAN MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF 2024*
*A BBC CULTURE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF 2024*

Top of the Pops, December 1988. The world sat up as a young woman made her debut: gold bra, gold bomber jacket, and proudly, gloriously, seven months pregnant. This was no ordinary artist. This was Neneh Cherry.

But navigating fame and family wasn't always simple. In this beautiful and deeply personal memoir, Cherry remembers the collaborations, the highs and lows, the friendships and loves, and the addictions and traumas that have shaped her as a woman and an artist. At the heart of it, always, is family: the extraordinary three generations of artists and musicians that are her inheritance and her legacy.

Musician. Songwriter. Collaborator. Activist. Mother. Daughter. Lover. Friend. Icon. This is her story.

'Neneh is cool, Neneh is wise, Neneh is a legend. Her memoir is a treasure. I loved it.' ZADIE SMITH

'Cherry delivers her story with clarity and calm, even when revisiting the darker chapters in her life' The Guardian

©2024 Neneh Cherry (P)2024 Penguin Audio

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Critic reviews

Inspiring. It made me want to dance harder, turn the volume up, cook a meal for all my friends and hold my family close. It’s a book about culture, creativity, friendships, mothering and the pursuit of an artful life (ANNIE MACMANUS)
Thrums with life . . . A Thousand Threads searches for feelings transient and timeless, keeps keeping on, never says maybe
Wonderful . . . a rich autobiography wise to all the joys – and the perils – of a creative life
A living testament to artistic invention . . . A vibrant read, peppered with both delight and moments of darkness
In her first memoir, [Cherry] offers a brilliant insight into the joys — and the perils — of a creative life . . . She proves with gusto that she has her own tales to tell
'Neneh is cool, Neneh is wise, Neneh is a legend. Her memoir is a treasure. I loved it' (ZADIE SMITH)
Enthralling . . . An extraordinary mix of abundant creativity and never-ending travel, always with the changing seasons of her music-making, soulful friendships and devotion to family at the heart of it (BERNARDINE EVARISTO)
Neneh's memories and her voice has the strength and spirituality to uphold her family's legacies with ecstatic joy (THURSTON MOORE)
This beautifully written memoir resonated deeply with my immigrant heart . . . Cherry is a marvel. Her voice is a bridge-builder, and her honesty is a balm for the soul . . . It is the kind of writing that heals, and by the time you finish reading, you feel richer and a little bit wiser (Elif Shafik)
Very moving . . . Both a love letter to her mother, Moki, and testament to grabbing life with both hands and throwing yourself at it
All stars
Most relevant
Neneh is a hugely talented woman and one I admire very much and so I knew I would enjoy listening to her life story but it is so much more than that. It is a true and honest look back from childhood to now with all the ups and downs you would expect from a successful artist but there is so much warm, love, friendship and family weaving through this story and it is wonderful.

A truly beautiful and honest account of a life well lived and loved.

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I loved this book
Not only listening to Neneh’s voice telling her story and life in the most beautifully lyrical way that felt like listening to poetry and music all at once

But also the detail given to memories , details sights sounds and taste.

Neneh has been a part
Of my teenage years so this book felt familiar with references to places that I myself frequented, but listening to it in her voice took it to the next level.

I spent the duration of the book revelling in her storytelling .

I deny you not to fall in love with it

A beautifully written and told biography

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Neneh does an incredible job of reading you the story of her life. a really fascinating and honest insight into the life of a woman who significantly molded my early years through her music. Brilliant!

warm, honest and incredibly interesting

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Enjoyed the narration and the loving descriptions of the people in Neneh’s life who shaped her.

Really beautiful writing and a compelling personal story

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Thoroughly enjoyed listening to Neneh’s life story. So different to my own however equally valuable!

Pleasant surprise!

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