‘Places don’t always remember what they are.’
Ayanna Lloyd Banwo talks about her novel When We Were Birds.
In 2022 Ayanna Lloyd Banwo spoke to editor Josie Mitchell about a fear of forgetting, Lapeyrouse Cemetery and our cultural traditions around death.
Ayanna Lloyd Banwo is a writer from Trinidad and Tobago currently living in London. Her debut novel When We Were Birds was named one of the Observer’s Best Debuts of 2022 and one of the Economist’s Best Books of 2022.
Read an excerpt from When We Were Birds here.
‘I think there should be a National Service of Hospitality. The best way to see the true face of humanity is to serve it a plate of chips.’
Camilla Grudova on bad-mannered customers.
‘Anyone who has ever worked night shifts will understand the vertiginous feeling that comes with staring down the day from the wrong end.’
A.K. Blakemore on working nights.
‘I was constantly reading job ads, trying to find my holy grail – a job I could stand to do, and someone foolish enough to hire me.’
Sandra Newman on learning how to play professional blackjack.
‘I loved being a receptionist. What I loved about it was playing the part of being a receptionist.’
Emily Berry on being a temporary office worker.
‘Every part of you would swell, including your eyeballs, and no matter how much water you drank, you were always dehydrated.’
Junot Díaz on working for a steel mill.
