Rememberings
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- Create Date：2021-05-30 01:16:01
- Update Date：2025-09-24
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- Author：Sinead O'Connor
- ISBN：1844885410
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Summary
THE LANDMARK MEMOIR OF A GLOBAL MUSIC ICON
Sinéad O'Connor's voice and trademark shaved head made her famous by the age of twenty-one。 Her recording of Prince's Nothing Compares 2 U made her a global icon。 She outraged millions when she tore up a photograph of Pope John Paul II on American television。
O'Connor was unapologetic and impossible to ignore， calling out hypocrisy wherever she saw it。
She has remained that way for three decades。
Now， in Rememberings， O'Connor tells her story - the heartache of growing up in a family falling apart; her early forays into the Dublin music scene; her adventures and misadventures in the world of sex， drugs and rock'n'roll; the fulfilment of being a mother; her ongoing spiritual quest - and through it all， her abiding passion for music。
Rememberings is intimate， replete with candid anecdotes and full of hard-won insights。 It is a unique and remarkable chronicle by a unique and remarkable artist。
Sinéad O'Connor's voice and trademark shaved head made her famous by the age of twenty-one。 Her recording of Prince's Nothing Compares 2 U made her a global icon。 She outraged millions when she tore up a photograph of Pope John Paul II on American television。
O'Connor was unapologetic and impossible to ignore， calling out hypocrisy wherever she saw it。
She has remained that way for three decades。
Now， in Rememberings， O'Connor tells her story - the heartache of growing up in a family falling apart; her early forays into the Dublin music scene; her adventures and misadventures in the world of sex， drugs and rock'n'roll; the fulfilment of being a mother; her ongoing spiritual quest - and through it all， her abiding passion for music。
Rememberings is intimate， replete with candid anecdotes and full of hard-won insights。 It is a unique and remarkable chronicle by a unique and remarkable artist。
Reviews
Marcy Rae Henry
，
just read an excerpt in the Irish times。 the woman can write。 no doubt she has that Irish talent of telling a story。 I was thoroughly utterly engaged and can't wait to read the memoir in it's entirety。 interesting that even she knew she was trouble from the word go。she's had so much press and publicity， it's good to hear the stories， her stories， in her words。 wondered if it any of it was ghost written and appreciated comments on Goodreads from peeps who had an advanced copy about how it gets di just read an excerpt in the Irish times。 the woman can write。 no doubt she has that Irish talent of telling a story。 I was thoroughly utterly engaged and can't wait to read the memoir in it's entirety。 interesting that even she knew she was trouble from the word go。she's had so much press and publicity， it's good to hear the stories， her stories， in her words。 wondered if it any of it was ghost written and appreciated comments on Goodreads from peeps who had an advanced copy about how it gets disjointed at times --as does life-- so it's easy to believe that it's not and that's even more awesome。ain't looking for perfection。 just looking for perspective。 。。。more
Bonnie
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I wouldn't say that this is a well-written book。 It's full of rambling memories like someone talking to another person about their life。 It's honest and forthcoming。 Now that I've read about her life as a child and living with emotional and physical abuse， I understand the choices she has made and how PTSD can affect a person for life。 It appears that she's at peace with herself now and living the life she wants。 Her story about the day she met Prince sounds horrific and scary。 I'm happy to have I wouldn't say that this is a well-written book。 It's full of rambling memories like someone talking to another person about their life。 It's honest and forthcoming。 Now that I've read about her life as a child and living with emotional and physical abuse， I understand the choices she has made and how PTSD can affect a person for life。 It appears that she's at peace with herself now and living the life she wants。 Her story about the day she met Prince sounds horrific and scary。 I'm happy to have read this book and getting to know her besides just her No。1 hit that made her famous。 。。。more
Sarah O'Riordan | travelseatsreads
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I feel like I need to preface this review by saying I've a huge amount of respect for Sinead and the work she did to highlight the atrocities of the Irish church。 My review is completely based on the book and how it reads。First of all the book is being marketed as a tell-all memoir in which Sinead details her story through the years， unfortunately it doesn't read that way。 To me it felt about 20% memoir and 80% discography。 There are parts where she talks about her childhood abuse and a quick ch I feel like I need to preface this review by saying I've a huge amount of respect for Sinead and the work she did to highlight the atrocities of the Irish church。 My review is completely based on the book and how it reads。First of all the book is being marketed as a tell-all memoir in which Sinead details her story through the years， unfortunately it doesn't read that way。 To me it felt about 20% memoir and 80% discography。 There are parts where she talks about her childhood abuse and a quick chapter about her children at the end however the rest feels like tidbits of sentences thrown into paragraph upon paragraph about her songs。While it was an interesting read overall I can't help feeling the book has more to do with her upcoming album which is due to be released rather than her telling her own true story。TW for child abuse， addiction， mental illness and suicide。 。。。more
Book Reviews by Tara aka Queen of Memoirs
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𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 by Sinéad O’Connor is a collection of stories Sinéad remembers from throughout her life。 The stories range from childhood with her parents， to life today as a single mother of 4children， & everything in between。 This was a uniquely written memoir。 Sinéad is an eclectic woman。 She seems to be very intuitive。 Yet， there appears to be a psychological disconnect， which comes through in her style of writing。⠀Mental illness is a reoccurring theme throughout the book。 Sinéad suffers from 𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 by Sinéad O’Connor is a collection of stories Sinéad remembers from throughout her life。 The stories range from childhood with her parents， to life today as a single mother of 4children， & everything in between。 This was a uniquely written memoir。 Sinéad is an eclectic woman。 She seems to be very intuitive。 Yet， there appears to be a psychological disconnect， which comes through in her style of writing。⠀Mental illness is a reoccurring theme throughout the book。 Sinéad suffers from mental illness。 Sadly， she also experienced a lot of trauma and abuse at the hands of her mother， who also suffered from mental illness。⠀The stories within this book were both peaks & valleys。 Some stories are good， others not so much。 She does address the SNL Pope situation。 She also writes about being on Dr。 Phil。 But， my favorite is a story of Muhammad Ali， who is also her son’s namesake。⠀My least favorite is a story about Prince。 She basically describes him as a demonic predator that tried to physically harm her。 But she got away from him because sunlight began to rise， causing him to drive away so he wouldn’t be seen by others。 It was a creepy story that I found disturbing & disrespectful。 Sinéad also makes it perfectly clear that Prince had very little to do with her cover of his song 𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘴 2 𝘜。⠀There is one theory in the book I happen to agree with。 When talking about writing songs， she states that writers should be careful of the songs they write because songs come true。 This made me think of Prince with his song 𝘓𝘦𝘵’𝘴 𝘎𝘰 𝘊𝘳𝘢𝘻𝘺 which contains the lyrics “are we gonna let the elevator bring us down”。 And as we all know， Prince came to his demise in an elevator😢。 （FYI “𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘳” 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘭）。⠀Overall， 𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 wasn’t impactful enough for me to give it more than 3⭐️s。 Sinéad’s writing style was a little too choppy for me。 I just couldn’t connect with the narrative。 Also， the eARC didn’t contain the photos that will be placed throughout the finished copy。 This created a void in the review version of the book。⠀Publication Date 6/1⠀ 。。。more
Anne
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An incredibly raw， painful， angry， beautiful and honest memoir。 I loved her writing style which is changeable for the different eras， and as she explains， she wrote different parts at different times。 I much preferred this to some of the polished （possibly ghost written） memoirs that are around as I could really imagine her telling these stories to a friend。 Yes there are bits missing and it's somewhat disjointed at times but I felt this style reflected her true self。The childhood abuse she had An incredibly raw， painful， angry， beautiful and honest memoir。 I loved her writing style which is changeable for the different eras， and as she explains， she wrote different parts at different times。 I much preferred this to some of the polished （possibly ghost written） memoirs that are around as I could really imagine her telling these stories to a friend。 Yes there are bits missing and it's somewhat disjointed at times but I felt this style reflected her true self。The childhood abuse she had suffered is horrendous。 Some of the music industry stories are shocking （the Prince chapter！） and the experiences of being an outspoken woman in the music industry。 Some bits I had to read out loud laughing such as the divas not allowed to poo on a tour bus， skinheads in phonebox and turning up to a protest against herself。Thank you to Netgalley， the publisher and author for a free copy in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Tom
，
Sinead O’Connor is a true artist。 She is uncompromising， fearless and towers above most living singers at this moment in time。 I love her music。 I adore her voice。 This autobiography bares all。 Sinead stands up for herself。 She owns up to everything she has done as an artist and as a human being。 More than almost any other singer/songwriter/performer alive today， Sinead creates honest art from her heart and from her soul。 She is a lioness。 God bless her for never letting the bastards get her dow Sinead O’Connor is a true artist。 She is uncompromising， fearless and towers above most living singers at this moment in time。 I love her music。 I adore her voice。 This autobiography bares all。 Sinead stands up for herself。 She owns up to everything she has done as an artist and as a human being。 More than almost any other singer/songwriter/performer alive today， Sinead creates honest art from her heart and from her soul。 She is a lioness。 God bless her for never letting the bastards get her down。 。。。more
alexa
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over the past few months， i've become more and more entranced by sinéad o'connor。 her strength， her integrity， her bewitching voice， her wicked sense of humor。 my friend gave me the arc for this， and i was so honored i could have cried。it's a difficult memoir， sometimes brilliant and sometimes sharp， sometimes clear and sometimes muddled， but it's completely sinéad。 it'll never happen but i'd just love so much to meet her someday and ask her questions。 over the past few months， i've become more and more entranced by sinéad o'connor。 her strength， her integrity， her bewitching voice， her wicked sense of humor。 my friend gave me the arc for this， and i was so honored i could have cried。it's a difficult memoir， sometimes brilliant and sometimes sharp， sometimes clear and sometimes muddled， but it's completely sinéad。 it'll never happen but i'd just love so much to meet her someday and ask her questions。 。。。more
Janelle
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This is a roller coaster of a read。 It’s emotional， sometimes funny， angry， confused， strong but also vulnerable， the full range of her personality that comes across in her singing。 I bought her first album when it came out and Troy is still one of my favourite songs。 I followed her career and knew bits and pieces about her life so I was interested to read this。 It doesn’t shy away from the controversies or her health issues。
Blake
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Review withheld until publication at publisher's request。 Review withheld until publication at publisher's request。 。。。more
Trish
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Sinead O'Connor's curious mix of self-confidence and sef-hatred， combined with a very Irish aversion to adulation， has made her one of our most misunderstood artists。 In ''Remeberings" she is alternately audacious， uncertain， and mystical; it's powerful to hear her embrace these contradictions rather than tie them into an uncomplicated bow。 Sinead O'Connor's curious mix of self-confidence and sef-hatred， combined with a very Irish aversion to adulation， has made her one of our most misunderstood artists。 In ''Remeberings" she is alternately audacious， uncertain， and mystical; it's powerful to hear her embrace these contradictions rather than tie them into an uncomplicated bow。 。。。more
Melinda
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The Prince chapter though。
J Earl
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Rememberings by Sinead O'Connor is one of the most heartfelt memoirs I have read。 I don't simply mean that she opens up， I think most memoirists do to some extent， but that she "talks" to us as if it really matters that she conveys what she was thinking and what she thinks now。 This memoir is truly for her own happiness and for our understanding。 I'm not sure she cares， nor that she should， whether every reader agrees with her perspectives， but she tries very hard to make sure we can understand Rememberings by Sinead O'Connor is one of the most heartfelt memoirs I have read。 I don't simply mean that she opens up， I think most memoirists do to some extent， but that she "talks" to us as if it really matters that she conveys what she was thinking and what she thinks now。 This memoir is truly for her own happiness and for our understanding。 I'm not sure she cares， nor that she should， whether every reader agrees with her perspectives， but she tries very hard to make sure we can understand her actions as well as she does。This is very conversational， both in tone and structure。 In the same way a very long discussion with a friend can meander back and forth this book does so as well。 Not to a distracting or detrimental extent though it does take a few chapters to catch on to her authorial voice。 After that， it is almost like sitting in the room listening to her。All of the moments in her life that are famous， or infamous， are covered， as well as some extraordinary lesser known moments。 Knowing how she grew up will offer the reader some insight into why she has approached some of these moments as she did。I would recommend this to both fans of hers （I consider myself part of that group） as well as readers who just like memoirs。 This will read a little different from most but your effort will be rewarded。Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley。 。。。more
Chris
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Finished my advance copy。
Kelsey
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Disclaimer: I received an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review。 All opinions are my own。Sinead O'Connor is most notably known for her music career as well as her performance on SNL in the 90s where she infamously tore a picture of the Pope on television。 This is her autobiography in which she states， and I am paraphrasing， that she would like for HER story to be out there before she is gone。I will be the first to admit I do not know much about Ms。 O'Connor nor am Disclaimer: I received an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review。 All opinions are my own。Sinead O'Connor is most notably known for her music career as well as her performance on SNL in the 90s where she infamously tore a picture of the Pope on television。 This is her autobiography in which she states， and I am paraphrasing， that she would like for HER story to be out there before she is gone。I will be the first to admit I do not know much about Ms。 O'Connor nor am I familiar with her work outside of the Prince cover of "Nothing Compares 2 U" she is most famously known for。 With that being said， the book was。。。interesting。 It addresses things I believe most people would not know about while of course speaking on the things most anyone is probably curious about - her fame， the mental breakdown people watched online a few years back as well as the SNL incident。 Is it a necessary celebrity read？ I would say not。 Unless you are a super fan or you are like me， curious more than anything， I do not think it is an autobiography for everyone。 One of the reasons being is that unlike most memoirs this is exactly as the title states - "Rememberings"。 Ms。 O'Connor does not have distinct timeline set in the book so there is not a true chronological order to the memories she shares。 I do think if you would enjoy a memoir that shares memories while also offering the thinking and/or feelings behind them or that led up to certain things maybe you could get something greater out of it。 The most positive aspect of the book that kept me engaged and willing to finish is her honesty with the reader。 It truly is a memoir whose purpose was to ensure her experience was told exactly as she perceived when they happened as well as a true reflection of her account in permanent pages。 For that， I give her kudos。Also。。if you just enjoy finding the most bizarre Prince interactions there is one included that sounds like an actual nightmare someone could have dreamed in their sleep。 。。。more
Amanda
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Sinéad O'Connor's voice and trademark shaved head made her famous by the age of twenty-one。 Her recording of Prince's 'Nothing Compares 2 U' made her a global icon。 She outraged millions when she tore up a photograph of Pope John Paul II on American television。O'Connor was unapologetic and impossible to ignore， calling out hypocrisy wherever she saw it。She has remained that way for three decades。Now， in Rememberings， O'Connor tells her story - the heartache of growing up in a family falling apar Sinéad O'Connor's voice and trademark shaved head made her famous by the age of twenty-one。 Her recording of Prince's 'Nothing Compares 2 U' made her a global icon。 She outraged millions when she tore up a photograph of Pope John Paul II on American television。O'Connor was unapologetic and impossible to ignore， calling out hypocrisy wherever she saw it。She has remained that way for three decades。Now， in Rememberings， O'Connor tells her story - the heartache of growing up in a family falling apart; her early forays into the Dublin music scene; her adventures and misadventures in the world of sex， drugs and rock'n'roll; the fulfilment of being a mother; her ongoing spiritual quest - and through it all， her abiding passion for music。Rememberings is intimate， replete with candid anecdotes and full of hard-won insights。 It is a unique and remarkable chronicle by a unique and remarkable artist。Sinead is an icon who I feel is owed a massive apology by a lot of people。 Also， this cover is one of the most stunning I have ever seen。The book is a little hard to read。 She states herself in the beginning that she's written it in her own voice as if she's having a conversation with someone and it definitely sounds like that。 Particularly in her earlier chapters about her childhood where she speaks like a child in the present tense。 She also uses a lot of American words for things so it seems like she's speaking for an American audience。 Words like 'candy'， 'kindergarten' etc。 are not words we use in Ireland so it's a little forced but not something that bothered me necessarily。 It was a little repetitive in parts。 She tends to tell the same story or mention the same incident as if she hasn't previously mentioned it。 It was a little distracting but doesn't occur so much that it's too bothersome。 The abuse she suffered at the hands of her mother is horrific。 However， she doesn't have the reaction to her mother that one would expect from someone who suffered abuse。 She seems to still really love her， miss her and want to do her proud。 She had a tough upbringing for sure。 She tells a crazy story about a night she was invited to Prince's mansion。 It is honestly so bizarre it sounds like someone explaining a crazy dream to you。 Just wait for it！She speaks about the infamous SNL incident， how she was treated afterwards， and the Dr Phil episode。 She doesn't go into huge detail but you get at least an insight into how she was feeling through it all。My favourite parts of this book were the later chapters when she focused on her catalogue of music and when she speaks about her kids。 You can see her words lighting off the page and almost picture the warmth she has when speaking about these topics。 It's a rather unusual memoir， can be rambling and all over the place in parts but it feels very her。 And I think this is far more authentic than a lot of celebrity memoirs。 Say what you want about Sinead but you cannot argue that she is real and a rare rare talent。（Thank you to Netgalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for the advance copy。 All views are my own）。 。。。more
Tanya
，
I caught the music video for Sinéad O’Connor’s cover of Prince’s Nothing Compares 2 U on TV as a young child， and I never forgot it: That iconic close-up of a beautiful woman with a shaved head and powerful voice， intensely staring at the viewer with two solitary tears of longing rolling down her cheeks。 Over twenty years later， I decided that this memoir presented the perfect opportunity to finally dig deeper into her discography， and learn more about an intriguing artist who， time and time aga I caught the music video for Sinéad O’Connor’s cover of Prince’s Nothing Compares 2 U on TV as a young child， and I never forgot it: That iconic close-up of a beautiful woman with a shaved head and powerful voice， intensely staring at the viewer with two solitary tears of longing rolling down her cheeks。 Over twenty years later， I decided that this memoir presented the perfect opportunity to finally dig deeper into her discography， and learn more about an intriguing artist who， time and time again， has been at best misunderstood， and at worst vilified by the media because of her mental health issues， and controversial actions to call out hypocrisy。I knew virtually nothing about Sinéad’s life and music going in， yet Rememberings was pretty much exactly what I expected it to be， based entirely on what the mostly unkindly media has taught me about her over the years: Authentic， rambling， and unusual。 Which aren’t necessarily bad things—but coupled with her mix of self-confidence and self-deprecation， the result is an incredibly conversational， somewhat repetitive， and very scattered memoir。 She writes about her past life in the present tense， which was a peculiar choice， and poetic passages alternate with ones where she uses words such as “ain’t”， “dunno”， and fourteen instances of the slang word “square” throughout the book， which sounds nothing short of archaic， but endearing in an odd sort of way。 To be fair， she does warn that she’s written it as if she were having a conversation with the reader right up front—and that due to her mental health issues， a good chunk of her life won’t be covered， because she can’t （or doesn’t want to？） remember （or share）。From a narrative standpoint， the beginning is the strongest and most linear: She covers her childhood， upbringing， emotionally and physically abusive mother， and how she came to music， more or less up to the immediate aftermath of her tearing up a picture of Pope John Paul II on SNL。 What follows does the book title justice: It becomes more of a collection of scattered anecdotes， in turn funny， insightful， mystical， or just plain eccentric。 There’s a chapter about a bizarre evening at Prince’s house， she gives context to each album in her back-catalogue， reflecting back to those times in her life， and she touches on her mental breakdown from a few years back， as well as the horrendous Dr。 Phil interview—not in much depth， but offering her perspective with candor。 She writes from a place of honesty and has remained true to herself despite many changes throughout the years， but even so， she’s a bundle of contradictions: for instance， she refers to herself as asexual， but she talks about being sexually attracted to all sorts of people throughout the book。Along with music， motherhood and spirituality are the most important aspects of her life。 Her ongoing， life-long spiritual quest （she may have waged war against the Catholic Church， but she’s an ordained priest in a breakaway sect， deeply interested in Rastafarianism， and has most recently converted to Islam…） is something I cannot relate to at all， which is probably why I didn’t enjoy the memoir quite enough to say “I liked it”。 The book seems almost to be written for her own benefit rather than for a wider audience—it’s full of what are essentially short tributes to her collaborators， lovers， husbands， children， and their fathers， and it reads like an attempt to put misunderstandings aside。Someone who is already a fan of her work will probably get something out of this; anyone who dislikes her won’t be swayed; and someone interested and open-minded， but with a more or less blank slate， like me， will likely fall somewhere in the middle。 Rememberings probably won’t be remembered， but I am writing this as a newly converted （albeit casual） fan of her musical oeuvre， and I appreciate it for opening that door for me。 I think she's an intense， interesting， and beautiful soul， but she conveys it best in her music。—————Note: I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review。 There were placeholders for pictures to be included in the final release。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Rememberings
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Rememberings&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Rememberings&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0