Winner of the Saltire Literary Award Fiction Book of the Year
‘Literary gold . . . Morrison has published his masterpiece’ Sunday Times
‘Sensational. Like nothing I’ve ever read. A tour de force’ Ian Rankin
Nina X has never been outside. She has never met another child.
Nina X has no books, no toys and no privacy.
Nina X has no idea what the outside world is like.
Nina X has a lot to learn.
Nina X has no mother and no father; she has Comrade Chen, and Comrades Uma, Jeni and Ruth. Her closest emotional connection is with the birds she sees when she removes the plasterboard that covers her bedroom window. Comrade Chen has named her The Project; she is being raised entirely separated from the false gods of capitalism and the cult of the self. He has her record everything in her journal, to track her thoughts. To keep her ideology pure, her words are erased, over and over again. But that was before. Now Nina is in Freedom, and all the rules have changed. She has to remember that everything is opposite to what she was told, and yet Freedom seems to be a very confusing and dangerous place
‘This moving tale of growing up in a Maoist cult, and the traumatic aftermath, explores ideas of freedom, control and identity with warmth and humour’ Alex Preston, Observer
‘Amazing . . . There are few writers left in Britain who have his ambition, vision and empathy. Nina is marvellous creation and this is an important novel’ Irvine Welsh
‘Compelling. Chilling’ Lionel Shriver
‘Literary gold . . . Morrison has published his masterpiece’ Sunday Times
‘Sensational. Like nothing I’ve ever read. A tour de force’ Ian Rankin
Nina X has never been outside. She has never met another child.
Nina X has no books, no toys and no privacy.
Nina X has no idea what the outside world is like.
Nina X has a lot to learn.
Nina X has no mother and no father; she has Comrade Chen, and Comrades Uma, Jeni and Ruth. Her closest emotional connection is with the birds she sees when she removes the plasterboard that covers her bedroom window. Comrade Chen has named her The Project; she is being raised entirely separated from the false gods of capitalism and the cult of the self. He has her record everything in her journal, to track her thoughts. To keep her ideology pure, her words are erased, over and over again. But that was before. Now Nina is in Freedom, and all the rules have changed. She has to remember that everything is opposite to what she was told, and yet Freedom seems to be a very confusing and dangerous place
‘This moving tale of growing up in a Maoist cult, and the traumatic aftermath, explores ideas of freedom, control and identity with warmth and humour’ Alex Preston, Observer
‘Amazing . . . There are few writers left in Britain who have his ambition, vision and empathy. Nina is marvellous creation and this is an important novel’ Irvine Welsh
‘Compelling. Chilling’ Lionel Shriver
Newsletter Signup
By clicking ‘Sign Up,’ I acknowledge that I have read and agree to Hachette Book Group’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
Reviews
Sensational. Like nothing I've ever read. A tour de force
Convincing, moving and successful. It's also extremely funny
Compelling. Chilling
Fascinating . . . a very high concept book
I think it's such an intellectually fair book. Refreshingly honest . . . moving. I'm very impressed
Nina X is intelligent and demanding: a study of a mind-bending cult and the difficulty a survivor has in adjusting to the world of normality . . . you're not likely to forget it
I think it's brilliant. I really enjoyed it. I found it very funny and often moving
[An] amazing book. There are few writers left in Britain who have his ambition, vision and empathy. Nina is marvellous creation and this is an important novel
A parable for our times. His most brutal and innovative novel . . . his best to date. Challenging, horrific and visceral. Most importantly, apart from being humane and experimental, it is also deeply, deeply serious . . . Judges of Prizes take note