''Rememberings'' is a memoir by

Sinéad O'Connor Shuhada' Sadaqat (born Sinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor; , ; 8 December 1966 – 26 July 2023) was an Irish singer, songwriter, record producer and activist. Her debut studio album, ''The Lion and the Cobra'', was released in 1987 and achieve ...

published on 1 June 2021 by Sandycove, an imprint of

Penguin Books Penguin Books Limited is a Germany, German-owned English publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers the Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the ...

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 and cervix. Supracervical hysterectomy refers to removal of the uterus while the cervix is spared. These procedures may also involve removal of the ovaries (oophorectomy), fallopian tubes ( salpi ...

, 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 (known Colloquialism, colloquially as smoking weed or smoking pot) is the inhalation of smoke or vapor released by heating the flowers, leaves, or extracts of Cannabis (drug), cannabis and releasing the main Psychoactive drug ...

. 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 St Patrick's University Hospital () is a teaching hospital at Kilmainham in Dublin. The building, which is bounded by Steeven's Lane, Dublin, Steeven's Lane to the east, and Bow Lane West to the south, is managed by St Patrick’s Mental Health S ...

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

Critical reception

The memoir received favourable reviews. ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' 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 ''The Christian Century'' is a Christian magazine based in Chicago, Illinois. Considered the flagship magazine of US mainline Protestantism, the monthly reports on religious news; comments on theological, moral, and cultural issues; and reviews ...

'' 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,

Sinéad Crowley Sinéad Crowley (born 1974) is an Irish journalist and novelist who formerly worked for RTÉ, Ireland's national radio and television station, where she was Arts and Media Correspondent for RTÉ News from 2006 to 2023. She has published four no ...

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 Books by Sinéad O'Connor Music autobiographies