Acclaimed writer Derek Owusu discusses his new novel The Recovery House, a sensitive, searching story of life, faith and art in the wake of a breakdown.

7:00pm-9:00pm Fort Road Bar

Characterised by its infinite curiosity and tender insight, The Recovery House is layered portrayal of one man's collapse and halting climb back towards some kind of salvation. Having experienced a mental health crisis, gifted poet Jamal wakes up in the hushed surrounds of a recovery clinic, a stark but safe-feeling sanctuary where nurses watch and residents pace, smoke, snatch conversations, sing into the darkness. From there, he begins to wonder and to wander the hallways of his mind, measuring the spaces between literature and scripture, doubt and devotion, illness and inspiration, and to find that joy, faith and friendship can exist even in this quiet temple of grief. At the core of the novel is the question of how to carry on living and writing - turning life into art - in a world that has so wounded him.

Derek Owusu is an award-winning writer and broadcaster. His debut novel, That Reminds Me, which won a Desmond Elliot Prize, was followed by Losing the Plot, and in 2023 he was selected as one of Granta’s Best of Young British Novelists. He also collated and contributed to SAFE, an anthology exploring the experiences of Black men in Britain. He'll be discussing The Recovery House with Iman Amrani, an award-winning journalist, writer, producer and moderator.