Black Teacher: 'An unsung heroine of Black British Literature' (Bernardine Evaristo)

Description

Being denied teaching jobs due to the colour bar. Working in an office amidst the East End's bombsites. Serving as a lady's maid to an Empire-loving aristocrat. Raising two children in suburbia. Becoming one of the first black headteachers in Britain. In 1952, Beryl Gilroy moved from British Guiana to London. Her new life wasn't what she had expected - but her belief in the power of education resulted in a revolutionary career. Black Teacher, her memoir, is a rediscovered classic: not only a rare first-hand insight into the Windrush generation, but a testament to how one woman's dignity, ambition and spirit transcended her era. 'Full of wit, perceptiveness, humour and compassion ... A hugely important memoir from the rare perspective of a black woman transported to the colonial motherland.' - Bernardine Evaristo

Beryl Gilroy was born in 1924 in British Guiana. She trained as a teacher in Georgetown before starting university in London in the 1950s. For years she was denied teaching employment due to the colour bar and worked as a dishwasher, maid, and clerk before studying child development and a PHD in psychology. After finally entering the educational system, she rose to become the first Black female headteacher in Camden in 1968. She balanced teaching with raising a family - in one of the earliest interracial marriages in the UK - and wrote Nippers, a pioneering multicultural series for children in the 1970s, followed by adult fiction. Later, she held posts on the UK Race Relations Board, Institute of Education, and a psychotherapy practice. She was described after her death in 2001 as 'one of Britain's most significant post-war Caribbean migrants. Bernardine Evaristo, MBE, is the award-winning author of eight books of fiction exploring aspects of the African diaspora. Her novel Girl, Woman, Other made her the first black woman to win the Booker Prize in 2019, as well as the Fiction Book of the Year Award, Author of the Year, and the Indie Book Award at the British Book Awards in 2020. She also became the first woman of colour and black British writer to reach No.1 in the UK paperback fiction chart. Her writing spans reviews, essays, drama and radio, and she has edited and guest-edited publications including The Sunday Time's Style magazine. Made an MBE in 2009. Bernardine is Professor of Creative Writing at Brunel University, London, and Vice Chair of the Royal Society of Literature. She lives in London with her husband. www.bevaristo.com @BernardineEvari

'A must-read. Her life makes you laugh. Her life makes you cry. Get to know her.' - Benjamin Zephaniah 'A superb but shocking memoir about a brilliant teacher, imaginative, resilient and inspiring.' - Jacqueline Wilson 'Gilroy blazed a path that empowered generations of Black British educators.' - Steve McQueen 'Important, enlightening and very entertaining, full of real-life drama ... Inspirational.' - Diana Evans 'This empowering tale of courage, resistance, and triumph is a breath of fresh air.' - David Lammy 'A pioneer in many fields and wonderful example for all of us ... Essential reading.' - Alex Wheatle 'A beautiful memoir of one woman's strength and dignity against the odds.' - Christie Watson