Later Life Letter
Luke Wright
Jan 2026 · Hachette UK
Ebook
80
Pages
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infoThis book will become available on January 29, 2026. You will not be charged until it is released.
About this ebook
'The best young performance poet around' OBSERVER
'Wright succeeds in finding new and beautiful ways of expressing the everyday' GUARDIAN
'Luke is a craftsman with a big heart' IAN MCMILLAN
What is a later life letter? Written by a child's social worker to be opened at an appropriate age, it details their journey from birth to adoption. When Luke was given one as a teenager, he didn't make much of it. But now, married to a social worker and seeing the care she takes composing these letters, he re-examines his own past - and the life he might have had.
Should he feel close to the biological brothers he has only seen through Facebook stalking? Do his beginnings in a notorious tower-block estate counteract the privilege of his sheltered suburban upbringing? How grateful should he be to his adopted parents, who are - in the end - just parents?
In this memoir in poetry, no emotion is simple or expected. Luke writes with a pinpoint honesty that teases out the nuances of family, memory and belonging - and in the process, he uncovers the gaps between the usual beats of an adoption story.
'Performance poetry's key revivalist' METRO
'Wright's craft is at this point extraordinarily fine-tuned' HARRY JOSEPHINE GILES
'Wright's a balladeer for our time' JOHN FIELD, POOR RUDE LINES
'Wright succeeds in finding new and beautiful ways of expressing the everyday' GUARDIAN
'Luke is a craftsman with a big heart' IAN MCMILLAN
What is a later life letter? Written by a child's social worker to be opened at an appropriate age, it details their journey from birth to adoption. When Luke was given one as a teenager, he didn't make much of it. But now, married to a social worker and seeing the care she takes composing these letters, he re-examines his own past - and the life he might have had.
Should he feel close to the biological brothers he has only seen through Facebook stalking? Do his beginnings in a notorious tower-block estate counteract the privilege of his sheltered suburban upbringing? How grateful should he be to his adopted parents, who are - in the end - just parents?
In this memoir in poetry, no emotion is simple or expected. Luke writes with a pinpoint honesty that teases out the nuances of family, memory and belonging - and in the process, he uncovers the gaps between the usual beats of an adoption story.
'Performance poetry's key revivalist' METRO
'Wright's craft is at this point extraordinarily fine-tuned' HARRY JOSEPHINE GILES
'Wright's a balladeer for our time' JOHN FIELD, POOR RUDE LINES
About the author
Luke Wright is a poet and performer who has been touring for nearly 20 years. He's the regular tour support for John Cooper Clarke and often MCs shows for The Libertines. Luke is a regular on Radio 4 and has won a Fringe First for writing, a Stage Award for performance, and four Saboteur Awards. Later Life Letter will be his fifth poetry collection
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