Cack-Handed: A Memoir

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One last tiny little niggle though, I dislike being referred to as "ignorant" or having lived under a "Jupiter sized rock" because I've not seen Black Panther (I've not seen any of the Marvel universe films). I only remember her on Mock the Week (and that only vaguely, especially if it was a while ago) but this sounds to be an enlightening memoir, especially the different perceptions of West Africans, Afro-Caribbeans and Afro-Americans of each tradition and culture. Cack-handed' means left-handed but also, a Gina explains in the Foreword, clumsy and awkward, which, she says, she is.

Not believing her life was difficult enough, she later left engineering to become a stand-up comic, appearing on numerous television shows and becoming one of the top comedians in the UK, before giving it all up to move to the US, a dream she’d had since she was six years old, watching American kids on television, riding cool bicycles, and solving crimes.It's part stand-up routine but also a sober commentary for up and comers on the structural racism and sexism of the world in general and in particular as developed here, in the entertainment world--esp.

Same with her sexual discovery (she is a lesbian, I knew that going in), she talks about questioning her sexuality and slowly discovering it but we don't really get to know how or when she really accepted herself (she clearly does if you have seen her stand up or follow her social media). As a first generation black Brit with parents who emigrated to the UK in the 60's from one of the then colonies, but at least 10 years older than Gina, I was really interested in her story and journey.

When she was writing about being a lift engineer it was still very interesting to read about her experiences with her colleagues and also her experiences with lifts.

A collection of eccentric, addictive, and uproarious stories that combine family, race, gender, class, and country, Cack-Handed reveals how Gina’s unconventional upbringing became the foundation of her successful career as an international comedian. From birth, Gina carried a similar birthmark—a sign that she was her grandmother's chosen heir, and would fulfill Patience's dreams.Young Gina tried to find refuge in her school but the gate was closed and she banged on the door while a teacher inside was trying to open it, all the while the man hitting and punching her!