Congratulations to Sarah Perry (RGS 2001 – 2009) who is launching her debut novel Let Me Be Like Water this month (now available on pre-order).

A moving and powerful debut, Let Me Be Like Water is a book about the humdrum and extraordinariness of everyday life; of lost and new connections; of loneliness and friendship.

After leaving RGS, Sarah studied English at Oxford. Upon graduating in 2012, she co-founded the Great Men project, an initiative working with men and boys in inner city London to discuss and affirm healthy masculinities: challenging behaviours linked to violence and sexual violence; to disproportionately high suicide, addiction, and imprisonment rates in men and boys; and promoting mental health awareness and gender equalities.

Following this, she studied for an MA in Creative Writing and Education at Goldsmiths, spending a year as Resident Poet in a London state school, using creative writing to promote emotional literacy and self-confidence with “at-risk” young people. She spent a year as the Global Campaign Manager at PEN International, and has acted in gender consultancy and training roles for multiple international NGOs.

As a writer, Sarah was longlisted for the inaugural London’s Young Poet Laureate; was a Cityread Young Writer in Residence; and will have her debut novel Let Me Be Like Water – shortlisted for the Mslexia Award – published by Melville House this year in the UK and US. Her poetry pamphlet Curious Hands was published in 2015.

In October, Sarah will be starting a PhD in Creative Writing at Manchester Metropolitan University, funded by an AHRC award.

Let Me Be Like Water

The story is about the twenty-something year old Holly who has moved to Brighton to escape. But now she’s here, sitting on a bench, listening to the sea sway… How is she supposed to fill the void her boyfriend left when he died, leaving her behind?

She had thought she’d want to be on her own, but when she meets Frank, a retired magician who has experienced his own loss, the tide begins to shift. A moving and powerful debut, Let Me Be Like Water is a book about the humdrum and extraordinariness of everyday life; of lost and new connections; of loneliness and friendship.

‘A beautiful reflection on love, grief, and friendship. Witty and profound.’ – Fiona Mozley, author of Man Booker shortlisted Elmet