Unashamed by Harry Baker
£9.99
Following The Sunshine Kid (2014), Unashamed follows the journey of World Poetry Slam Champion Harry Baker from graduating with a maths degree being unsure if this poetry thing was even possible, to becoming one of the nation’s favourite poets and having his work viewed by millions all over the globe.
A collection of poems taken from his live performances that have captivated audiences and sold out shows up and down the country, combined with brand new work written at a time when that was no longer possible. From the joyful creativity of German compound words to having his prime number poetry shared on TED.com, it took Harry far too long to realise that maths has been as much a part of his work as the poetry he used to use to distract himself from it. That both are about figuring out the world around us, finding wonder in your surroundings, and searching for connection wherever you can.
From school bullying through climate change, via a healthy obsession with falafels and a 10,000th birthday, Harry's love of language and logic has got him through literal marathons, a cancer diagnosis and potentially ruined his wife’s chances of getting a job in an ice cream shop. Unashamed is a book of heart, humour and hope. It shows what happens when you’re truly able to celebrate all the parts of yourself, and when you are more concerned with filling out than fitting in. When what started out as a way to entertain your friends becomes a lens through which to see the world, and and celebrate numbers, words and life itself. It is his most heartfelt, playful, unashamedly Harry Baker-y work yet!
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Harry Baker is a poet, mathematician, stand-up comedian and writer. Aged 20, he became the youngest ever World Poetry Slam Champion in 2012. In 2014 he released his debut collection The Sunshine Kid with Burning Eye, and the 5-star Edinburgh show of the same name was voted Best Spoken Word Show of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2015. His work has been shared on TED.com and seen by over 5 million people and translated into over 20 different languages.
Having graduated from a mathematician-who-sometimes-does-poems to a poet-who-sometimes-does-maths, Harry spent five years performing all over the world, from the sold out Dubai Opera House to featuring at both the American and German national poetry slams (followed by a few years performing to his own face on screen during a pandemic). A regular at festivals such as Latitude, Glastonbury and Bestival, Harry’s schools work has also reached a cumulative 50k+ students in local and international schools all across the globe, gaining new fans from Jacqueline Wilson to Ice Cube along the way.
Harry’s versatility had led to him being one of the only poets to be featured on BBC Radio 1, 2, 3, 4 and 1xtra, and has led to him being as (un)comfortable rising to the top of the UK rap battle scene as sharing stages with the likes of Carol Ann Duffy and Simon Armitage. More recently he has formed the UK’s leading Comedy-Rap-Jazz-Duo as part of Harry and Chris (as seen on The Russell Howard Hour) taking shows up to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2016-2019, as well as returning last year with a solo show I am 10,000 to a 5-star sellout run.