Before I Go

About Catherine Cookson

Catherine Cookson was born in East Jarrow near the mouth of the River Tyne one of the poorest areas in Britain. Her childhood was deeply scarred by violence fear alcoholism shame and guilt and her books were inspired by her upbringing. She fought hard for a better life and was determined to be a writer. Her readership quickly spread throughout the world and her many bestselling novels established her as one of the most popular of contemporary women novelists. After receiving an OBE in 1985 Catherine Cookson was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1993 and was appointed an Honorary Fellow of St Hildas College Oxford in 1997. She died shortly before her ninety-second birthday in June 1998. By the time of her death she had written over one hundred books and was the UKs most widely read novelist with over 100 million of her books sold and remained the most-borrowed author in UK public libraries for twenty years. The Cookson Estate recently discovered two unpublished manuscriptsa memoir and a novelin the attic of Cooksons home. Amazon Publishing will be releasing these two unseen works and the authors backlist will be available through Kindle Direct Publishing ensuring Catherine Cooksons legacy is available to readers across the globe.