My Battle of Hastings

Chronicle of a Year by the Sea

By Xiaolu Guo | Publisher: Random House

About the book

‘This is urgent, compelling but also delightful writing’ Lauren Elkin

In the depths of winter, Xiaolu Guo moves into a tiny dilapidated flat on the Hastings seafront – a room of her own where she can spend time writing, liberated from her domestic responsibilities in London.


She immerses herself in the English landscape and its past and becomes preoccupied by the violence between Normans and Saxons. Filled with profound, beautiful and wry reflections on war, history, migration and belonging My Battle of Hastings is a chronicle of Xiaolu’s life in Hastings and a portrait of a dislocated artist seeking to connect with her local environment in the hope of finding a deeper connection to her adoptive nation.

'Magnificent, brutal and poetic' Iain Sinclair

‘There is nobody quite like Xiaolu Guo… With My Battle of Hastings, Guo shows us the effort that it takes to truly put down roots in a culture so different from the one she was born into’ The Times

Editions of My Battle of Hastings

Hardcover
ISBN 9781784745370
Paperback
ISBN 9781529918670
EBook
ISBN 9781529918687

Read an Excerpt

‘This is urgent, compelling but also delightful writing’ Lauren Elkin

In the depths of winter, Xiaolu Guo moves into a tiny dilapidated flat on the Hastings seafront – a room of her own where she can spend time writing, liberated from her domestic responsibilities in London.


She immerses herself in the English landscape and its past and becomes preoccupied by the violence between Normans and Saxons. Filled with profound, beautiful and wry reflections on war, history, migration and belonging My Battle of Hastings is a chronicle of Xiaolu’s life in Hastings and a portrait of a dislocated artist seeking to connect with her local environment in the hope of finding a deeper connection to her adoptive nation.

'Magnificent, brutal and poetic' Iain Sinclair

‘There is nobody quite like Xiaolu Guo… With My Battle of Hastings, Guo shows us the effort that it takes to truly put down roots in a culture so different from the one she was born into’ The Times

Frequently Asked Questions

What is My Battle of Hastings about?

‘This is urgent, compelling but also delightful writing’ Lauren Elkin

In the depths of winter, Xiaolu Guo moves into a tiny dilapidated flat on the Hastings seafront – a room of her own where she can spend time writing, liberated from her domestic responsibilities in London.


She immerses herself in the English landscape and its past and becomes preoccupied by the violence between Normans and Saxons. Filled with profound, beautiful and wry reflections on war, history, migration and belonging My Battle of Hastings is a chronicle of Xiaolu’s life in Hastings and a portrait of a dislocated artist seeking to connect with her local environment in the hope of finding a deeper connection to her adoptive nation.

'Magnificent, brutal and poetic' Iain Sinclair

‘There is nobody quite like Xiaolu Guo… With My Battle of Hastings, Guo shows us the effort that it takes to truly put down roots in a culture so different from the one she was born into’ The Times

What core themes, tropes, or subjects are explored in My Battle of Hastings?

Biography, Literature and Literary studies > Biography and non-fiction prose > Memoirs

Where can I read a sample of My Battle of Hastings?

You can read an official preview of the few pages here https://www.book2look.com/book/9781784745370

Who is/are the Author/s of the book My Battle of Hastings?

Xiaolu Guo

Who is the Publisher of the book My Battle of Hastings?

Random House

What are the ISBN numbers for the physical and digital editions?

My Battle of Hastings is available as hardcover(ISBN 9781784745370) and paperback(ISBN 9781529918670) and ebook(ISBN 9781529918687)

Where can I buy My Battle of Hastings online or support local independent bookshops?

You can buy My Battle of Hastings from below

Where can I buy My Battle of Hastings?