Move over Richard Osman, there’s a new celebrity author in town! Actor Paterson Joseph’s debut novel The Secret Diaries Of Charles Ignatius Sancho deserves to see the star of BBC’s Vigil elevated to the same bestselling heights as the Pointless host and his loveable gang of OAP sleuths.
A semi-fictionalised account of the first Black man ever to vote in a British election, Joseph’s story is a delight from start to finish. Sancho – gout-ridden, self-deprecating and eloquent – guides us through the decadent delights of 18th-century London, never forgetting that the city he loves so deeply is built on the back of slavery.
While the protagonist himself is no stranger to the mindless cruelty doled out by brutal traffickers, the book is far from a misery memoir. Indeed, it is Joseph’s refusal to allow the history of Black Britons to be one of unmitigated suffering which sees him infuse Sancho’s world with such life, humour and optimism, you’ll hate to leave it when you turn the final page. Luckily, a free immersive audio tour (narrated by Joseph and accessed via a QR code on the cover) allows you to remain under its spell a little longer.
The Secret Diaries Of Charles Ignatius Sancho, Paterson Joseph (Dialogue)
Price: £16.99. Info: here
words RACHEL REES