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	Mohrbooks Literary Agency Sebastian Ritscher
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Memoirs

THE BOY AT THE GATE

Danny Ellis

THE BOY AT THE GATE is a poignant, profoundly moving memoir of forgiveness and redemption, and an inspiring testament to the healing power of music and love.

Danny Ellis was a survivor, strong and resilient. A successful singer/songwriter, he was proud of the way he'd 'handled' his painful past: the grinding poverty of the 1950s Dublin slums, and the horrific brutality of the orphanage, the notorious Artane Industrial School where he was left in the "care" of the Irish Christian Brothers. He'd safely buried it. Or so he thought. Then one night, while writing a powerful song that would launch his acclaimed album, 800 Voices, his past came flooding back to haunt him. Long-forgotten memories of betrayal and abandonment burst forth in a shocking revelation: his eight-year-old self was still lost in the orphanage. Although badly shaken, Danny began a courageous journey that would lead him back to the streets of Dublin, to the tenement slums and, eventually, to the brutality and scallywag shenanigans of the Artane playground. What he found with each twist and turn of his odyssey would change his life for ever. In scenes that range from heartbreaking to hilarious, we see Danny flounder at first, adrift in his sorrow and loneliness. Then fate relents and offers him a gift: music. Music saved his life and, having reconciled with his past, gave voice to his soul. You'll laugh through your tears; this is a voice -- a story -- you won't forget. Danny Ellis, Irish singer/songwriter releasing his debut memoir about his life growing up in one of Ireland's most abusive orphanages. Beautifully written, and suprisingly humourous as he navigates his way through the mayhem of 8 years amongst 800 lads. Triumphant, and healing as he takes you on the journey back to rescue the 8 year old boy he left behind.

Available products
Book Published 2013-10-01 by Skyhorse/Arcade

Comments

Filled with both winks and tears, this book proves that goodness can shine even in the ugliest places.

A beautifully written, heartbreaking story of betrayal, abandonment and the healing power of friendship and music. This will rip your heart out, but ultimately, will hand it back to you whole, and you'll be inspired by the ride. What Danny endured is wrenching and horrifying, but his style and rhythm are so beautiful and starkly honest - and the voice of the child within him so innocent and mischievous - that courage and strength win the day. This is an incredibly brave book: shocking, and sometimes, despite everything, shockingly hilarious. It's the journey of one man's struggle to connect with the child he once was. As it turns out, the road out is also the road back. I love this book!

That Ellis uses the narrative to unearth a deliberately forgotten past makes for compelling reading. But what makes his work even more affecting is the way he uses his story to liberate the voices of otherwise forgotten children who endured “one of the most abusive and brutal institutions in Ireland. Heartbreak at its most bittersweet!

The Boy At The Gate is the one of the most elegant and soulful narratives of recovery and resiliency I have ever witnessed.

Like a true song, this story is finely crafted workmanship, unashamedly human with its pain and perplexity, yet unabashedly divine with grace and light and love woven into the tapestry beneath the tweed. Full of blood and bones, it is not for the faint of heart, and yet leaves you with everything that matters intact. It is a treasure!