avg_rating: 4.02
name: Elizabeth Nneka Anionwu
about: Professor Dame Elizabeth Nneka Anionwu DBE CBE FRCN FQNI is an Emeritus Professor of Nursing at the University of West London. Her memoirs "Mixed Blessings from a Cambridge Union' were self-published in September 2016.Acclaimed author Malorie Blackman OBE, Children’s Laureate: 2013-2015 wrote the following Foreword:"I have been lucky enough to know Elizabeth Anionwu for a number of years. From the moment I met her, her intelligence, compassion and warmth shone forth. I know her as a patron of the Sickle Cell Society, an eminent nurse and professor and when she was vice-chair of the Mary Seacole Memorial Statue Appeal. I have long admired her and her achievements so I was more than happy to read her memoirs, which provide a fascinating insig Professor Dame Elizabeth Nneka Anionwu DBE CBE FRCN FQNI is an Emeritus Professor of Nursing at the University of West London. Her memoirs "Mixed Blessings from a Cambridge Union' were self-published in September 2016.Acclaimed author Malorie Blackman OBE, Children’s Laureate: 2013-2015 wrote the following Foreword:"I have been lucky enough to know Elizabeth Anionwu for a number of years. From the moment I met her, her intelligence, compassion and warmth shone forth. I know her as a patron of the Sickle Cell Society, an eminent nurse and professor and when she was vice-chair of the Mary Seacole Memorial Statue Appeal. I have long admired her and her achievements so I was more than happy to read her memoirs, which provide a fascinating insight into her life and her dual heritage Irish and Nigerian ancestry. Elizabeth’s memoirs explore her early years, from her time spent in children’s homes, to living with her mother then with her grandparents, and thereafter her life as an independent young woman. We are provided with an interesting insight into the social conventions and mores of the time when Elizabeth’s mother was pregnant with her - late 1940s - and the reactions of family and the church once Elizabeth, who is mixed-race, was born. Throughout the memoir, Elizabeth’s mother’s love and determination are clearly evident. And Elizabeth’s first meeting and subsequent relationship with her Nigerian barrister father make for riveting reading.Elizabeth’s memoirs illustrate her long and illustrious life, including her discovery and further research into the life of Mary Seacole, and her own efforts to improve the knowledge and treatment of Sickle Cell Disorder and Thalassaemia.There are very many gems in Elizabeth’s reminiscences, including her comment to His Royal Highness Prince Charles during her Investiture at Buckingham Palace where she received her CBE. Mixed Blessings is interwoven with Elizabeth’s usual humour and insightfulness and I very much enjoyed reading it." ...more