Andie Swim - Shop now
Enjoy fast, free delivery, exclusive deals, and award-winning movies & TV shows.
$10.99
Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime FREE Returns
FREE delivery Tuesday, July 22 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35
Or Prime members get FREE delivery Sunday, July 20. Order within 9 hrs 19 mins.
In Stock
$$10.99 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details
Price
Subtotal
$$10.99
Subtotal
Initial payment breakdown
Shipping cost, delivery date, and order total (including tax) shown at checkout.
Ships from
Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Ships from
Amazon.com
Sold by
Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Sold by
Amazon.com
Payment
Secure transaction
Your transaction is secure
We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

I used to be Paperback – November 20, 2017

by Mary Brown (Author)
4.7 out of 5 stars 4 ratings
{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$10.99","priceAmount":10.99,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"10","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"99","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"JnbV64Ag4wOi4hN%2FUpqJZFJwd5NOflSkDt89R63s24OFv3%2BlRWcrco1mMURz%2FiJ%2BzWspuXYjiotSQcwzASt%2Bh4TECBdzJQgPMORnSxVSPIfVeKB8YBVQA64vc9jZsPMc%2FQW7M6Ywb9UuTDMqDYg7Gg%3D%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

The story is one of terrible sadness but also hope. Mary Brown depicts the lives of two women who seem poles apart and yet are drawn together. She takes us inside their heads and their lives. It’s an incredibly well-observed story of Kayleigh’s teenage despair hidden behind a brash exterior; her adolescent highs and lows against which Maude’s story gradually unfolds and we see the grief and worry she has held on to for so long that it has become a prison from which she sees no escape.
Read more
Previous slide of product details
  1. Print length
    228 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    November 20, 2017
  4. Dimensions
    5.25 x 0.52 x 8 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    1912053535
  6. ISBN-13
    978-1912053537
Next slide of product details
The%20Amazon%20Book%20Review
The Amazon Book Review
Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Mary Brown is the author of three non-fiction books; two about prison. Her long career in adult education included teaching in an open prison and tutoring for the Open University, after which she became a Quaker Prison Chaplain. She has also seen prison from the other side of the bars, spending ten days in HM Prison Holloway in 1960 following a peace protest. Much of Mary's writing is about those on the margins of society. A Quaker, mother of four children and grandmother of eight, Mary now enjoys retirement in the beautiful Cotswold countryside. Written after her retirement and published in her 80s, I Used to Be is Mary's first novel. Edward Douglas Miller founded Remarkable Eco Solutions in 1996 inspired by a passion for the environment. His first product took used plastic cups and turned them into pencils. He said, 'We didn't just say the pencils were recycled, we also said this pencil was made from a plastic cup, so people could engage with the story.' Ed Miller's mission became to educate Britain to be more environmentally responsible, and he invented recycled, innovative products that for many years were sold in Britain's high street stores, including Oxfam. He was behind the 'I used to be...' slogan that appeared on his products in such forms as 'I used to be... a juice carton' or 'I used to be... a car tyre' or in the case of the slogan that caught Maude's eye on the front of what turned out to be an empty notebook: 'I used to be... a cardboard box'. Remarkable Eco Solutions was dissolved in 2016. If you have enjoyed this book, please consider leaving a review for Mary to let her know what you thought of her work.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Fantastic Books Publishing
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ November 20, 2017
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 228 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1912053535
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1912053537
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8.6 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.25 x 0.52 x 8 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 out of 5 stars 4 ratings

Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4 global ratings

Review this product

Share your thoughts with other customers
Write a customer review

Top reviews from the United States

  • Stuart Aken
    5.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully Written Moving Story.
    Reviewed in the United States on February 11, 2018
    This wonderfully written novel explores the relationship between two very different women. One is a divorced mother struggling to cope with the loss of a child, and the other a very young single woman coping with a major change in her chaotic life.
    The main characters are drawn with a vivid clarity that ensures the reader will empathise with both, even though their lifestyles and backgrounds are so utterly contrary in so many ways. Lesser characters are also well depicted, so that we can see all the players and live along with them.
    The prose is poetic in style but easy to read, with descriptions of places, people, events and emotions presented in ways that bring everything to life on the page.
    It’s a moving story, full of contrasts in attitudes, life choices, emotions and viewpoints. And the denouement is produced with such honesty that many readers will be moved to tears.
    I enjoyed this truly outstanding work of fiction. A book that gives insights into the lives of others to raise our appreciation of what it is to be human.
    Helpful
     Report

Top reviews from other countries

  • Bilton
    5.0 out of 5 stars Heartbreaking and Beautiful
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 5, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    This is an excellent book. I can't remember the last time I read a book so brimming with pathos and beautiful prose. The plot is compelling and the author paints Maude and Kayleigh’s worlds in such grit and colour so skilfully, I felt totally immersed. This is a stunning debut, in fact I can hardly believe it was her first novel. The author is fearless and doesn’t shy away from the ugliness and confusion of real life for the girls on the Tip or in any way temper the heartbreaking grief and loneliness of Maude. I cried real tears at points in this novel, but also felt uplifted by the themes of female unity and transformation . An exhilarating, emotional read. I would heartily recommend it.
    Report
  • Grace Pesticcio
    4.0 out of 5 stars Melancholic but hopeful. An enjoyable read.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 11, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    Mary Brown’s ‘I Used to Be’ is a refreshingly poignant tale about two incredibly different women whose lives are connected by one key element: their loneliness. Some novels are driven by complex plots, some by fantastic, imaginative worlds, and some, like this one, are fundamentally character-driven. Of course, that doesn’t mean ‘I Used to Be’ is without a plot, in fact, the opposite is true: reading the events that occur in the story is engaging and at times, even gripping. Yet this novel truly shines when we’re exposed to the interactions between the main protagonists, Kayleigh and Maude.
    Kayleigh and Maude are striking characters, and won’t be easily forgotten. Kayleigh, at first appearance, struck me as every bratty teenage girl I’ve ever known, but appearances can be deceiving and this book highlights that with careful precision. Over the course of the novel, Kayleigh develops from a somewhat-selfish teenager into a responsible woman, dedicating her life to taking care of someone else. Her personal character growth is enjoyable from the get-go, and when hardships are thrown at her, you find yourself desperately hoping she’ll be okay. Similarly, Maude is an elderly woman whose life-story broke my heart. The more she reveals of what happened to her in her life, the more I feel for her, and the dearer she becomes. These characters are the core drivers of ‘I Used to Be’, making this an intensely personal and emotive novel that stays with you long after you finish reading it.
    It’s not just the strong bonds between women that make this novel a worthwhile read, but also the fantastic prose. Reading Maude’s internal accounts of her own life and her struggles with grief, loneliness and isolation, you truly feel connected to her as a real person. ‘I Used to Be’ is filled with beautiful description that plays on your senses and takes the reader on a journey from inside Maude’s own head and into the world around her. Her sadness is tangible but so is her hope. As deeply sombre as this story can be, it is also one of profound hope. No matter what your age, or life experience, Brown’s novel tells us that it’s never too late to find a friend and find happiness.
    Report
  • Angela P
    5.0 out of 5 stars beautifully written and engaging
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 29, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    A beautifully written and engaging story from a perspective that is heard too rarely - an elderly woman. Having spent the majority of her life in the paralysing grip of grief and worry, Maude makes a spontaneous offer to a brash young girl who has fallen pregnant and has nowhere else to go and nobody else to help. Both at the margins of society, they seem to have very little else in common. We watch Maude's uncertainty and doubt, as she relives the tragedies of her life and wonders whether she is doing the right thing by Kayleigh ad the baby. We are rooting for her, though, as Maude becomes less a shrinking, frightened mouse; and more a woman in charge of her own destiny.
    Report