Description

THE TIMES TOP 10 BESTSELLER
A GUARDIAN TELEGRAPH THE TIMES IRISH TIMES ROUGH TRADE MOJO CLASH ROLLING STONE UNCUT BOOK OF THE YEAR

From awardwinning musician and composer Warren Ellis comes the unexpected and inspiring story of a piece of chewing gum

FEATURING AN INTRODUCTION BY NICK CAVE

Warren has turned this memento snatched from his idols piano in a moment of rapture into a genuine religious artefact
NICK CAVE

Such a mad happy book about art and music and obsession Im so glad I got to read it It made the world feel lighter
NEIL GAIMAN

In praise of meaningrich relics and magical things Totally heartwarming project
MAX PORTER

A unique study of a fans devotion of transcendence and of the artistic vocation its got depth and great warmth Its a beautiful piece of work
KEVIN BARRY

I hadnt opened the towel that contained her gum since 2013 The last person to touch it was Nina Simone her saliva and fingerprints unsullied The idea that it was still in her towel was something I had drawn strength from I thought each time I opened it some of Nina Simones spirit would vanish In many ways that thought was more important than the gum itself

On Thursday 1 July 1999 Dr Nina Simone gave a rare performance as part of Nick Caves Meltdown Festival After the show in a state of awe Warren Ellis crept onto the stage took Dr Simones piece of chewed gum from the piano wrapped it in her stage towel and put it in a Tower Records bag The gum remained with him for twenty years a sacred totem his creative muse a conduit that would eventually take Ellis back to his childhood and his relationship with found objects growing in significance with every passing year

Nina Simones Gum is about how something so small can form beautiful connections between people It is a story about the meaning we place on things on experiences and how they become imbued with spirituality It is a celebration of artistic process friendship understanding and love

This is such a beautiful fking book Thank you Warren I highly recommend this motherfker
FLEA

A beautifully written book about the power of music and objects I powered through it in two days
COURTNEY BARNETT

A moving inspiration insight into a beautiful mind
JIM JARMUSCH

The years most eccentric and joyful musical memoir
DAILY TELEGRAPH Books of the year

Nina Simones Gum is a metaphor for Ellis creativity the blossoming of a small idea into something bigger and bolder but also a journey inside the impulsive improvisatory mind of Warren Ellis his passions obsessions and superstitions
OBSERVER

A beautiful strikingly idiosyncratic book part memoir part essay part conceptual art project all testament to humans at their strangest and best Ellis sees signifiance where others might not
MOJO

A glorious piece of object fetishism Marvel as Ellis collection of eccentric personal mementos morphs into a celebration of the intangible wonder of music
UNCUT

Wonderful THE TIMES
The most peculiar book Ive ever read CRAIG BROWN MAIL ON SUNDAY
Delightful A joy from start to finish BIG ISSUE
A joyous work full of love connection creativity and gratitude THE SPECTATOR
Completely charming and joyful glorious LA REVIEW OF BOOKS
Beautiful remarkable NEW EUROPEAN