How British Institutions Shape a Life: A Longitudinal Autoethnography Based on Five Published Books

I am delighted to announce that my new monograph, How British Institutions Shape a Life: A Longitudinal Autoethnography Based on Five Published Books, is now available on Amazon.

This book offers a rare, deeply personal exploration of how British educational, mental health, and public service institutions have shaped—and sometimes misshaped—the lives of working-class individuals across six decades. Drawing on my own lived experience and five previously published autobiographical works, I use the method of autoethnography to connect personal narrative with wider social and institutional forces.

Readers will find:

• An insider’s account of the secondary modern school system and its long-term consequences for opportunity and identity.
• A candid examination of mental health, stigma, and the institutional responses that shaped my journey through vulnerability and resilience.
• A critical look at teacher training, exclusion, and the transformative power of adult education—especially the role of the Open University in offering second chances.
• Reflections on governance, public service, and the importance of inclusive, ethical institutions.

This monograph is not just a memoir; it is an analytical study of how systems operate, how meaning is made, and how resilience can emerge even in the face of exclusion. It is my hope that this work will contribute to ongoing conversations about educational reform, mental health support, and the need for more humane, responsive institutions.

If you are interested in the lived realities behind policy and pedagogy, or if you seek inspiration from stories of overcoming adversity, I invite you to read and share your thoughts.

www.amazon.co.uk and then books of Donald Hedges - Lines of Enquiry.

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