In ‘Cloistered’ Catherine Coldstream tells the story of the twelve years she spent as a contemplative nun in the 1990s, from the unconditional trust of her first steps as a novice to the community crisis that led to her running away. Set in rural Northumberland, the memoir paints a picture of life in a traditional Carmelite monastery as it approaches the third millennium, with all the beauty and mystery as well as the hothouse atmosphere that evokes. In her talk she will be discussing how and why she came to write her memoir, and of the challenges she encountered along the way.