The Way Back to Us @kaylangdale @Hodderbooks

 

 

 

About The Way Back to Us

Since their youngest son, Teddy, was diagnosed with a life-defining illness, Anna has been fighting: against the friends who don't know how to help; against the team assigned to Teddy's care who constantly watch over Anna's parenting; and against the impulse to put Teddy above all else - including his older brother, the watchful, sensitive Isaac.

And now Anna can't seem to stop fighting against her husband, the one person who should be able to understand, but who somehow manages to carry on when Anna feels like she is suffocating under the weight of all the things that Teddy will never be able to do.

As Anna helplessly pushes Tom away, he can't help but feel the absence of the simple familiarity that should come so easily, and must face the question: is it worse to stay in an unhappy marriage, or leave?

My review of The Way Back to Us

I'll just start by saying that The Way Back to Us is such a beautiful book that completely resonated with me. It's an emotional story about family, about disability and of how a couple's relationship is tested to breaking point. I feel that this is such an important book, as it gently, yet openly, discusses what it is like for the entire family to raise a child with a disability. This is one raw, emotional and at times, unsettling read. 

My youngest son is autistic, and so for me this book really hit home. I felt as though it spoke directly to me. Would I have viewed the story in an entirely different way, if I wasn't a parent to a child with additional needs? Probably, yes, but, I do feel that anyone reading this book, whether they have experience of the subject matter or not, would enjoy the story.

So, the story is told from four points of view. We have the parents, Anna and Tom, and then the two children, Isaac and Teddy. Anna is the stay at home mum, the main carer for Teddy who has SMA, spinal muscular atrophy, a generic disease that effects a person's ability to eat, walk or breathe as it alters the motor nerve pathways within the spine. This is a debilitating and life changing disease. Anna had had a successful career, but she gave it all up to care for Teddy. Anna was so real to me, I understood her. That need to protect her child, the guilt she felt for not being able to spend as much time with her eldest son, Isaac, or her husband. The fact that she believed she was the only person who could care for her son in the right way. All of this rang very true to me. 

This is a story about relationships, those between husband and wife, parent and child, and siblings. All of these different relationships are explored  via the differing viewpoints, told in alternating chapters.  For me, the most illuminating were the accounts of both Tom and Isaac. Tom was a father trying to do his absolute best for his boys. But while reading I wondered if Anna had gene too far in pushing him away. Would he ever find his way back to her? As for Isaac, my heart broke for this little boy. He has had to grow up quickly, be independent and act very much like one of the adults. I wanted to reach into the book and give him a big cuddle. While reading about him I thought about my eldest little boy. I really do feel that the author got this sibling relationship spot on. It brought  a lump to my throat.

I would like to thank the author for writing such a beautiful novel that discusses family life with a disabled child. She doesn't shy away from the gritty difficulties, but tackles them head on in a sensitive and empathetic manner. 

The Way Back to Us is a novel about family, about disability, but most of all it is about hope and love. This is such a special book and I can't praise it highly enough. It's a must read. 

With thanks to the publisher and Bookbridgr for a paperback proof copy. 

The Way Back to Us was published by Hodder & Stoughton on August 10th.  It can be found on Amazon here.

Owl Song At Dawn by Emma Claire Sweeney

 Book description taken from Amazon 

Maeve Maloney is a force to be reckoned with. Despite nearing eighty, she keeps Sea View Lodge just as her parents did during Morecambe's 1950s heyday. But now only her employees and regular guests recognise the tenderness and heartbreak hidden beneath her spikiness.

Until, that is, Vincent shows up. Vincent is the last person Maeve wants to see. He is the only man alive to have known her twin sister, Edie. The nightingale to Maeve's crow, the dawn to Maeve's dusk, Edie would have set her sights on the stage all things being equal. But, from birth, things never were.

If only Maeve could confront the secret past she shares with Vincent, she might finally see what it means to love and be loved a lesson that her exuberant yet inexplicable twin may have been trying to teach her all along.

My review of Owl Song At Dawn

*My Book of the Year...*

As I started to type this review, a huge lump formed in my throat as I thought about all of the emotions that this book conjured up within me. It moved me on so many levels. So I will try my best to explain what this book means to me, and why I feel that everyone should read it.

Owl Song At Dawn is set in Morecambe, which is only down the road from where I live. As a northern novel there are many iconic landmarks and references that I could easily associate with, such as The Midland Hotel where I only recently had afternoon tea, Brucciani's that do wonderful coffees and ice creams, the Eric Morecambe statue and Marine Promenade. All of these made me feel as if I were visiting an old friend. It welcomed me in from the very first page... and I was hooked. 

The book centres around the main character of Maeve, who is now nearly in her eighties. The story is from Maeve 's point of view and we are told a story from her past that encroaches on her life today. The present day story takes place in Sea View Lodge, which is where Maeve runs a guest house, mainly catering for individuals with a disability and their carers. Along the way we are introduced to many colourful characters, but my heart was very much drawn to Len, who is employed as a gardener and who just happens to have Down's syndrome. 

Maeve is a force to be reckoned with. Throughout the book we learn that she is a strong woman who is intelligent, witty, speaks her mind, but who ultimately is a caring and loving woman. I love her.

It is through Maeve's flashbacks of her time living at Sea View Lodge, as a child and then young woman, that we are told about her life with her twin sister, Edie, who has a learning disability, severe physical disability and autism. We read letters from medical professionals and beautiful lyrical poems that encompass the true essence of her sister. It is the medical reports and correspondence though that very much upset me. The language that was used in the 50's to describe a young child, and then young woman, with a disability are quite frankly disturbing, disrespectful and show that they had very little understanding of how such terminology affected both the individual and carer.

Words and phrases such as suffering, sub normal and burden are commonplace. These individuals were seen as being less, as being different. The author though completely redresses the balance, in her depiction of Edie, who is a bright, loving and happy individual. It makes you as a reader question your own happiness and what is truly important in life. Indeed, what does make us happy? 

The scenes where a young Maeve and Edie are together, are what really touched me. The strong bond clearly evident between them on the page. Maeve did not see all of her sister's so called imperfections, which is what the professionals and system focussed upon, but rather Maeve saw her perfect sister, who loved to laugh, dance, sing and had beautiful curly hair. 

This book touched me deeply. I have never read a book quite like it. I was initially drawn to it because of the subject matter. The author herself has a sister with cerebral palsy and autism, and used this as inspiration for the story and for the colourful and enigmatic character of Edie. I myself have a young autistic son, and worked for many years as a nurse, and I was curious to see how the author would portray disability through her writing, as so many get it wrong. But this book tackles the subject with the upmost respect, dignity, empathy and oodles of humour. In particular the issues surrounding individuals with a learning disability and sexuality, is poignantly told, again with openness and humour. This is something that is often brushed under the carpet, a taboo, we shouldn't talk about it, but this author does, and it is so very refreshing. 

What I feel readers will gain by reading this book is that every life matters. That to have a disability does  not make you less. That those who care for an individual with a disability do not see someone who is broken or needs fixing, they just see someone who they love. This book is a raw, funny and honest read.

Most importantly, I now feel less alone. 

About Emma Claire Sweeney (taken from Amazon)

Emma Claire Sweeney is a multi-award-winning author of fiction, non-fiction and poetry, who currently teaches on City University’s Novel Studio and at New York University in London.

Emma was brought up in the North West of England, the elder sibling of twins, and OWL SONG AT DAWN is inspired by her autistic sister.

With her writer friend and colleague, Emily Midorikawa, she runs the website Something Rhymed, which shines a light on the forgotten friendships of the world’s most famous female authors.

Emma writes literary features, reviews, and pieces on disability for broadsheets and magazines.

Owl Song At Dawn was published by Legend Press on July 1st 2016. It is available to buy from Amazon here.