A limited number of signed copies are available directly from the author for £12.99 (free postage UK only).
This memoir offers a unique and moving insight into the life of an ordinary teenage girl coming of age in extraordinary times. You will feel as though you are there with Louise as she experiences the frustrations of missing out on a normal teenage life when Belfast erupts into violence in 1969.
She’s had enough of being confined to the house with her seven younger brothers, her chauvinistic father, and her strict, overbearing mother. Headstrong and determined, she refuses to accept that the freedom she has waited so patiently for is being taken away from her.
Like many girls her age, Louise is only interested in music, make-up, clothes, and boys but she finds herself surrounded by the unimaginable horror of a city slowly disintegrating before her eyes, with seemingly no escape.
Naïve and reckless, Louise takes chances and soon learns that not every family is like hers. What follows is a poignant, shocking and darkly humorous story that is, above all, a truthful account of a life interrupted.
Amazon and Goodreads Reviews
Wow! This book manages to capture a unique and deeply personal story set against a really difficult time in Irish history.
The way the author shares both her feelings and the events themselves in her writing is captivating. There are moments that are genuinely sad and moving, followed almost immediately by parts that had me laughing out loud, sometimes within the same section of the book.
What stood out most was the perspective, knowledge and real life experience woven throughout. At times, some parts are slower paced to provide the context needed for what follows as the story builds and becomes especially powerful in towards the end.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it.
AW on Amazon