The father I had
By: Martin Townsend.
Publisher: Bantam Press
Published: 2007
Place of publication: London
Language: eng
Number of pages: 376
ISBN-13: 9780593057568
Subjects: Townsend, Martin.; Townsend, Ron.; Manic-depressive persons -- Family relationships -- Great Britain.; Fathers and sons.
Description: "Martin Townsend grew up with a father, Ron, who had suffered recurring mental illness since the early 1950s. At the slightest emotional trigger he could turn from a loving and compassionate dad - adored by his family and friends - to a restless, dead-eyed depressive or a spiteful, bullying monster. One moment he could be building his sons a play-house, the next terrorizing the family and smashing up the council house he had struggled so hard to get. Martin recounts his mother Peggy's courageous struggle to keep her family together in the face of bitter provocation, and his father's battles with his own parents, who were torn between love for their son and their inability to face up to the reality of his illness." "In The Father I Had, Martin Townsend paints a portrait of life with his dad. He describes the roller-coaster route of an illness that is still widely misunderstood but which touches the lives of millions of people. From the soaring, often hilarious 'highs' to the horrific 'lows' of his father's three suicide attempts, he tells a story of pain, courage and resilience. He remembers a father he loved unconditionally - but who would turn on him, as the eldest son, whenever the illness took hold."--BOOK JACKET.