Author:Doreen Bates
'Unflinchingly honest... this diary is exceptional' Elizabeth Buchan
'Tuesday 23 October, 1934
Another glorious sunny day. Lunch in Kens Gdns. E had not slept well "as I longed and longed for you". It made me happy that he wanted me. I suppose that is mean. He said, "I could pick you out in the dark from fifty women . . ." '
The diary of Doreen Bates is a candid, spellbinding portrait of a gutsy young woman working in London in the years before and during the Second World War, as well as an extraordinary account of her long affair with an older, married colleague - one that brazenly challenged the strict conventions of the day.
'Startlingly frank and readable' David Kynaston
'Absolutely engrossing' Virginia Nicholson
'Astute, passionate, remarkably intimate, showing us the day-to-day picture of a long relationship' Guardian
An extraordinary book, and profoundly challenging to all one's notions of that era. To read about a normal, educated, sensible, middle class working woman of the 1930s, literate, musically aware, a fan of art and history, who makes moral decisions that would seem more at home in the swinging sixties, or much nearer than that to our own day, is quite amazing.
—— Julian FellowesDiary of a Wartime Affair by Doreen Bates does what it says, essentially a tale of the Blitz and fucking (her 1940s word, not mine), in a startlingly frank and readable way
—— David Kynaston , Guardian Books of the YearFascinating... I found [Doreen's] sophistication, startling modernity and sexual/emotional ups and downs absolutely engrossing. Doreen is a great character. She's a natural writer, with intriguing self-awareness, and persuasive insights on so many things: nature, food, romance, art... Above all, I loved her appetite for life and physical pleasure, and her lack of shame. It is extraordinary, the way she has stepped outside the conventional morality of her time. I am delighted Doreen Bates's diary is seeing the light of day
—— Virginia NicholsonThe explosive story of Bates's long affair with her colleague, William Evans, is recorded in the remarkably frank wartime diary that is finally published this year...
—— Daily Mail Book of the WeekAn unusually exact view of private life in the 1930s and 40s ... as seen through the eyes of an unusually intelligent witness: she is astute on questions of pacifism and is a passionate observer of nature. More important, it allows us a remarkably intimate window on to the complexities of a particular relationship... there aren't many diaries of this kind
—— GuardianA fascinating period piece
—— Sunday ExpressA remarkable record of private life in the years between 1934 and 1941 ... recounted with a precision and feeling that might break your heart. But it's droll and candid too ... a treat for anyone interested in the sturm and drang of life during wartime
—— Anthony Quinn , ObserverI absolutely loved it
—— Sarah WatersExceptional…Eger became a friend of Viktor Frankl…and The Choice is a wonderful companion piece to his classic memoir Man’s Search for Meaning. Both books are full of hope…and leave you marvelling at the resilience of mankind
—— Daily ExpressOne of the most incredible [stories] I’ve ever read – and one you must read too
—— SunIt will inevitably be filmed. Read the book first
—— The Observer & Guardian onlineRocket-fuelled inspiration
—— PsychologiesDeeply moving...extraordinary insight...It is not surprising that, when Eger speaks, her audiences are roused to give her a standing ovation. For they are not only honouring Edith Eger but also the triumph of the human spirit.
—— Jewish ChronicleImportant...gripping...a universal message of hope.
—— Philip Zimbardo, author of , The Lucifer EffectA beautiful memoir, reminiscent of the great works of Anne Frank and Viktor Frankl. But it is more than a book—it’s a work of art. It gave me goosebumps, the kind that grace you in transcendent moments of appreciating a Mozart sonata, an Elizabeth Barrett Browning sonnet, or the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel
—— Adam Grant, New York Times bestselling author of GIVE AND TAKE, ORIGINALS, and OPTION B with Sheryl SandbergEdith Eva Eger is my kind of hero. She survived unspeakable horrors and brutality; but rather than let her painful past destroy her, she chose to transform it into a powerful gift – one she uses to help others heal.
—— Jeannette Walls, New York Times bestselling author of The Glass CastleThis warm, compassionate and truly extraordinary book is much more than a remarkable Holocaust survivor story. It is at heart an examination of the human spirit and how it can be helped to survive after trauma. Like Man's Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl, a more important book for our times is hard to imagine.
—— The BooksellerCompelling and irresistible. A genuine, honest-to-goodness life-changer.
—— Good HousekeepingInspirational
—— ExpressPowerful ... hard to put down.
—— Choice MagazineComparisons to Man's Search for Meaning are natural but this work has the potential to be even more bold.
—— Michael Berenbaum, Former Project Director, US Holocaust Memorial MuseumThe distressed fabric of the author's traumatic past becomes a beautiful backdrop for a memoir written with integrity and conviction...A searing, astute study of intensive healing and self-acceptance through the absolution of suffering and atrocity.
—— Kirkus Reviews[Night Sky with Exit Wounds] is delicate, intimate and political.
—— Deborah LevySometimes, I think of it as a song cycle; sometimes, a book of poems; sometimes, an epic. Vuong puts himself at the centre of this collection in an astonishing way, even as he is also entirely willing to set himself aside.
—— Alexander Chee , FriezeOcean Vuong’s Night Sky With Exit Wounds... is beguiling and sublime.
—— Diana Evans , GuardianVuong's voice is unique and inspires empathy.
—— Eva Waite-Taylor , IndependentBeautiful... [Night Sky With Exit Wounds] is pretty special.
—— Francesca Hayward , ObserverI loved Dadland for its tenderness, humour and candour. It has begun to open the door for me to what may well lie ahead in my life, in so many of our lives, in terms of ageing parents. And it has also taught me something deeply moving about tolerance, and about love
—— Robert MacfarlaneA wonderful, haunting and beautifully written memoir... I found myself laughing out loud at times and, at others, unable to hold back the tears... An absolutely stunning book
—— James HollandDadland has the weight of family love but fizzes along in accessible and dynamic prose, highly recommended
—— Andrew McMillanA mesmerising performance by a natural storyteller gifted with the most seductive material possible, in the wild and wonderful life of her exasperating Irish father. Pain and annoyance is transmuted into pure narrative gold, as Keggie Carew interrogates the legend of this wartime adventurer and the bitter comedy of his domestic relationships and his late decline. A brave, risk-taking tale that alarms, delights and moves. As soon as you come to the end, you want to start again, to see if those things really happened
—— Iain SinclairYou love these people from the first page ... As Tom's life falls apart memory by memory, Keggie is picking it up again and her storytelling is spell-binding. Effortlessly readable, this is a delight combining laughter - and tears, yes, quite a few of those.
—— ConnexionCompelling
—— Charlotte Heathcote , Daily ExpressA moving memoir-cum-biography.
—— Molly McCloskey , Irish TimesBy some margin my Book of the Month... A detective story, a family history, a thrilling tale of derring-do, and the most distinctive and affecting memoir I’ve read since H is for Hawk.
—— BooksellerUtterly remarkable, and beautifully evoked… Dadland is a completely riveting, deeply poignant “manhunt” for which I predict great things.
—— BooksellerDadland, by Keggie Carew, is being tipped for award-winning breakout success in the vein of H is for Hawk
—— Jon Coates , Sunday ExpressIt’s an exorcism, ghost-hunt and swim through the archipelago of her father’s shattered self… The author’s descriptions have an easy lyricism.
—— Ed Cripps , Times Literary SupplementThe old question 'what did you do in the war, Dad?' has never had a more surprising or moving answer.
—— David HepworthWarm and funny, sometimes regretful and sad, but overall a read like a rollercoaster. Wonderful.
—— Western Morning NewsYou know the saying that everyone has a book in them? Well, unless your book is as good as this, I'd give up right now
—— Daily Mail , Markus BerkmannYou know the saying that everyone has a book in them? Well, unless your book is as good as this, I’d give up right now… This gripping book, written with real verve and a narrative expertise that wouldn’t shame a veteran.
—— Sally Morris , Daily MailA brilliant, bittersweet biography.
—— Cornelia Parker , ObserverKeggie’s writing is immersive… She writes with a warmth and generosity about her father, a man who was a genuine character and hero.
—— Paul Cheney , NudgeDadland is deeply personal. But it is also the story of our generations: people touched by war and by Alzheimer’s
—— Charlotte Heathcote , Daily Express