Author:Sandra Horley
‘Give this book to a sister, a mother, a friend; it may change her life.’ LAUREN LAVERNE
One in four women will experience domestic violence. We all know a woman whose life is dominated and controlled by her partner – and we might not even realise it.
Many women find themselves in the thrall of the Charm Syndrome Man, a man whose distinct pattern of behaviour and use of charm ultimately serves to gain control over the woman. In the new edition of her classic work, Sandra Horley CBE draws on almost four decades supporting abused women to provide an insight into the reality behind the mask of the charming man.
The book's aim is to show women they are not alone and to help them walk away from the confusing, dangerous situation they find themselves in. Even after devastating emotional and physical abuse, there is hope. This is a story of courage and strength, told by women who have reclaimed their lives so that others may too.
This truly is the inside story of Andy and Jamie's remarkable rise. Compelling...This is a positive, life-affirming view.
—— Alan Patullo , Scotland on SundayA cracking book
—— Chris Evans breakfast show, BBC Radio 2A fascinating and incriminating document. As well as mapping out the travails of tennis parenthood, it offers a window into generations of patronising, belittling attitudes to women in sport… She should be considered a national treasure
—— Simon Briggs , Daily TelegraphJudy's account is honest and open... She is passionate about getting children into sport...Judy Murray has plenty to feel proud about.
—— ScotsmanQuite simply, she is inspirational, passionate and great fun
—— Kirsty Wark , ObserverA life both defined and enriched by tennis, which reveals a woman whose own achievements are no less impressive than those of her superstar sons
—— Radio TimesIf ever there was a Bible for believing in yourself and having the courage to follow your dreams, Judy Murray’s can’t-put-down autobiography is it… Absolutely riveting
—— SagaFrom the soggy community courts of Dunblane to the white heat of Centre Court at Wimbledon, her extraordinary memoir… charts the challenges she has faced, from desperate finances and growing pains to entrenched sexism
—— Sporting LifeWe all need a story of “yes we can” to make us believegreat things are possible. Here it is
—— Eastern Daily PressThis is a fascinating insight into what it takes to raise world-beating tennis players, shot through with wit and wisdom
—— Muddy StilettosJudy Murray is the ultimate role model for believing in yourself and reaching out to ambition… We all need a story of “yes we can” to make us believe great things are possible. This is that story
—— No. 1Judy Murray, the greatest tennis coach that Britain has produced, writes movingly in this autobiography about the agonies of self-consciousness inflicted on her by becoming a publicly scrutinised mother figure… Everybody loved her after Strictly Come Dancing, of course. Yet, as this autobiography reminds us, we should have loved her sooner
—— Giles Smith , The TimesAmusing and edifying
—— Washington Post (on The Distraction Addiction)Skeptical without pandering to technophobia or neuroscience
—— The New Yorker (on The Digital Distraction)It is simple and immediate, and is all about love and loss… an astonishing feat
—— Sunday TimesVery intimate and full of love
—— Belfast TelegraphI am impressed by his responsiveness, the nuanced intelligence with which he speaks.
—— Kate Kellaway , GuardianCourageous and inspirational, without a wasted word
—— KirkusWhat he makes me see is how the personal is a possession and that this is especially true for everyone involved in the Bataclan tragedy because the personal was – and still is – in danger of being swamped by the public story of international terrorism.
—— Kate Kellaway , ObserverHe had deliberately retreated from the world that was talking incessantly about the slaughter… If Antoine refused to give his hate to the men who killed his wife and so many others, he also refuses to give them space in his life and that of his now two-year-old son.
—— Joe O'Shea , Belfast Telegraph MorningHe looked at the words on the screen as the news networks competed to find words to describe the events: massacre, carnage, bloodbath. He wanted to scream, but couldn’t because of Melvil… Initially resistant to spending time with fellow mourners, Antoine discovered that there is a kind of brotherhood, a feeling of recognition, that can provide consolation.
—— Cathy Rentzenbrink , Pool[A] beautifully written memoir… It’s the hardest book you can pick up this year, but also the most affecting.
—— GQIt is a personal account of the aftershock following the atrocity. Yet there is no gore, no torture, no scene-setting, no facts putting the Isis-claimed retaliation in context, no second-hand reports of what happened inside the theatre… Instead, it is simple and immediate, and is all about love and loss… This book may also be Leiris’s way of just holding it together. One feels he is writing as the man he was before that November day that changed everything… It is the literary equivalent of smelling her clothes every night before attempting to sleep.
—— Helen Davies , Sunday TimesA book for our times.
—— Mark Lawson , Guardian, Book of the YearThis book is a love song to Hélène, a promise to Melvil and a resolution not to be defeated by chaos and barbarity. It is a stunning mission statement.
—— Claire Looby , Irish TimesThis heartbreaking and beautifully written memoir lays bare the terrible chronology of grief, but it is also a testimony to the power of love and hope.
—— Jane Shilling , Daily MailIt’s an agonising account of those first few days, in which the lives of father and son changed forever. Despite the haste with which it was written, every word is chosen with care and charged with meaning, a raw and honest memoir of grief which can’t fail to move all who read it.
—— Alastair Mabbott , Herald ScotlandIf ever there was a lesson in living the fullest, most passionate life you can, this is it! I Found My Tribe is one of the most moving memoirs I have ever read. Living with her husband Simon, who was diagnosed with motor neuron disease and her five children, Ruth Fitzmaurice writes so honestly and vividly about her family's life that you will think about the Fitzmaurice's long after you have turned the final page. It is beautifully written with clever descriptions and vivid imagery that will take your breath away. Writing to the background noise of Simon's medical machines, twenty four hour carers and five children, Ruth candidly writes about her life as she navigates various different themes including grief, friendship and love and the strength she has in the face of adversity… I found my tribe is an uplifting powerful memoir that will make you laugh and cry in equal measures. I urge everyone to read it
—— Adele O'Neill , Irish IndependentBeautiful…There is huge passion in Fitzmaurice’s writing.
—— Sophie White , Image MagazineA surprisingly uplifting read
—— Arifa Akbar , Observer