Every day was wretched for me and, apart from being in the church choir, the only solace I found was to go to our school library to take a book home.  I chose The Famous Five, written by Enid Blyton, now a Dame, but back then my mother disapproved of her writing.  At that time my dyslexia was undiagnosed but I could manage to read her books rather than the classics my mother would have preferred I read.

 

Those books hooked me into a different place where I had comradeship and safety.  I went with the characters on adventures and picnics where they had food; we had bread!

 

When I immersed myself into those books I felt safe and empowered.  I knew that one day when I was older, my hell would be over.  It was then that I knew the power of reading and how immersing oneself could help anyone rise above adversity.

 

Since then, throughout life’s difficulties, I continued to read in order to find a safe emotional space to “be”, and this has been the driving force behind me writing ten therapeutic novels to help suicidal teenagers.  In the “I Only Said” series I have provided a safe literary space with three trustworthy adults, so that they can face their pain and find effective coping skills…

“A place to rest and grow”.