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Post by claire on Aug 28, 2007 6:04:38 GMT
I have got it yet but some of you have already started to talk about. Get posting here
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Post by Oonagh on Aug 28, 2007 17:25:46 GMT
i read this book by the pool while on hols. what a nice relaing book on hols to reade. I enjoyed it immensely. grace was a lovely character all of teh characters were brillant. I loved the way she spoke about depression and i loved the way she included the name of the tablet. thats the nurse coming out in me. I could totally understand this happening after having a child. i must admit i have the greatest respect for mothers now after seeing my sister have the twins. Claire i loved it when is the next book out???
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Post by fionnuala on Aug 28, 2007 21:55:07 GMT
I agree Oons - its lovely when someone can speak so honestly and frankly about depression! I think that Claire has done a lot to convince women who suffer from PND or any other type of depression that its nothing to be ashamed of!
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Post by megan on Aug 29, 2007 9:41:15 GMT
Also how normal it is!!! I mean with the lives women are leading these days - full time jobs, often a horrendous commute to work and looking after their children, while also appearing attractive and dying for sex with their husbands (according to the magazines and TV programmes) it is no wonder at all that many women are stressed out and depressed. I think Grace disappearing off to the hotel room for one night was a very sensible thing to do. She was in meltdown - Claire described it so well. When I was reading it I was thinking 'I bet loads of working mothers feel exactly the same'. Society puts huge demands on women. (and on men too but in different ways.) I am just surprised that not ALL women aren't turning up at the doctors no longer able to cope. Perhaps they are but we just don't hear about it!! Another thing I was wondering at the end of the book was 'Yes, her marriage is sorted out for now and she has resolved those issues from her childhood' but how will her life pan out from now on? She will still be working full time and missing her son while she is away from work. How will she cope with that??? Claire, if you're reading this. I'd love to know what you think.
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Post by claireallan on Aug 30, 2007 20:27:22 GMT
Hiya girls, first of all thank you for the nice comments. I really wanted a book which broke down taboos about depression and not only that which showed that you don't have to be wanting to slit your wrists to be feeling down. So many women are walking around feeling so very low but thinking "well I'm not crying every day so this must be how it is meant to be."
As for the end of the book - I wanted to leave it relatively open ended. I wanted people to think Grace had the tools to continue changing her life, but that she did still have a journey to take. I personally hate books where a quick half a stone weight loss sorts out every problem you ever had!
I do have very tentative plans to bring Grace back for my fourth book. I don't know how it will pan out, but I would love to update people on how she is doing. (It's bizarre but she really does live her own wee life in my head, as do my other main characters). The thing is, at the end of the book, she has her confidence back and has the confidence to make big decisions - so life gets very interesting for her.
A lot of people are interested to know if she goes on to have another baby, and if Daisy and Dishy get married. A lot of people know how they want her life to work out and I think it is good people can draw their own conclusions.
But all being well, I'm going to bring her back and you can all find out what is going on in my head!
As for the next book, it's due out next summer. It's written - just in rewrites at the moment - and it tells the story of two best friends - one with an unplanned pregnancy and one who is experiencing fertility problems.
Thanks again.
C x
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Post by fionnuala on Aug 30, 2007 21:24:49 GMT
I'm so glad that you're going to bring Grace back Claire - she deserves another airing and we all deserve to know what she 's been doing all this time! I think its also nice that you're not doing a continuation straight away as I think the many reader's that have enjoyed your book will be pleasantly surprised to see her make a comeback later when she's had the chance to live a bit more and we can find out what she's been up to (or rather what's been going on in your wee head!!)
I like the sound of your second book - there's a bit about pregnancy verses fertility problems in my third book although its not the main plot which is more centred around families and step families and the pressures involved.
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Post by megan on Aug 31, 2007 9:30:57 GMT
Thanks for getting back to us Claire. It is such a treat to get the author's point of view and thoughts. I also hate books where the heroine is suddenly fine once she loses half a stone. Ridiculous!! And you're right about Grace - I am wondering how things will work out for her in the future. Also about depression. I think a lot of women feel low for a very long time and don't know why.
I'm looking forward to lots more books from you!
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Post by Oonagh on Sept 1, 2007 15:38:22 GMT
Yeah i like draibng my own conclusions to what happened to characters. Ill look forward to the book next summer.
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Post by charlene on Sept 5, 2007 20:14:00 GMT
well I could talk about this book all day, I loved it and as a woman who suffered bad postnatal depression and I also suffer recurrences of depression I totally understood Grace, but do you know what I loved ? How I could laugh while reading the book it was done so brilliantly. I'm not going to pour my heart out on an open forum but I didn't go through exactly the same as Grace but similar situations came up. I t was a good feel book even though the subject was dark [does that make sense] Its true what you say megan about women we have so much to do these days I say I'm a cook, a nurse, a cleaner, and still try to keep things alive in our marriage not easy while I work aswell but it gets done, don't get me wrong I love my kids with a passion but its hard work. see I feel guilty for just typing the above. one part I can totally relate to in the book someone said to Grace or Grace asked herself sorry I can't remember, why she was so unhappy she had a lovely son a husband a house well I remember my brother came and I was crying and he said the same I had two lovely healthy boys I had Jason Ihad my house why would I be so sad? Its so hard to understand unless you go through it. See I'm opening up and I said I wouldn't Claire it was a fantastic read and I can't wait for your next one.
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Post by claireallan on Sept 5, 2007 20:48:36 GMT
Thanks Charlene - I'm glad it resonated with you. I think it is such a shame that depression, and esp post natal depression, is a taboo subject when soooo many women are going through it.
And I'm really glad it made you laugh! Thanks.
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Post by fionnuala on Sept 5, 2007 20:55:17 GMT
Charlene I went through a similar phase after Aine was born - I wouldn't say that I had post natal depression exactly I just think that it was stress brought on by life in general at a time when I should have been happy and enjoying my wee baby! Philip, my other half, was going through a particularly nasty family court case with his ex wife and life was just really stressful -
I went to a doctor (not Dishy) and got anti depressants which I'm still on and which are really helping me (even though I had to have a gun put to my head to agree to them in the first place.) This is something else which I think Claire achieved with her book - she talks so easily about depression and the tablets and everything that I think she's def broke a few barriers.
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Post by charlene on Sept 5, 2007 21:11:54 GMT
sorry it took a while to get back I stayed logged in oops I still take antidepressants sometimes I worry about still being on them but the doctor is happy [hes not Dishy hes a she lol] and I still get bad days even though I take antidepressants
I had really bad PND James was 8 months old and my heatlh visitor told me she thought I had it, well I was in denial [sp] no way I said, not me I'm fine, she doesnt know what shes talking about but I faced it in the end , I thought I was going crazy, I am so much better now I would say I have depression not PND anymore.
Rainydays was such a rare book for me no book I have read to date has delt with it in such a good way. I never even guessed by the title waht the book was about my favourite line of the book was when Grace first went to the doctors and she said she came out like Charlie Bucket clutching her golden ticket, her prescription, I love it.
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Post by fionnuala on Sept 5, 2007 22:40:28 GMT
I think the bottom line is that when you write about something that you know and have experienced yourself that other people who have had similar experiences will instantly feel a connection and say 'yeah I've been there. I've felt that way.'
I'm still on the anti depressants too and like you Charlene I still have my off moments when I feel like going into a field somewhere and having a good roar! Life is not easy when you're a mother. I have three children and two step children who have spent a lot of time, over this past year and a half, feeling very confused and naturally then taking out their frustrations on us!!! Having said that it's not all doom and gloom and I feel that I'm coping much better now and given the choice would not swap any of the wee ones for the world as I love them all dearly!
It's no wonder I write - I love the escapism factor!!!!!
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Post by nicc on Sept 6, 2007 0:10:24 GMT
Girls I feel exactly the same. I'm not on anti depressants or depressed or anything though. I do think I might of had a touch of PND after tianna was born but never spoke to anyone about it. I love my kids to bits but there are some days where I just wanted to run away so I could totally understand Grace taking off for the night. I just feel overwhelmed by everything some days. That is why I liked this book as I could really feel what the character was giong through. I couldn't stand Daisy though. I wouldn't like a friend like her.
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