- Paperback: 198 pages
- Publisher: lulu.com (5 Feb 2010)
- ISBN-10: 1445257092
- ISBN-13: 978-1445257099
- Product Dimensions: 21 x 14.8 x 1.1 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,388,855 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
Heather was a long time teacher. Not just any old teacher, but a teacher for children with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. Always their champion, she begins her story with the fun and games of her career. She loved her job. She loved the children she taught.Heather had a successful career of thirty one years as a teacher, something she was passionate about improving the lives of children everyday schools couldn't cope with until one day her head called her in to his office and told her that one of the children had made an allegation against her. This was the start of her nightmare which led her eventually after six long months of waiting and growing disbelief to the interview room in the police station, to sessions with a psychiatrist and to thoughts of suicide. Severe depression became a fact of life. This is the agonising account of the ship wreck of one person's life where tenacity and a refusal to give in have led to the writing of this incredible but true story.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
A really good read, but more than that, it touches nerves on many limbs. The principal thrust is a fight
with the education authorities following false allegations from a student, but the raw honesty describing the personal aftermath could provide support and solace for many depression
sufferers. There is little accessible literature on this topic and it
is much needed and little discussed.
And what a personal story! How dreadful and heart rending, but
uplifting too. A joyous rich vocation in the first half of this page turner is impoverished and ultimately destroyed by red tape and mindless, unfeeling bureaucracy. I have recommended it to friends
in education and special needs, but also to friends who suffer silently from
depression and will find it supportive to know they are not alone. Only criticism: a surfeit of exclamation marks when the text is powerful enough without them.
with the education authorities following false allegations from a student, but the raw honesty describing the personal aftermath could provide support and solace for many depression
sufferers. There is little accessible literature on this topic and it
is much needed and little discussed.
And what a personal story! How dreadful and heart rending, but
uplifting too. A joyous rich vocation in the first half of this page turner is impoverished and ultimately destroyed by red tape and mindless, unfeeling bureaucracy. I have recommended it to friends
in education and special needs, but also to friends who suffer silently from
depression and will find it supportive to know they are not alone. Only criticism: a surfeit of exclamation marks when the text is powerful enough without them.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I just finished reading Boy, am I mad? It is an honest and raw account of how a dedicated teacher almost has her life ruined when a false allegation is made by a child. It's so frustrating to read what she had to endure as a result of this one false allegation. She describes how she was plummeted into the dark world of clinical reactionary depression. It's a heart rending story, and anybody who has ever suffered from depression, in any form, could probably relate to at least some of what this author went through.
It's tragic and frustrating to read about how a thirty year career was ruined in an instant, and it's shocking to think that this is a common occurrence. The knock-on effects of an allegation such as this are far reaching. The way the whole thing was handled was appalling.
Despite her deep depression, Heather manages to find the strength to fight back, and eventually re-gain some of her old life(although she is changed forever). My respect to Heather for sharing her story in this well written and captivating book. It takes courage to talk about depression. This book will be a useful tool for anybody who has suffered from it.
It's tragic and frustrating to read about how a thirty year career was ruined in an instant, and it's shocking to think that this is a common occurrence. The knock-on effects of an allegation such as this are far reaching. The way the whole thing was handled was appalling.
Despite her deep depression, Heather manages to find the strength to fight back, and eventually re-gain some of her old life(although she is changed forever). My respect to Heather for sharing her story in this well written and captivating book. It takes courage to talk about depression. This book will be a useful tool for anybody who has suffered from it.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a book everyone who works with children but especially all teachers should read - no hardship there - once you pick it up you'll be reluctant to put it down. The first half of the book is a joy to read as we get to know Heather and her pupils through anecdotes that bring them to life. Her vocation shines through each episode she describes and we can't help but admire her dedication. The affectionate portraits of different characters endear them to us though if you are a teacher you might be glad they were in her class, not yours! The second part of the book comes like a slap in the face as all the hard work, all the striving to bring out the best in her pupils is lost in one minute on the word of a disturbed pupil whose motive we never understand but who Heather never blames because she knows his background - it is not one to be envied. The ensuing story is not a happy one as we read of Heather's treatment at the hands of the jobsworths in authority. Why did no one take the time to find out that she had never been alone with this or any other pupil? Was it not a cause for concern that this pupil had already made 5 false allegations? Why had she not been warned of this fact? This book begs the question - do adults who work with children have any rights? As false allegations increase year on year and careers are lost, how do we protect children and at the same time ensure that the teachers who work so hard to educate them are not put in jeopardy by a lack of common sense and fair play. If we don't sort out this dilemma, both children and the adults who have contact with them will be the losers.
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