Madeleine [Hardcover]

Some reasonably interesting background to Kate's life but for anyone looking for the truth behind what happened to Madeleine this book can't be recommended.

Kate fails to grasp the simple principle that if she says she wasn't there when Madeleine disappeared how can she be so sure about what happened to her? If she really does know what happened to Madeleine then well...

When Madeleine McCann disappeared in 2007, everyone hoped that she would soon be found and reunited with her family. Tragically, this has not yet happened and her disappearance remains a mystery. What has added to the story is the fact that Madeleine and her twin siblings were left alone in their apartment over a number of nights while their parents got together with friends in a tapas bar.

It's easy to criticise and, of course, everyone is more knowing with hindsight. However, I really could not understand how anyone could leave three young children alone for any length of time. I was therefore intrigued to see what Kate McCann would say about the events before and after the abduction of her eldest child.

A number of things angered me in her account of events. She says that she did not wish to leave her children with someone neither she nor they knew, but this seems a rather illogical comment in the circumstances. She says herself that she was happy to leave all three children at the clubs run by the Mark Warner company and, indeed, mentions how good the nannies were in dealing with them. Why not hire one of them for the nights in question or ask if they could recommend someone they could trust? I know from personal experience in babysitting that children can seem perfectly okay one minute and the next, they are crying for their Mum and Dad. Children that young can't "plan" their emotions like adults - they tend to vary a great deal from minute to minute. Even if they were upset by the absence of their parents and the presence of an "unknown" babysitter, that is a far better state of affairs than leaving them on their own.

It was also disturbing to read her version of events concerning Madeleine's comment shortly before her abduction ("Why didn't you come when Sean and I cried last night?"). As the little girl didn't expand on this when her parents asked her what caused her to cry, we can only guess at what took place. It could have been a number of things - one of them woke up from a bad dream, started crying and triggered off a similar response from their sibling, for instance. However, Kate McCann now states that someone was trying to get into the apartment that night who disturbed them. I don't know that this necessarily makes sense in the context of events here. If this had happened, my guess is that Madeleine would have said something to her parents rather than leave the question unanswered. She would have been frightened by the presence of a stranger, and worried that this would happen again the next night. I can't believe that she would have kept quiet about what would have been a terrifying incident for her. Even putting this to the side, the fact that Kate McCann was not concerned about continuing to leave the children on their own is upsetting.

She also mentions a small stain on Madeleine's pyjamas which looked like a tea stain; however, after the abduction, this now takes on a more sinister aspect and becomes evidence (now lost) of the little girl being drugged. However, is this necessarily true? If someone did drug her, why did she not mention anything to her parents? And why would her abductor risk going into the apartment more than once, rather than take her at the first opportunity?

Even leaving aside the position of the parents in the disappearance of their little girl, other comments in the book seemed inappropriate. Kate McCann says that she did not lose a stone in weight immediately after her abduction, but says it was more like four and a half pounds. How could she be so precise about this? And does it really matter in the circumstances?

She says that they wanted the news coverage to be about Madeleine and not "The Kate and Gerry Show", yet the photographs in the book include a number of the couple on their honeymoon. Why did they want these published? Are they necessary or relevant?

There are a couple of other comments involving Madeleine which I found disturbing. Kate McCann talks of the day of her birthday which arrived only a few days after she disappeared, and mentions the plans for her party which involved a disco. She also mentions the CDs she'd bought in advance to play, which Madeleine was listening to in the car. She was "singing her heart out along with the Pussycat Dolls". This group are known for their raunchy routines, and I found it distasteful that their songs would have been played at a party for four year old girls.

In the final chapter, Kate McCann talks of life back home and the adjustments they have had to make as a family. She mentions seeing her husband with the twins either side of him, clearly upset because they were watching the episode of "Doctor Who" which was Madeleine's favourite. I can't believe a very young child would really understand what is going on in a typical programme and, of course, there are several scary moments involving monsters featuring regularly. It isn't something I would recommend for a girl that young.

So where does this leave us? I would hope that Madeleine is found safe and well - we all do, but I do think the twins must be suffering too and I equally hope that they find the strength to go through life whatever happens.

To be honest I wasn't sure if I wanted to read this as I already knew the stories behind what had happened and didnt think there would be anything else to add to this. However, I thought that coming from the mother of the child that was missing then we would see something a bit more in depth.

I was really disappointed. I thought this book would start perhaps with the decision to go on that fateful holiday and give us all the information from there onwards from Kates point of view, but I really have no interest in how Kate met Gerry, nor her career and found it a bit irrelevant to the story. I thought the idea of the book was about the disappearance of their daughter but maybe I had the wrong impression of it before I had even started it.

As a parent I cant imagine what they must be going through, but they are the ones that have to live with the knowledge that their own actions played a part in their daughters disappearance. I find it very hard to believe that 2 medical professionals would be happy to leave 3 very young children alone no matter how close they thought they were. Irrespective of that, I didnt finish this book because it just wasnt what I thought it would be. I dont think I would recommend this book to someone else to read.