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Book Details:
Book Title:
The Boy Between - A Mother and Son's Journey from a World Gone Grey by
Amanda Prowse and Josiah Hartley
Category: Adult Non-Fiction (18+), 286 pages
Genre:
Author Memoir, Family
Publisher: Little A
Release date: November 2020
Content Rating: R: 1. Infrequent use of F word in
context (estimated 10 times in book), 2. Mildly questions religious faith
during a testing time, 3. References to thoughts about suicide (not graphic)
"A candid, moving and inspirational book, I am blown away.”
Jonny Benjamin MBE, award-winning mental health campaigner and author
of The Stranger on the Bridge
Josiah was nineteen with the world at his feet when things changed.
Without warning, the new university student’s mental health deteriorated
to the point that he planned his own death. His mother, bestselling author
Amanda Prowse, found herself grappling for ways to help him, with no clear
sense of where that could be found. This is the book they wish had been
there for them during those dark times. Josiah’s situation is not unusual:
the statistics on student mental health are terrifying. And he was not the
only one suffering; his family was also hijacked by his illness, watching
him struggle and fearing the day he might succeed in taking his life. In
this book, Josiah and Amanda hope to give a voice to those who suffer, and
to show them that help can be found. It is Josiah’s raw, at times bleak,
sometimes humorous, but always honest account of what it is like to live
with depression. It is Amanda’s heart-rending account of her pain at
watching him suffer, speaking from the heart about a mother’s love for her
child. For anyone with depression and anyone who loves someone with
depression, Amanda and Josiah have a clear message—you are not alone, and
there is hope.
Guest Post
NOBODY SAID IT WOULD BE
EASY…
Amanda: Co-authoring a book with my son was certainly
not without its challenges. The thing is, I am used to working on my own. A
lone pajama clad wolf that tip-taps away without regard for anyone else’s
input. And in truth - I have learnt that this is how I like to work! However, I feel very privileged to have had
an insight into Josh’s experience with depression and his attempt at suicide. His
honesty and bravery was outstanding and moving. It was at times harrowing for
me to hear the desperate detail. It’s fair to say we didn’t hold back, knowing
that no matter how raw, we needed to be open in order to make the book the very
best it could be.
Ultimately,
working with my son has helped me understand the debilitating nature of
depression in ways I didn’t before, and if anything has made me even more
determined to do my utmost to keep him here. Because at the end of the day, we
might be co-authors, colleagues, peers…
but first and foremost, Josh is my son.
My heart and the thought of living on a planet without him on it is
something I can’t begin to think about.
Josiah: I
thought dyslexia was going to be the biggest problem when writing my first book
but it turned out that it was actually spending eight hours a day with my mother
that would be the greatest challenge! It was nerve-wracking having to share for
the first time, dark thoughts that I had previously kept to myself and seeing
the effect they had on others.
Mum
having written over 25 books and this being my first, meant we approached the
writing process very differently and this initially created tensions until we
found our rhythm. Then the writing just flowed. Amanda’s style is to almost
attack the keyboard whereas mine was slightly more considered; it took a few
weeks for us to reach a balance. The whole process of discussion and writing
has been emotionally draining but ultimately cathartic. It has allowed me to
view my illness and that period of my life from a different perspective,
enabling me to reconfigure some of my darker moments into more manageable ones.
I’m immensely proud of The Boy Between and hope it gives insight to those who
want to better understand what it’s like living with depression, but also
offers hope to those that do.
Amanda Prowse is an award winning international bestselling author best
known for her contemporary fiction novels. A radio broadcaster and TV
presenter renowned for her empathetic and emotional books, she is known in
the UK as the 'Queen of family drama'. Her books have sold over 8 million
copies in dozens of languages around the world.
Josiah (Josh) Hartley is the son of Amanda Prowse who has co-authored
with his mother to tell the story of his journey through life so far. Born
in the England, Josh was fortunate enough to attend one of the country's
elite public schools from an early age and was awarded a place at one of
the UK's top Universities where he planned to work towards a medical
doctorate. But just at the moment when he should have been having the time
of his life, he started feeling nagging tugs of self-doubt which spiralled
into a depression during which time he planned his suicide. Luckily, his
family intervened and after a roller coaster couple of years, he is alive
and well and sharing his story to help other families who find themselves
in the same position navigate their way through those difficult
times.
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