My Mad Dad: The Diary of an Unravelling Mind

This us a wonderfully written true story. The author telling her story of returning home to look after her parents, both of who were ill. Her mother who suffered from cancer and her father the horrific Alzheimer’s. It is a very moving book. It’s frank, funny, and heartbreaking. The author’s relationship with her brother was lovely, and very special.

The author should be very proud of her work.

I didn't want to read this book but felt i ought to given my dad has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's.
I would say i admired the book enormously rather than enjoyed it but perhaps that's because it was illuminating a path i am partly on and that is quite terrifying.

I loved the brutal candour with which the author spoke about her family and herself and felt this was the most educational /instructive aspect of the book.

Like any other readers i laughed and cried throughout the short read - i did feel slightly sad that there seemed many more sad moments than funny but have reflected that in fact that is probably the case so the book accurately reflects the journey.

I would be careful about who i gave this book to but after some thought did give it to my mum who also found it an absorbing if somewhat harrowing read

This is a book everyone should read before they find themselves in this position. It was frank, funny, distressing and very readable. Robyn was lucky that she could drop everything and help her parents which many people in the same situation would not be able to do. I think this is why it was so readable as although it was sad and for her, frustrating, it was not full of desperation and despair. Robyn and her brother were in harmony with any decisions which emphasised how important it was that the family pulled together. The nursing staff were supportive and caring which is not always what you hear in these circumstances. A good manual for anyone who finds themselves in this position.

This book will have you laughing out loud one minute and the next you will be sobbing. Its tells the story of Robyn who along with her brother Gareth return to their home in Wales to care for their father who has Dementia. It's a powerful book that I would totally recommend. Some books you forget after you put them down, but this one is totally unforgettable.

I have great admiration for the author who gave up her career to become her Dad's carer who was suffering from early onset Alzheimer's and to also care so compassionately for her Mum who was subsequently diagnosed with terminal cancer.
Being written in diary form made it easy to read a very difficult topic. I felt she was incredibly frank with her feelings of frustration and dismay. It was peppered with moments that made me laugh and cry.
Some parts were very eloquent and had many resonances for me.
Moving forward from the untimely deaths of her parents it was good to read where she and her brother now were.

This is a nice and honest account of living with a person with a dementia. It is sometimes hysterical and at others heartbreaking, just like the disease itself. This book may be difficult if the reader is dealing with someone who is gradually melting. However, the author presents the joys as well as the tears that they will face.

A poignant, tender, humorous, and above all, loving, account of life with a parent suffering from dementia. This book made me both cry and laugh out loud. The author has been very courageous in voicing thoughts that others may have shied away from, the the book is all the more moving for it. I cannot recommend this book enough.

A very personal and frank memoir about a young 26-year old Robyn and her experienice being the primary carer for her Alzheimer-ridden Dad. The writing is honest and hard to read in parts. It is sad, but also there is humour sprinkled throughout. The devastation of the disease is lighten by retelling black humour tales of the things her father does unwittingly. I cried and laughed.

The story goes full circle, from when the author began to be the carer, and her unravelling, to ten years further down the track. This gives the book nice closure on a painful story. The writing is clear and simple, although, one bug bear - I would reduce the number of explanation marks. They are not needed, the writing speaks for itself.

I think one of the aims of the book is to talk openly about this disease, warts and all. We see the depths of despair, and the reality of living with Alzheimer’s. Neither is pretty but it is real life.

I enjoyed reading this book very much as it gives insight into mental health issues and the life of carers, both of which that have often remained in the dark for far too long. A well written account.

Thank you to the reading agency for providing Macclesfield Library Reading Group with ten copies of Robyn Hollingworth’s My Mad Dad. Our discussion revealed what an emotional impact this book had and how true it had chimed with personal experiences.
“An eye opening review of heart-breaking real life. As an adult child you hope that you will never have to cope with this but this was a fascinating insight of how it feels.”
“An honest and open account of dementia in the authors family from a young woman starting out in her career but willing to give it all up to be a carer. Poignant and sad and funny- all at the same time.”
“An honest, truthful and ultimately hopeful book.”
“Heartrending account of dealing with two ill parents, both of whom die in the space of a few months. Funny, annoying - so sad but ultimately showing how love in a family wins through.”
“The book helped to reassure me that some of the things I was thinking and feeling about my mum’s very recent death was normal. Thank you for being so open and honest about your experiences. Tough to read.”

At the age of 25, Robyn has left her rural childhood home in South Wales and established herself in London where she has a flat, a job and loads of friends. But then her beloved father develops early onset Alzheimers and her Mum is struggling to cope. Robyn makes the decision to return to South Wales and become a full-time carer for as long as she is needed. During that time she keeps a diary and this book, written in diary form, is based on the entries she made during this traumatic period in her life.

This really is an amazing book. The author has the ability and the courage to write in an almost jaunty style about a subject matter which is almost too ghastly to comprehend. This has the effect of making the book an easy, enjoyable read, accessible to all, whilst tackling very important issues that are neither trivialised nor glossed over. The result is a book that is both funny and heart-breaking in equal measures. The author is disarmingly honest about her feelings during this whole period, sharing with us her frustrations, her anger, her guilt, her tendency to laugh at inappropriate moments and a multitude of other emotions which are not often talked about in these circumstances. In response there were moments when I found myself either laughing out loud or crying (usually when it was most inconvenient – twice I had some very funny looks on a bus and realised that I had tears streaming down my cheeks). Whilst she admits that her public persona often contained elements of the typically British “stiff upper lip”, her diary entries are brutally candid and reveal the full gamut of her real feelings. Thankfully I have never experienced dementia first-hand in anybody who was close to me. This did not in any way detract from my enjoyment of the book. What’s more, I learnt a lot from it.

I do not have a bad word to say about the book. I was gripped from start to finish and really did not want it to end. My only adverse comment is that I do not feel that the title accurately reflects the book’s contents, possibly putting people off before they start. Personally I would not have bought the book if I saw it sitting on the shelf of a bookshop as I would have expected something very different.

Thank you Robyn. It is a wonderful book that I don’t think I will ever forget.