KATE LONG

The Academic Bad Mother's Handbook

I was delighted to hear that 'The Bad Mother’s Handbook' is referenced in this academic text, 'Family History in Lancashire: Issues and Approaches', edited by Andrew Gritt.

I met one of the authors, Stephen Caunce, when I went to speak to a group at Preston University a few years ago and he asked me then whether he could include TBMH in his chapter ‘Autobiography and Fiction as Sources for Family and Community History’.

His interest is in the way fiction can capture the domestic culture of a region or social class, and how we can use fiction to chart the changes between one period and the next.

He compares the TBMH with other fiction by Lancashire writers, but distinguishes it from earlier novels in that it portrays a more fragmented family unit, comprising individuals affected by (amongst other things) vastly increased aspirations and mass media influences.

The section concludes:

"[The Bad Mother’s Handbook] will be most useful to future historians researching the dynamic and evolving sense of conflict and change that characterizes our period. No longer do successive generations readily perceive a common purpose, or unthinkingly pursue common strategies within families."

You can learn more about the book here

Interview on 'Midlands Today'

My latest blog entry

Read an interview with me here:

The Independent

You can read   a typical sort of day  in the life of this novelist here.

 

I was delighted with the ITV/Ruby Films production of 'The Bad Mother's Handbook' starring Catherine Tate, Anne Reid and Holly Grainger. The programme is now available on DVD.

For a peep at how filming went, have a look at some pictures from the set.

The trailer for the DVD

All my books are now available on audio cassette at your local library. The Bad Mother's Handbook is also available as a CD.

 

 

Visit the Diary page to see the events at which I’m appearing in 2012