My father told lies all his life and, because I knew no better, I repeated them. Lies about everything, great and small, were the very fabric of my world.
The lie in the title of this astonishing memoir is born of shame. Traveling around upstate New York in the nineties, John Burnside can't bear to share the truth about his father during a casual conversation with a hitchhiker. He covers his uneasiness with a lie. It felt natural to do so.
His father, abandoned as a baby on a stranger's doorstep, created a masterful web of deceit to erase this unbearable fact. John, even as a child, represented everything that was wrong with the world and became the recipient of his father's selfhatred in the form of enraged violence, and worse, petty, cruel belittlement. Growing up in the tough working-class neighborhoods of Scotland and later England, John learned to lie back to his father and, later, about his father.
Anonymous
Posted December 12, 2007
I am familiar with the author's poetry and was intrigued to know the personal history of someone so talented. Baby boomers, listen up, most of you will relate to much of this painfully honest story of one person's descent into the grips of drugs and alcohol. There were times when I had to walk away, take a break, and return to the story - of father and son. My own childhood memories surfaced and one may be forced to reconcile their own past through the journey of these pages, just as Mr. Burnside has attempted to do. Be prepared to be angry, sad, frightened and relieved === this book takes you on a rollercoaster ride. I was reminded that nothing, absolutely nothing, is wasted in God's economy.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.
Overview
My father told lies all his life and, because I knew no better, I repeated them. Lies about everything, great and small, were the very fabric of my world.
The lie in the title of this astonishing memoir is born of shame. Traveling around upstate New York in the nineties, John Burnside can't bear to share the truth about his father during a casual conversation with a hitchhiker. He covers his uneasiness with a lie. It felt natural to do so.
His ...