One Day at a Time

by Susan Lewis

In 1960s Bristol, Susan’s family was like any other with its joys and frustrations, making ends meet and fierce, working class loyalties. Then tragedy struck and left a legacy that was to last a lifetime. Susan was only nine when her mother was cruelly taken by Death. No one spoke of it, no one dared. And Susan—bright, inquisitive and with an answer for everything—was left frightened, baffled, and ready to fight back. A year later she was sent away to school. She didn’t want to go and didn’t understand why she had to. Why couldn’t she stay at home with her brother and father? Why was everything going wrong in her life? In her struggle to cope with an uncertain world—a world where nothing seemed to make sense any more—she ends up pushing away the one person she loves best, her father. And as they try to find a way back to each other, they are forced to learn one of the hardest lessons of all—that no matter how angry they are with one another, and confused by life, no one can hurt them as much as they can each other, or love them as much either.

Genres: Nonfiction, Autobiography, Biography

448 pages, Paperback

First published November 10, 2011

About the author

Librarian Note:
There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.


Susan Lewis is the bestselling author of over forty books across the genres of family drama, thriller, suspense and crime. She is also the author of Just One More Day and One Day at a Time, the moving memoirs of her childhood in Bristol during the 1960s. Following periods of living in Los Angeles and the South of France, she currently lives in Gloucestershire with her husband James, stepsons Michael and Luke, and mischievous dogs Coco and Lulu.

Reviews

[Tracey- Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

When i first l picked this up in a charity shop , i thought it was another novel of Susan Lewis's. I have a read quite a few of her books over the years.
To my surprise it's actually a memoir of the author's younger years . It's a very poignant and open read of a difficult time for Susan , her brother and her dad who I liked immensely .
It gave a very different view of what a boarding school is like to attend , which made it an interesting read .
A sad read most of the time , but very understandable as not only Susan but her whole family deal with the loss of her mother to cancer.

[Beatrice Clarke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took me a a good few chapters to get into this. But once I did I was engrossed.
So Convincing how the author has gone back in time writing as her younger self. I literally felt like I was reading in real time..
Tragic times for her and her family. My heart broke reading this. I'll be looking into her other books

[Leah Hyndman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book. It was all the more sad because it is a true story and I nearly stopped reading early on due to the sadness. I'm happy I kept reading though.

[Lynne Block · Rating 2 out of 5]

young girls struggle to survive after her mother dies

[Susie Parsons · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Susan Lewis book is always a pleasure to read. This one is so personal and seemingly very honest.

[Sho · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another one read on my shiny new Kindle :)

This was recommended to me by someone with whom I went to school as Susan Lewis (the writer of this memoir) also went to the school for a while, and some of the staff who were there in our time (mid-70s to early 80s). So that is why I decided to read it: how did someone who arrived at the school, as a boarder like me, get on with it. The book starts in 1967 or 1968 I think (from events they talk about) which is nearly 10 years before my time.

And I had quite a few flashbacks (mostly in my dreams) about the school and just how much I really really hated being there as a boarder. Johnny, Flying Angels, blowing up, the boot room, the classrooms above the stables, having to do dining hall and other chores (called offices back then). It really hadn't changed tht much at all. Although by the time I got there there was a new building, the Denmark block, which wasn't there during Susan Lewis' time.

Enough of that, though, because I really don't want to rake up the nasty past. Clark's pies (a fixture of Bristolian chip shops back in the day) were a feature of our end of term celebrations in the class: Mr Clark's daughter was in our class. Walking over the downs, Clifton, Temple Meads, Westbury-on-Trym - all words that brought back mixed memories (some of them really good ones) which is a bit weird given how much I hated boarding.

Anyway. What is this book about? Susan Lewis' mother died of cancer. She'd wanted Susan, a bright girl, to better herself and to that end had her take the entrance test for the Red Maids' School. Given a scholarship of sorts, Susan ended up boarding as her father didn't think it appropriate that an adolescent girl live in a house with only her father and small brother for company.

The book covers a year or two when she was 12 and 13 and going completely off the rails. Totally depressing in parts, it is written from two viewpoints, Susan's and her father's, an interesting device to show just how little communication went on in families back in the 60s and how little Susan and her father understood each other.

A totally depressing read, for several reasons, but interesting to revisit the stomping ground of my youth.

[Milly · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book could be a lot shorter. I was bored for probably around 75% of it. The end was ok, but the rest was just dragging so much and the story just wasn't that interesting.

I don't like leaving things I've started so I forced myself to read it till the end. The first book was not great, but the second was even worse. I would give 1*, but as by the end it got a bit better I'll leave 2*.

It's a sad story about her losing her mum, but to me it wasn't that special - so many people go through similar things and the book was just too long. Too many descriptions of things we didn't have to know. Susan was annoying and childish - pretty much all characters (although I know they are real) were not that likable

[Erssie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this because the author went to my school and this is an autobiog. The writing was a little dull, the author's own character was not that engaging. It was amusing to hear about my school, although I had little experience of the lower years and boarding in the main house, because I joined the school in VIth Form.

[Ceri · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't enjoying this book at first but by the end it had me in tears.

[Maria Zahra]

a good book about the struggles of a teenager, who feels unloved.

[Kerry Lavington · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book but I would say you have to like this type of wrighter. I loved it!!!!!!!

[Trinity Buckley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is written so well.
There are many parallels with my life and I was totally absorbed from start to finish.

[alison morton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good.