What do you think?
Rate this book
Unschooled: The story of a family that doesn't fit in
‘Distinct and purposeful, Unschooled challenged my ideas about education and made me want to be part of this extraordinary family.’
Amy Liptrot
”She writes of the everyday world of mothering …with such unassuming, humble, raw, grace.’ Kerri ni Dochartaigh
It’s not by choice that Caro Giles is educating her daughters at home. Like so many families with children who don’t fit into mainstream schools, her family has become marginalised by an education system that is chronically underfunded and unable to support special educational needs. While still a school teacher, Caro had no alternative but to leave her job and take on a different role at home, as full-time educator and advocate for her wonderful girls. It was the obvious thing to do, because it was the only choice they had, and Caro made the decision unaware of just how much it would overwhelm her identity as a woman and challenge to the very core what it means to be a mother.
Unschooled is a searing memoir about the love and true grit of a family forging its own path. With lyrical prose and unflinching honesty, Caro chronicles the relentless bureaucracy and isolation of being a single mother navigating a system that refuses to see her children. Through her own story, Caro interrogates a society that nurtures conformity rather than difference, and a culture that continues to place the burden of childcare on mothers. Being unschooled has become an ongoing act of resistance and a political statement, one that demands a more inclusive, compassionate education system that recognises and supports every child’s unique needs.
”She writes of the everyday world of mothering …with such unassuming, humble, raw, grace.’ Kerri ni Dochartaigh
It’s not by choice that Caro Giles is educating her daughters at home. Like so many families with children who don’t fit into mainstream schools, her family has become marginalised by an education system that is chronically underfunded and unable to support special educational needs. While still a school teacher, Caro had no alternative but to leave her job and take on a different role at home, as full-time educator and advocate for her wonderful girls. It was the obvious thing to do, because it was the only choice they had, and Caro made the decision unaware of just how much it would overwhelm her identity as a woman and challenge to the very core what it means to be a mother.
Unschooled is a searing memoir about the love and true grit of a family forging its own path. With lyrical prose and unflinching honesty, Caro chronicles the relentless bureaucracy and isolation of being a single mother navigating a system that refuses to see her children. Through her own story, Caro interrogates a society that nurtures conformity rather than difference, and a culture that continues to place the burden of childcare on mothers. Being unschooled has become an ongoing act of resistance and a political statement, one that demands a more inclusive, compassionate education system that recognises and supports every child’s unique needs.
242 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 2, 2025
9 people are currently reading
79 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 29, 2025
It’s ironic that the book which most impacted me recently is the one I’ve most struggled to find words to review. Perhaps it’s all just too close to home.
‘Unschooled: The story of a family that doesn’t fit in’ is Caro Giles (Twelve Moons) memoir about the SEN education crisis. It’s about parenting children who cannot access school, broken trying to fit within an education system which makes no accommodations for brains wired differently. Caro describes it so eloquently, the challenges of her life as a single mum, trying to support and raise her four daughters whilst living a life full of meaning and love. The cost of caring, eradication of self, exhaustion, anger and being made to feel small by systems and people who are meant to support you. The endless, unrelenting fight to be heard.
For me this book is like looking in a funhouse mirror. There is so much which resonates. Experiences which I know only to well. A familiar tightrope. Every plate in the air as I race around keeping them airborne. Crisis management my baseline. I’m uncomfortable talking about it. I say my children’s right for privacy overrides my own desire to be seen and heard. But I think the truth is, I often feel guilty. It’s messy, complicated & people who don’t ‘get it’ are quick to pass judgement.
The media rants on about over-diagnosis of neurodivergence, abuse of the benefits system. Blaming parents who don’t ‘bother’ sending their children to school, as if it’s lax parenting. Imagining we don’t know how far they fall behind, education they have a right too suddenly out of reach. All of which misses the point, that these are children in distress.
That’s why Caro’s book is so important. She highlights the hidden world of parent caring. The cost to us, battling constantly to get the suppprt our kids need, when the system is apathetic at best but mainly just broken, distrustful and disbelieving of our lived experience.
What shines throughout this book is love. A deep meditation on the act of caring, and powerful cry of rage that families like hers, and mine, deserve better. Unschooled is profound, beautiful and necessary. My hope is that you will read it, and begin to understand.
‘Unschooled: The story of a family that doesn’t fit in’ is Caro Giles (Twelve Moons) memoir about the SEN education crisis. It’s about parenting children who cannot access school, broken trying to fit within an education system which makes no accommodations for brains wired differently. Caro describes it so eloquently, the challenges of her life as a single mum, trying to support and raise her four daughters whilst living a life full of meaning and love. The cost of caring, eradication of self, exhaustion, anger and being made to feel small by systems and people who are meant to support you. The endless, unrelenting fight to be heard.
For me this book is like looking in a funhouse mirror. There is so much which resonates. Experiences which I know only to well. A familiar tightrope. Every plate in the air as I race around keeping them airborne. Crisis management my baseline. I’m uncomfortable talking about it. I say my children’s right for privacy overrides my own desire to be seen and heard. But I think the truth is, I often feel guilty. It’s messy, complicated & people who don’t ‘get it’ are quick to pass judgement.
The media rants on about over-diagnosis of neurodivergence, abuse of the benefits system. Blaming parents who don’t ‘bother’ sending their children to school, as if it’s lax parenting. Imagining we don’t know how far they fall behind, education they have a right too suddenly out of reach. All of which misses the point, that these are children in distress.
That’s why Caro’s book is so important. She highlights the hidden world of parent caring. The cost to us, battling constantly to get the suppprt our kids need, when the system is apathetic at best but mainly just broken, distrustful and disbelieving of our lived experience.
What shines throughout this book is love. A deep meditation on the act of caring, and powerful cry of rage that families like hers, and mine, deserve better. Unschooled is profound, beautiful and necessary. My hope is that you will read it, and begin to understand.
September 21, 2025
Another stunning book from this wonderful author. I devoured this book in three days. She writes about a difficult subject and time in her life with such raw beautiful honesty. I just love her writing so much. As a mother of children who also struggled inside a classroom, I'm so grateful that Caro has devoted her precious time and energy to telling her family's story and highlighting an issue that affects such a sidelined group of unsupported people. I'll be buying copies for friends.
September 10, 2025
Thank you Caro for your courage in writing this book. Poetic, lyrical, raw, vulnerable and powerful. It means a lot to mothers who have similar lived experiences.
October 8, 2025
Unschooled is a vital telling of a life unseen. With raw honesty and vulnerability Caro’s prose crash onto the page like turbulent waves on the shore. I feel so deeply the ache and frustration but also the breathtaking moments of beauty that a life of caring responsibilities can bring: at once a great undertaking and a privilege.
The stories churn onto the page, visceral moments of my own life, emotions I am all too familiar with, pain I have felt.
Through this work I am seen.
The helplessness of being held by a system that refuses to understand our individual children’s needs, where if you don’t fit the mould there is no place for you and the burden is left with the parent to give in or face judgement.
The stories woven together throughout the chapters, often out of chronological sequence, can feel chaotic, spat out on the page in a burning need to be heard. The stories feed off each other and give a picture of a fraught but rich life. It is cathartic in its telling, an exorcism of experiences that would rather be forgotten but that Caro has forged through so other parents can see their truth in her pages. The stories of her children mirror so much of our own family, both those with neurodivergence and those who are thrust into the role of young carer.
I am incredibly grateful that she has used her voice to bring this work into the world, it has taken courage and determination that many of us wouldn’t have in the face of such obstacles.
The stories churn onto the page, visceral moments of my own life, emotions I am all too familiar with, pain I have felt.
Through this work I am seen.
The helplessness of being held by a system that refuses to understand our individual children’s needs, where if you don’t fit the mould there is no place for you and the burden is left with the parent to give in or face judgement.
The stories woven together throughout the chapters, often out of chronological sequence, can feel chaotic, spat out on the page in a burning need to be heard. The stories feed off each other and give a picture of a fraught but rich life. It is cathartic in its telling, an exorcism of experiences that would rather be forgotten but that Caro has forged through so other parents can see their truth in her pages. The stories of her children mirror so much of our own family, both those with neurodivergence and those who are thrust into the role of young carer.
I am incredibly grateful that she has used her voice to bring this work into the world, it has taken courage and determination that many of us wouldn’t have in the face of such obstacles.
September 16, 2025
I’ve just finished Unschooled. Once again Caro Giles has written a beautiful and needed book. I loved Twelve Moons and passed it on and recommended it to many people. I will be doing the same with Unschooled.
I felt so seen once again. And I also saw my children in there too. I so wish the education system was different and this book paints a vivid picture of the huge amounts of strength, love and advocacy that are needed to navigate it. I was ready to scream on Caro’s behalf at points in the book.
There is also much about the dance between mother, carer and woman and how challenging it can be to move constantly between the roles.
This is a moving, heartbreaking and joyful read. I’m so thankful these words and experiences have been written into a book. Highly recommend.
I felt so seen once again. And I also saw my children in there too. I so wish the education system was different and this book paints a vivid picture of the huge amounts of strength, love and advocacy that are needed to navigate it. I was ready to scream on Caro’s behalf at points in the book.
There is also much about the dance between mother, carer and woman and how challenging it can be to move constantly between the roles.
This is a moving, heartbreaking and joyful read. I’m so thankful these words and experiences have been written into a book. Highly recommend.
December 18, 2025
'Important' doesn't quite capture how essential this book is to read if you're an educator, a parent, work with people with neurodivergence, or are supporting someone with nd. Caro's trademark lyrical style is beautiful but doesn't mask the impact of a broken education system on her family and self. This book is thoughtful, gut-punching, beautiful, hopeful and enraging - it's very, very good.
November 20, 2025
What a beautiful book.
You had to justify a block of clay to the panel! Where have they been all their lives?
You had to justify a block of clay to the panel! Where have they been all their lives?
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews