Walking Forward, Looking Back

by Dinah Latham (Contributor)

The book tells the story of a retired district nurse and midwife reflecting on her life whilst walking with her close companion Harriet, the dog. It is a touchingly honest work written straight from the heart. The reader will both laugh and cry as the author recounts many moving stories of patients cared for in 1960s London. The writings so patently contrast care in the community then and now that it becomes impossible not to regret the passing of a time when nursing was seen as a vocation, when nurses were proud to serve. Divorce and single parenthood accompany her career journey, while living alone escorts her into retirement. It is then that fortune takes a hand, or rather a paw, and brings Harriet the dog into her life. This may just have been the coming together of chance and good timing but, destiny or happy accident, it was certainly a blessing. It was her need to be taken on daily walks that finds our author evoking memories, randomly flicking through a lifetime of unwritten diaries. Together they share their walks taking the reader through the changing seasons of the Chiltern countryside, while also travelling a new pathway, one with an unfamiliar landscape ...a one way journey into growing old. This is a voyage of discovery, one that promises many unexpected new experiences ...not the least of which is their most recent pastime ...sheepherding!

160 pages, Paperback

First published November 26, 2014

Reviews

[Chris Payne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet and gentle reminisces of a community midwife in a different era - though not so long ago! The author's tone is reflective and it reads like a friend is talking to you. There's not a plot, of course, as it's a memoir really - I found the "walking forward" constructs a little artificial but I appreciated the effort to bring the recollections into some kind of a narrative. Left a happy taste.

[D.J. Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having heard this author give a fascinating and enjoyable talk, I purchased her book and thoroughly enjoyed it. Another reviewer has described it - most insightfully, I thought - as 'Lark Rise to Candleford' meets 'Call the Midwife'.

This is a beautifully and honestly written book which works on so many levels. As an account of a district nurse's career, which includes both touching and hilarious stories of her experiences, it warms the heart. In charting her own recovery from desertion and divorce it inspires, and in highlighting the selfless and thorough attention of a nursing service which we no longer enjoy, it persuades us that it is this, rather than her selfish husband, which was the author's greatest loss.

Raised to believe she should serve her husband's every need and whim, and unfortunate enough to marry a faithless man who also believed this, the author heroically raised her four children alone in an environment of unconditional love. It is wholly fitting therefore that in later life she too experiences unconditional love, both from her children and from her constant companion, her bearded collie Harriet. I found I could not put this book down until I had finished it but, when I did, I lent it to a friend who is herself going through a difficult and painful divorce. She says this book was better than any self-help guide on divorce. I also loved the inclusion in the book of Harriet's 'pawtograph'. This was a thoroughly enjoyable read.