Starting to Frame: A Memoir

by Roger Gordon

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Pub Date Nov 14 2014 | Archive Date May 11 2015

DogsBody Books

Biographies & Memoirs | History

Description

Growing up during the 1940s – 1960s in Sheffield, England, Roger Gordon is caught in a drama in which his once close-knit family begins to fragment.

When his parents’ marriage implodes, Roger is forced to confront stigmas of the day, including divorce, marital infidelity, and mental illness.

Cast against news events of the day, using humour to temper the darker elements of Roger’s background, Starting to Frame is a story about the futility of family feuding, the need to be loved, and the imperative to give more attention to mental illness. It also shows the power of reconciliation and forgiveness.

A Note From the Publisher

ROGER GORDON emigrated from the U.K. to Canada in 1969, where he pursued a career as a university professor (biologist) and administrator. Now retired, he lives in Prince Edward Island (Canada) with his wife, Alison, and their Cavalier King Charles Spaniels–in close proximity to his son, daughter, and grandchildren.

For more information on Roger and the book, please refer to the Press Kit to be posted shortly.

Advance Praise

‘Starting to Frame’ is the favourite expression Roger Gordon’s father used for ‘getting your act together’. It is a perfect title for this memoir, as Gordon, a scientist and retired academic, shows his story-telling skills and courage in starting to frame his memories of growing up in a troubled family in Sheffield in the 50s and 60s. The reader gains insights along with the author, as he recognizes that compassion and forgiveness are necessary for personal healing to occur, making Starting to Frame a riveting and unforgettable read.”

—Dianne Hicks Morrow,PEI Poet Laureate, author of What Really Happened Is This, 2012 PEI Book Award winner.

“When a memoir author allows us into the intimacy of their memories, it is always a privilege. When they take us into a richly remembered world, it is a tender joy. In Starting to Frame, Roger Gordon brings to life the language and social mores of 1950s Sheffield and 1960s England through the eyes of a boy in a disordered family. He grows to be a man of appreciative wit, forthright narration, and probing insight into family dynamics, mental health, and how parents’ choices and social norms can shape identity—positively, negatively, or forgivably.”

—Jane Ledwell, author of Last Tomato