Book of the Month: In the Blood by Arabella Byrne and Julia Hamilton

Novelist Julia Hamilton and her journalist daughter Arabella Byrne found themselves in the same AA meetings nine months apart, facing down not only their alcoholism, but the impact that the disease had on their relationship. They have now co-authored an unflinching memoir, In the Blood, exploring the intergenerational pattern of addiction in the family.

The idea of writing a memoir with one's parent or child would make most of us wince, in the knowledge that there are bound to be instances of painful differing recollection, revelations of relational injuries harboured in secret, and different tolerances for what can and can't be made public. But, both being writers, Byrne and Hamilton knew both that they had an important message to share, and that exploring the genre of memoir in such a way would be an energising - if risky - endeavour. The result is In the Blood, our Welldoing Book of the Month for November 2024.

Take a look at our interview with the authors here:

Julia Hamilton and Arabella Byrne are the authors of In the Blood, our Welldoing Book of the Month