Ballina Boy Relives Memories of His Hometown and Favourite Doctor
Life in the 1950’s Ballina captured in newly released memoir
Release date: 1st of December 2010
- Paperback ISBN: 978.1.4535.98.53.5
- Hardback ISBN: 978.1.4535.9854.2
- eBook ISBN: 97831.4535.9531.2
The book will be available at www.Xlibris.com, www.amazon.com and www.ballinaboy.com
For those readers who have grown up in the Fifties and are of ” the baby boomer” era in Australia, reading Ballina Boy will be a heartfelt experience. It will evoke many fond memories of the freedom and innocence that we children had when growing up, before the advent of television and ICT, and the like. Life was tough, by today’s standards, but it had much to offer, especially through imagination, inventiveness and innovation derived from very basic and unsophisticated resources available to children in those days.
Roger Allen has laid his soul bare for all to see, warts and all in his novel. Parts of the book are raw and confronting, with a hint of mixed feelings pervading it. Without the blend of the impractical,restless yet tenacious academic of his father and the organised, practical and resourceful traits of his mother, interwined with the successes and failures of his forebears what would the author be now? Roger comes to the realisation at the conclusion of his book that it is not the material but the experiences, relationships and complexities of life that enrich us all and make our journey worthwhile.
An inciteful and analytical autobiography, that stirs all readers to consider that the word ” dysfunctional” so often bandied around these days about any family, is a misnoma. A family is merely a group of people going about the business of living, trying to do the best job of it they can, without the advantage of hindsight and hoping to leave a small mark behind on this vast world for future generations.
Well done Roger.
Comment by K. Taylor — January 5, 2011 @ 9:08 pm
The Ballina Boy is an insightful autobiography packed with many facts as well as memories and reflections. I totally enjoyed reading it and found it very easy to read in the author’s voice. This confronting yet conpassionate book disclosed much about Dr Roger Allen as a child of the fifties and, on every page, it presented many other incidential facts to challenge the reader and present them with a lot more to think about and to question. I enjoyed the fact I was reading more than just a typical self-narrative. The world began on a Thursday, is typical of Roger’s great sense of humour which often came through as does his amazing intellect. How horrific the plough accident must have been for Roger’s mother!
Well done Roger! I look forward to reading the next book about your later years!
Comment by Liz Mason — February 23, 2011 @ 10:04 am
How have you found the self publishing journey with Xlibris? Investigating having my book published through them and keen to hear pros and cons of it. Cheers.
Comment by Debi — March 4, 2011 @ 11:03 am
Thoroughly enjoyed the book and could identify with some of your relations – as they are my relations too! Our Mothers are first cousins and that is how I knew you were writing the book. Heard part of your interview with Richard Fidler which prompted me to buy the book. I knew your Father and he helped me medically quite a lot. Would love to catch up with you at some stage to exchange “family” stories.
Comment by Patricia Theaker — June 29, 2011 @ 7:57 pm