Dear Michael, Love Dad

'Wonderful, moving, humorous ... extremely poignant' Charlie Mortimer, Dear Lupin

'Iain's love for his son shines through every sentence of this affecting account, as does his guilt. He blames himself for being unable to demonstrate or verbalise his affection... This is a wonderfully entertaining and moving book, with lessons for every parent.' Daily Mail

'A moving read - honest, funny and sad' Woman and Home

'Raising the issue of men's mental health is important .. loving and well meant mix of letters and commentary.' Express

Dear Michael, Moving your whatnots et al into the flat has put paid to any improvements in my back. Still, at least it's done now. Your mother is already worrying how you'll cope and is at work on reams of notes on all sorts of matters from how to tel if meat has gone off to washing whites. Smell it and wear black is my advice.

When Iain Maitland's eldest son left home for university he wrote regularly to him: funny, curmudgeonly letters chronicling their family life and giving Michael unsolicited and hopeless advice on everything from car maintenance to women. He never expected a reply, they were just his way of continuing their relationship. What Iain didn't realise was that away from home his beloved boy was suffering from depression and anorexia. Only much later did it become apparent to Iain and his wife Tracey just how oblivious they had been, and for how very long.

Told through Iain's letters and the unfolding truth of Michael's situation, DEAR MICHAEL, LOVE DAD is a frank and moving account of how we may unwittingly fail our loved ones, despite our best intentions. Above all it offers the hope of reparation and expresses the unbreakable bond between a father and son.

“'wonderful, moving, humorous ... extremely poignant' Charlie Mortimer, Dear Lupin”

'wonderful, moving, humorous ... extremely poignant' Charlie Mortimer, Dear Lupin
Iain's love for his son shines through every sentence of this affecting account, as does his guilt. He blames himself for being unable to demonstrate or verbalise his affection... This is a wonderfully entertaining and moving book, with lessons for every parent. Daily Mail
A moving read - honest, funny and sad. Woman and Home
Raising the issue of men's mental health is important and Dear Michael, Love Dad is to be praised for that.. loving and well meant mix of letters and commentary. Express

Iain Maitland has been a professional writer since 1987. He has written over 50 books, mainly on business, and been published as far away as Russia, India, Japan, USA and Australia. He has also written for the Sunday Times, Which? and the Financial Times amongst many others.

'Iain's love for his son shines through every sentence of this affecting account...wonderfully entertaining and moving' Daily Mail 'wonderful, moving, humorous' Charlie Mortimer, author of Dear Lupin 'Raising the issue of men's mental health is important and Dear Michael, Love Dad is to be praised for that' Express When Iain Maitland's son left home for university he wrote regularly to him; funny, bad tempered letters chronicling their family life and giving Michael hopeless advice on everything from DIY to women. He never expected a reply - they were simply his way of continuing their relationship. What Iain didn't realise was that his beloved boy was battling with depression and anorexia. Only later did it become clear to Iain and his wife just how blind they had been, and for how very long. This is a touchingly written account of how we may unwittingly fail our loved ones, but most of all expresses the unbreakable bond between a father and son.

'Wonderful, moving, humorous ... extremely poignant' Charlie Mortimer, Dear Lupin 'Iain's love for his son shines through every sentence of this affecting account, as does his guilt. He blames himself for being unable to demonstrate or verbalise his affection... This is a wonderfully entertaining and moving book, with lessons for every parent.' Daily Mail 'A moving read - honest, funny and sad' Woman and Home 'Raising the issue of men's mental health is important .. loving and well meant mix of letters and commentary.' Express Dear Michael, M oving your whatnots et al into the flat has put paid to any improvements in my back. Still, at least it's done now. Your mother is already worrying how you'll cope and is at work on reams of notes on all sorts of matters from how to tel if meat has gone off to washing whites. Smell it and wear black is my advice. When Iain Maitland's eldest son left home for university he wrote regularly to him: funny, curmudgeonly letters chronicling their family life and giving Michael unsolicited and hopeless advice on everything from car maintenance to women. He never expected a reply, they were just his way of continuing their relationship. What Iain didn't realise was that away from home his beloved boy was suffering from depression and anorexia. Only much later did it become apparent to Iain and his wife Tracey just how oblivious they had been, and for how very long. Told through Iain's letters and the unfolding truth of Michael's situation, DEAR MICHAEL, LOVE DAD is a frank and moving account of how we may unwittingly fail our loved ones, despite our best intentions. Above all it offers the hope of reparation and expresses the unbreakable bond between a father and son.

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