"I admire Dean’s resilience throughout this memoir. To be able to continue to fight for his family and then, after all that, to share his story in order to give people insight and perhaps help others and make a difference is commendable."
‘Behind Closed Doors’ by Dean Marlo is an extensive and detailed family memoir taking us almost day by day through several years of emotional abuse and frustrations in the family court system. Written almost as diary entries, from letters and notes saved at the time, the reader feels as though they are enduring the trauma and court hearings with Dean and his three children. At almost 1000 pages this is a deep dive into the issues and problems experienced by a family as they seek to overcome family separation, domestic abuse and mental health problems and as it states at the end, this is only part 1. I admire Dean’s resilience throughout this memoir. To be able to continue to fight for his family and then, after all that, to share his story in order to give people insight and perhaps help others and make a difference is commendable. This is a real family's life, with real challenges and trauma faced within it which I would not want to make light of in any way. As a reader the memoir is intensively immersive due to the present tense writing, and compelling as you wonder what the resolution will be for this family.
The proportion of single fathers has stayed at around 10 percent for over ten years. What does it mean to be a parent? Behind Closed Doors is about how the dream of being a parent was set upon, and will offer more than just a glimpse into the British legal system. Experience first-hand, how a family with three beautiful children was overtaken by a world of biases, harassment and abuse from within the family courts. Explore the highs and lows of parenthood, mental health, solicitors’ letters, judges’ court orders and more, as well as the challenges and discrimination facing single fathers. In this book, you will dive into what it takes to be a parent and how change, both in society and the system, is a struggle. It is a heart-breaking, true story that examines what happens when the departments we all expect to provide us with honesty, morals and standards fail to uphold these values, and the impact it had on three children and their family. With a little bit of humour, an overzealous solicitor and the shameful performance of family law, take a walk in a father’s shoes and try not to drift into deep waters…
