Home Truths: The Facts and Fictions of Family Life

Previously published as No Family is Perfect.

''Provides a fresh context for exploring issues that engage us throughout our lives ... It will change how we think and write about families'' Terri Apter, author of Difficult Mothers and The Sister Knot

What makes a good parent?

How can sibling relationships survive to adulthood?

Should familial love really be unconditional?

Dr Lucy Blake looks at how the expectations we have affect and hinder our interactions with family members. Drawing on interviews with hundreds of family members – of all backgrounds – she explores the unrealistic ideas many of us have. Exposing the truth of what a family really is, Blake explores how to better understand and appreciate our loved ones, whether we choose to do so from up close or from a distance.

Home Truths is a fascinating examination of the messy and beautiful reality of family life.

''Blake examines the many aspects of family life and addresses the many ways that family relationships can be strained ... This book will be helpful to anyone interested in learning more about their own families'' Dr Joshua Coleman, Council on Contemporary Families