Another Night, Another Day by Sarah Rayner

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This book by Sarah Rayner really resonated with me. I have read various books about mental health and depression and whilst all have had a great impact on me and my understanding of such issues, this is one that I felt really connected to. Sarah Rayner knows what she is saying, everything that her characters go through I felt she truly knew about and that it was important to her that her readers really understand about depression and anxiety; it touched and intrigued me. It was not much of a surprise to get to the end of the book and read that she has experienced many of those feelings herself because it came across so clearly in her writing, no one could ignore the clarity and depth of understanding, not only about the way her characters suffer but the about diagnosis and treatments, that she displays in her writing.
The book mainly centres on three characters. We are re-introduced to Karen who made her first appearance in One Moment, One Morning when she loses her husband to a heart attack. Two years on and though Karen appears to be coping on the surface, underneath she is paddling like mad to keep on top of events, which involve her father being ill and supporting her mother. When her father dies suddenly, Karen discovers that she isn’t coping that well and needs some help to make her feel better.
Abby is not coping because she has a son with autism and an about to be ex- husband who doesn’t support her or him; struggling with the ever increasing demands of a high maintenance child with little help, Abby is exhausted and is pushed to the edge when the demands her husband makes get too much for her.
Michael’s final straw comes when after months of struggling to keep his florist business going, he loses his main contract; with two children in Uni to support and a wife who seems unconcerned, bills and debts mounting and no one to turn to Michael has a breakdown.
These three people come together at the private clinic where they each begin treatment for their depression and anxiety. They come into contact with other patients and begin the journey of learning that they are not alone and that there is a vast array of reasons why people suffer the way they are. It’s about learning why they feel as they do, what those feeling are and how they can be treated and so prevented from reoccurring – and if or when they do, how to cope.
These characters, thankfully, have happy endings but the getting there isn’t easy; Sarah Rayner however does not forget that for some people the only happy ever after they get is to take their own lives. It’s a sad but true fact and one she deals with wonderfully with respect, sympathy and great understanding. There is nothing that she has left out in this eye opening novel. Her novel gets across that depression is a fact of life, it’s far more common than people believe and it has every right to be respected, understood and treated as much as any physical ailment; it is an illness that can affect anybody regardless of race, religion, situation in life or physical well-being and for that Sarah Rayner deserves the highest praise and respect for she has not shied away from this subject but has informed and educated her readers as well as entertained with a thoughtful and informative story.

With thanks to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for the ARC of this book.




>