Synopsis
Drawn from my own real life experiences, Dance for your Daddy is gritty novel about events within a middle class South African family, which for all intents and purposes, appears perfectly normal. However dark secrets of abuse lurk beneath the surface.
Set mostly in South Africa, Dance for your Daddy is written in three parts. Part one opens in the first person and present tense by Alison Pemberton, a young woman living in London and going through a relationship break up complicated by the fact that a child is involved. She receives news of three family deaths in South Africa, her country of birth and childhood, which she finds crushing. Her x-partner takes her to see her parents who live in the Cotswolds, having moved there from South Africa. The atmosphere is strained and unsupportive. Part one concludes as Alison flies out to South Africa with her son.
Part two is written in the third person and past tense and takes the reader back into Alison's past in order to show the events leading up to the shocking news and state of family affairs revealed in part one. The book concludes with part three, which picks up from part one with Alison just arriving in South Africa for the funerals. Again it is written in present tense and first person. It takes the reader through the emotionally charged events leading up to the funerals, slowly pealing away the layers to begin to reveal the true natures of the family members grieving in their own unique ways. The book concludes with Alison reaching a few mind shattering realisations about her family and her return to London alone.
Dance for your Daddy does not fit neatly into any one genre. It is a difficult story that stubbornly stands alone determined to be told, much like the child growing up in an abusive environment who is determined to reach adulthood. It is written to appeal to adults and teenagers alike.
Excerpt: Part two, Chapter six
Joanna pulled up, parking the mini behind Marielle’s Volkswagen. The engine spluttered and died as she switched the key off, the little body giving a small shudder before settling down. Looking in the rear-view mirror, Joanna raked her fingers through her hair and rubbed a smudge of mascara away from underneath her eye.
“Right, let s go.” She announced to her older sister Isabella. “Let’s hope Marielle doesn’t mind you coming along as well. I hope she s made enough lunch Her tummy rumbled. I’m starving.”
Isabella looked at Joanna’s emaciated frame and blinked. She didn’t understand her sister s obsession with food. Why would you want to gorge all the time only to sick it up? What a waste.
Small and petite like their mother, Isabella had a ghost-like beauty; haunted, heavy lidded blue eyes set deeply into an angular face a cross between her father’s strong jaw-line and her mother’s high cheekbones. Her skin had suffered terrible acne as a teenager and was scarred and pockmarked. As Audrey’s first-born child, Isabella had disappointed from the start. Terribly dyslexic she had underachieved massively at school. A lifetime of struggle and frustration had made her moody and angry and she had few friends. Even her sisters steered a wide path around her except for Joanna.
The two sisters walked up the stairs onto the verandah and knocked on the front door. After a couple of minutes Marielle opened it with a flourish.
“Joanna Isabella! So good to see you again! Come in, come in sorry for the delay opening the door the kitchen’s right at the back of the house and I didn’t hear you knock I must get a door bell but never mind that now. Isabella!” She turned to Isabella and took her hands, one in each of hers. “It’s so good to see you again.” She reached forward and kissed Isabella on the cheek. Then turning to Joanna she said, “Jo. I heard about your travels. Is it good to be home again?”
Joanna grinned and nodded weakly.
“I’m sure it is. Well, come on in. Alison will be up from the stables shortly. I m sure she heard your car. I’ll just tell Ulundi to set another place at the table. Excuse me please.” She bustled off purposefully, her riding boots clicking on the polished, origan pine floors.
Lunch was sumptuous. There had been more than enough to feed everyone twice over. A half eaten cheesecake Marielle had bought in Pietermaritzburg the day before sat in the middle of the table with a jug of fresh cream next to it. Alison was just about to help herself to a second slice when Raynard, Marielle’s youngest son, burst into the room.
“I wouldn’t if I was you a moment on the lips and a lifetime on the hips!” Raynard grinned at Alison who blushed crimson, the knife wavering mid-air. “Hi Mum.” He reached over and kissed Marielle on the cheek. “I heard you were entertaining but I didn’t realise you were pushing the boat out this far! He indicated the cheesecake.”
Marielle looked at her son with mild dotage. “Have some. I’m sure Alison won t mind sharing.” She looked at Alison and winked.
Raynard pulled a chair out and plonked himself down heavily. He was a good-looking man, broad shouldered and athletic with inquisitive brown eyes and a thick head of sandy brown hair. Similar to his mother, he tended to call a spade a spade. True to style, he launched right in.
“Joanna! I heard you were back. What happened? I thought you were supposed to be travelling for a year?”
Raynard threw her a quick questioning look in the midst of cutting himself a quarter of the cheesecake.
“Hi Raynard!” Joanna said a little sarcastically. “Nice to see you too.”
“Oh, excuse me” Raynard only just managed to get the cake onto a plate without it falling onto the tablecloth. He reached over the table and extended his hand to Joanna politely. “Nice to see you Miss Pemberton. I trust you had a good journey.”
“Yes thanks.” Joanna answered slightly flustered. “Well I had to come home early. I became ill they call it anorexia nervosa.”
“Anorexia what?” Raynard asked as he shovelled a huge lump of cake into his mouth.
“Nervosa. Ner vo sa!” Joanna retorted.
“What the hell is that?” Raynard swallowed hard.
“Basically an eating disorder. It s relatively new. Nobody knows much about it in South Africa yet.”
“Well, I must say you’ve lost a lot of weight. But I think it looks good.”
“Yes Raynard, eat your cake now.” Mariella intervened quickly. “Joanna might not want to talk about it.”
Joanna laughed ruefully. “I don’t mind. I’ve become quite desensitised about it.”
“Oh? What do you mean?” Marielle asked, her one eyebrow lifted in question.
“Let’s just say that Mum and Dad have made sure of it. No more secrets that’s what Dad says.”
Isabella snorted. Everyone turned to look at her in surprise. She had hardly said anything all throughout lunch. “Huh, that may be what he says.” She looked around the lunch table darkly. I know some secrets about him that I don t think he wants anyone to know.”
Joanna shot Alison an alarmed look. In return, Alison shrugged her shoulders, her eyes wide in surprise.
“What do you mean Izzie?” Joanna asked carefully.
“Oh, let’s just say that I know some things about him and leave it at that.” Isabella was enjoying the intrigue she was creating.
Raynard had stopped eating the last forkful of cheesecake waivered mid-flight to his mouth. Marielle was sitting frozen, desert bowls half stacked in front of her. The whole table hung in suspension.
Izzie. “What. Do. You. Mean.” Joanna pronounced each word carefully.
With a sigh of resignation Isabella said quietly. He used to do things not nice things to me. When I was little.
“You mean the hidings?”
“No. Not the hidings.” She scowled her famous Izzie scowl.
Marielle stood up alarmed. “Yes, well perhaps we’ll have coffee in the sitting room. Come on girls. Lets clear the table.” Forgetting that she had two maids in the kitchen, Marielle busied herself gathering glasses and cutlery.
“He used to touch me.” Isabella looked from Marielle to Raynard. They stared back in horror as she tapped her mouth with her forefinger. in a way he shouldn’t have when I was very young.”
Alison cringed inwardly. Only Isabella could have blurted something like this out in company. She was utterly unpredictable. She glanced at Joanna again. Tears were running down her face unchecked as she stared intently at Isabella.
!Izzie he did the same to me.” She said quietly...
