The Blackbird And The Rainbow

About the Book

The Blackbird and the Rainbow is written from the heart and is  a frank open and honest account of what it like to lose a child from drug addiction.My experiences  are directly relevant to the contents of the book.I write in detail about the dreadful day I  received the  phone call every parent dreads, the intensity and madness of the bereavement period that followed and  I look back honestly at the causes which may have triggered a much loved child to go off the rails.

Although the subject matter is painful,,heartbreaking and ultimately tragic it is not depressing and is written with humour and positivity .

About the Author

Chrissie Smith has been a teacher for over 30 years and is also a trained counsellor.She also has an Honours degree in English Literature.More importantly she is an ordinary middle class and middle aged woman  who has lost a son,David, to heroin addiction.She wants to reach out to anyone who is experiencing the horror of having a child who is going off the rails or to those who have lost a child in ny circumstances.

She writes openly and honestly with warmth and humour about her sons life and untimely death, the bereavement process and how her training as a counsellor did not prepare her for the reality of her loss.Every emotion from guilt to obsession is examined as she works her way through the anguish of loss and how she coped with it.