The Dark Dad

The damage done to a family by war

Art historian Mary Kisler grew up in the early 1950s with a father who talked little, whose affection she cherished and whose anger she feared. She later came to understand the trauma that lay behind his dark moods: rejection and violence in his childhood and the brutal experience of being a prisoner of war in Italy and then Germany from late 1941 to 1945.

In this affecting memoir, she traces back through her father’s life and war record, discovering a man who had suffered but who ultimately found peace of mind among the people he loved most.

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Pre-order now — books will be shipped 10 April 2025