Untethered
PRAISE FOR UNTETHERED
“Untethered erupts from a deep place of pain and passion in a straightforward, honest exploration of life, loss, and family. Deborah L. Staunton explores the severe realities of her life as a daughter, wife, and mother with a poet's eye. She sees clearly beneath the surface in these heartfelt pages that investigate the meaning of family and familial mental illness. Dare to enter Staunton's world. You will gain insight, empathy and be deeply moved, and, quite possibly, forever changed.”
—Linda Leedy Schneider, LMSW, Author of Some Days: Poetry of a Psychotherapist, Editor of Mentor’s Bouquet, and Founder of the Manhattan Writing Workshop
“Staunton writes with the depth of a life not only well lived, but keenly witnessed, profoundly pondered, and intuitively observed with a poet's eye unafraid to stare into the sinews of reality. These are poem/stories told in an unflinching collage of pain and poignancy, evocative coming of age memories of city streets, suburbia, and of being a daughter who “took the lead, guid[ing her] parents through thorny thickets, stoic and stable, a repository of reason.” To experience Staunton's unforgettable writing is to invite her heart into yours, her soul to embrace your own, and to allow her words to indelibly imprint themselves in your mind forever.”
—Dorothy Randall Gray, MSW, MDW, Award-Winning Artist, Spoken Word Poet, Former LA Poet-In-Residence, Author of Soul Between The Lines, and Executive Director at Heartland Institute for Transformation
“Untethered is a book of metaphors: this is this. A mother’s body is bedrock. Addiction is a roller coaster, mental illness, a soundtrack. Family trauma, faith, failure are umbilici to the past. The unknown is a train. All of this is a circle, cycling, spiraling, an endless if-then, a coiled spring. In her debut collection of poetry and prose, Deborah L. Staunton unwinds the sobering multigenerational facts that fetter the dreams of this life, her life. Untethered is a book of grounding and, ultimately, release.”
—Marj Hahne, Editor and Creative Writing Instructor
“In Untethered, Deborah L. Staunton’s writing gives a clear and balanced look at family struggles, at mental illness and the path it sometimes takes from one generation to another. Her memoir, shaped by prose and poetry, shows the strength and courage it takes to survive her father’s alcoholism and mental illness, wrenching pregnancy losses, and then the challenge of raising a bipolar daughter. Her clear eyed descriptions of what must have been nightmarish experiences honor her resilience as a daughter, a woman, and a parent over the course of her family life. Untethered powerfully engages the heart, mind and spirit of the reader. These are stories that need to be told.”
—Judith Prest, Poet, Artist, Creativity Coach and Author of After and Geography of Loss