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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'When musician Linda Neil returns home to Brisbane to care for her ailing mother, Joan, a singing teacher, she has no idea what she is committing to, or even that she is committing at all.
'The experience will change her life.
'Connected by a deep love of music - from Linda's own songs and the works of the classical masters, to the musical comedy of the dance hall and the sounds of the street - Linda finds a new bond with her mother. As Joan's illness progresses, their shared musical passion soothes and instructs, helps them to make sense of what is happening and, finally, to accept it.
'Beautifully written and deeply felt, Learning How to Breathe is a daughter's love song to her mother, an unforgettable true story about what it means to find home.' (From the publisher's website.)
Notes
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Dedication: to joan ben chris cat stets pa paul kym finn kel hannah lily and rose.
Affiliation Notes
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Writing Disability in Australia
Type of disability Parkinson's disease.
Type of character Primary (autobiographical). Point of view Unconfirmed.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Also sound recording.
Works about this Work
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Flowing Like a Long Song
2010
single work
column
— Appears in: Newswrite : The NSW Writers' Centre Magazine , October/November no. 193 2010; (p. 16) Linda Neal discusses her memoir Learning How to Breathe in terms of her effort to 'integrate music within the text - not just as a subject but as a tone'. -
Of Letting Go and Yet Continuing On
2010
single work
review
— Appears in: TEXT : The Journal of the Australian Association of Writing Programs , April vol. 14 no. 1 2010;
— Review of Learning How to Breathe 2009 single work biography -
Well Read
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: The Advertiser , 5 December 2009; (p. 27)
— Review of So This is Life : Scenes from a Country Childhood 2009 single work autobiography ; Learning How to Breathe 2009 single work biography -
[Review] Learning How to Breathe
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: Bookseller + Publisher Magazine , September vol. 89 no. 2 2009; (p. 32)
— Review of Learning How to Breathe 2009 single work biography -
Plight Plays to the Heart Strings
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 17-18 October 2009; (p. 29)
— Review of Learning How to Breathe 2009 single work biography
-
Tune into the Minstrel
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 22 - 23 August 2009; (p. 3)
— Review of Learning How to Breathe 2009 single work biography -
Off the Shelf : Memoir
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: The Age , 5 September 2009; (p. 24)
— Review of Learning How to Breathe 2009 single work biography -
Solace as Older Age Wearies
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 26 September 2009; (p. 16)
— Review of My Mother, My Writing and Me 2009 single work autobiography ; Learning How to Breathe 2009 single work biography -
Plight Plays to the Heart Strings
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 17-18 October 2009; (p. 29)
— Review of Learning How to Breathe 2009 single work biography -
[Review] Learning How to Breathe
2009
single work
review
— Appears in: Bookseller + Publisher Magazine , September vol. 89 no. 2 2009; (p. 32)
— Review of Learning How to Breathe 2009 single work biography -
Beautiful Lies My Father Told Me
2009
single work
criticism
— Appears in: TEXT Special Issue Website Series , April no. 5 2009; ''There are two kinds of tales, one true and one false,' Socrates proposes to Adeimantus in the course of exploring the proper place of literature in The Republic (1935: 376). In this short paper, I will explore Socrates' proposition in the context of family storytelling, in particular in the case of my recently completed family memoir, Learning How to Breathe, which contains many instances of family storytelling. Some of these tales turned out to be true; some of them turned out to be false. And some of them turned out to be falsehoods that revealed a hidden truth. In order to investigate the sometimes blurred lines between what is true and what is false, I will examine one family story in particular; this family story was told - or, in this case, performed - by my father. To shed light on aspects of lies and truth that are revealed through a close reading of this story, as well as other issues of family storytelling that needed to be addressed while writing a family memoir, I will draw on the work of John Forrester, in particular Truth Games, as well as the work of Langellier and Peterson and Elizabeth Stone regarding family storytelling.' (Author's abstract) -
Flowing Like a Long Song
2010
single work
column
— Appears in: Newswrite : The NSW Writers' Centre Magazine , October/November no. 193 2010; (p. 16) Linda Neal discusses her memoir Learning How to Breathe in terms of her effort to 'integrate music within the text - not just as a subject but as a tone'.
Awards
Last amended 1 Feb 2023 10:55:15
Subjects:
- Brisbane, Queensland,
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