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A review by saareman
A Brutal Way of Learning: Does it Have to Be? by Dan Haley, Jane Davidson
4.0
Illiteracy & Abuse with Redemption
Review of the Davidson Communications paperback (2000).
This is a difficult book to rate. It tells the early life story of Canadian literacy advocate Dan Haley (b. 1956-) who survived an abusive childhood from an alcoholic father. Dan himself then grew up to be an alcoholic and abusive to his own family. Behind the scenes and due to his childhood trauma he was functionally illiterate and concealing it out of shame. This led to a vicious cycle of lashing out at others due to his frustrations and further descent into alcoholism.
The cycle was eventually broken due to Dan's realization that he was reenacting his father's life and terrorizing his own family. He actually turned himself in to Children's Aid in order to protect his own family. Along the way he joined Alcoholics Anonymous and worked to improve his literacy skills through various mentors and tutors.
Co-author and editor/publisher Jane Davidson recounts Dan's life through interviews and alternates those chapters with general discussions of the topics of dealing with substance abuse and literacy. These often cite various studies and statistics about the connections between illiteracy and substance abuse and resultant family abuse situations. It does not make for easy or comfortable reading.
The book is perhaps overly repetitive and textbook-like. But the messages of redemption and hope are still uplifting. The importance of literacy and the sometimes shocking statistics behind it can be eye-opening at times. Although the book is from 2000, recent studies show that not much has changed. See for instance Nearly Half of Adult Canadians Struggle with Literacy at CBC Radio, January 17, 2021.
My thanks to GR and IRL friend Karan for the gift of this book!
Trivia and Links
Dan Haley's journey does not end with this book. He continued on his journey and counselled prison inmates in literacy workshops, eventually becoming a Pentecostal Pastor. He went on to found halfway houses in Peterborough, Ontario to house senior paroled inmates, often in end of life situations with no family to support them. These efforts continue through Haley House and McDonnel House through the One City Peterborough organization.
One related article can be read at Aging Behind Bars, by Debbie Pacheco, CBC Radio One, October 4, 2018.
Review of the Davidson Communications paperback (2000).
This is a difficult book to rate. It tells the early life story of Canadian literacy advocate Dan Haley (b. 1956-) who survived an abusive childhood from an alcoholic father. Dan himself then grew up to be an alcoholic and abusive to his own family. Behind the scenes and due to his childhood trauma he was functionally illiterate and concealing it out of shame. This led to a vicious cycle of lashing out at others due to his frustrations and further descent into alcoholism.
The cycle was eventually broken due to Dan's realization that he was reenacting his father's life and terrorizing his own family. He actually turned himself in to Children's Aid in order to protect his own family. Along the way he joined Alcoholics Anonymous and worked to improve his literacy skills through various mentors and tutors.
Co-author and editor/publisher Jane Davidson recounts Dan's life through interviews and alternates those chapters with general discussions of the topics of dealing with substance abuse and literacy. These often cite various studies and statistics about the connections between illiteracy and substance abuse and resultant family abuse situations. It does not make for easy or comfortable reading.
The book is perhaps overly repetitive and textbook-like. But the messages of redemption and hope are still uplifting. The importance of literacy and the sometimes shocking statistics behind it can be eye-opening at times. Although the book is from 2000, recent studies show that not much has changed. See for instance Nearly Half of Adult Canadians Struggle with Literacy at CBC Radio, January 17, 2021.
My thanks to GR and IRL friend Karan for the gift of this book!
Trivia and Links
Dan Haley's journey does not end with this book. He continued on his journey and counselled prison inmates in literacy workshops, eventually becoming a Pentecostal Pastor. He went on to found halfway houses in Peterborough, Ontario to house senior paroled inmates, often in end of life situations with no family to support them. These efforts continue through Haley House and McDonnel House through the One City Peterborough organization.
One related article can be read at Aging Behind Bars, by Debbie Pacheco, CBC Radio One, October 4, 2018.