Father Figure

by Ann Widdecombe

Jason Kirk is a thirty-two year old teacher who believes he is happily married, until he returns home one day to find that his wife has left him, taking their two young children with her. Suddenly Jason finds the role of father denied to him as he is separated from his children and reduced to the role of visitor. The law is weighted against him, and his wife produces a series of excuses to withhold contact. Jason, who had wanted to bring his children up on a daily basis, not only has to face the pain of this loss but endures the misery of persecution by the Child Support Agency.

Genres: Fiction

352 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Ann Noreen Widdecombe was a British politician and television personality. As a member of the Conservative Party, she was Member of Parliament for Maidstone and The Weald and the former Maidstone constituency from 1987 to 2010. - Wikipedia

Reviews

[Tim]

I don't believe that Ann Widdecombe has ever been married or had children of her own but that hasn't stopped her writing a superb tale about how the law acts against fathers and men.

Jason is happily married to Kat with 2 young children. One day out of the blue she leaves Jason, who now whereas before had equal share in his children's upbringing, education, guidance, has to fight to see them only occasional, all the while suffering the financial hardship of running two households, plus the legal costs and persecution of the Child support agency. His former wife always seems to be one step ahead, with excuse after excuse as to why he cannot see his children on particular weekends.
His wife waits until he has sorted his life out a bit then moves the children from Somerset to Newcastle meaning he sees them even less.

Along the way teacher Jason meets other men in similar and worse situations, one of whom is driven to suicide.

There are some lovely tender moments in the book, the author portrays the affect this has on the children of divorcees very well, you see them grow up and work out for themselves who is acting reasonably.

There is also a beautiful twist at the end.

[Tan]

Oof. Felt like Ann Widdecombe lifted this tale right from my life for the past 10 years - I was unreasonably cross and frustrated for most of it, willing Kat to get her come uppance. It was a bit too really real, and I just couldn't see how it would be resolved in a satisfying way. It's a long wait to know, but yes, the last page was deeply satisfying. I went to bed relieved, triumphant and vindicated.

I don't know a lot about Ann Widdecombe's personal life to know what experiences inform her stories, but this is the second book of hers I've read, and she has an incredible ability to put herself in someone else's shoes and render in heart rending detail the range of feelings and emotions that you imagine, but could never write down, people would feel in bleak and irretrievable situations. I recommend her as a writer. I read the Clematis Tree many years ago now, and it was unforgettable and has stayed with me.

[Alison]

This book definitely touches the nerve. Painful at times to read. Ann widdecombe certainly seems to have understood the plight of separated families. There is never a reason given for the end of the marriage which I found odd - other than saying it wasn't the same. But the impact of it all was huge. I don't know if it was well written as such but it engaged me throughout.

[Frances]

Excellent gripping read. My only criticism was that it produced such emotion in me. I normally read to calm myself. This book made me want to go out there and fight for the poor father - a man so typical of many of today’s fathers.

[Emma]

This was my first foray into novels by Ann Widdecombe so I wasn't sure what to expect, however I was not disappointed. I never usually dislike a character in a book as much as I did the wife in this tale, what a scheming character. I would most definitely look out for other books by Ms Widdecombe.

[Michelle Hammond]

A very good read. Well written. The subject is tender & both myself & my husband have first hand experience of the subject touched on. It brought back a lot of emotions & memories. Quite true to life in a lot of cases sadly. Thought provoking. Well worth a read.

[Jane Shaw]

Well written insightful and thought provoking.

[wendy scholey]

One of the best

Thoroughly enjoyed this book as much as the first one. Ann his the natural gift of drawing one into her books. Long may she keep on writing

[d m palmer]

Really enjoyed the book, very realistic

[Jenny Carr]

Ok. Gives perspective you don't normally hear.

[Munirah]

My first Ann Widdecombe book which I picked up at a book sale. I don't normally read books on relationships, personal conflicts and other related familial themes but I figured there was a different approach with this book as it was from the perspective of the husband/father as oppose to the woman as it usually is in books tackling these sort of issues.

As a whole, it was a good read. I did not find it too boring although I did find some parts to be slightly dreary. It was easy to sympathise with the character of Jason Kirk, the jilted husband just as it was easy to loathe his wife, Kat. However, I did find Kat's motivation to leave Jason was too vague and not explored well enough to find a justification in her actions. It was just described that she was a restless soul whose constant yearn was change.

What I gathered from reading this book, is that in a marriage breakdown, nobody wins irrespective of who gets the house or custody of the children. A divorce is the demolition of a family institution which does not reap benefit for anybody but the lawyers. In most legal systems of today, the court will almost always award custody to the mother even if the breakdown was caused by her. It is a common belief that children are often best with their mother because a father can never love the children as much. It is often not the best resolution as a father will always have equal rights to their child which unfortunately most courts fail to take cognisance. Thus, this book managed to shed light on how things are when a father suddenly finds his role shift from a parent to a mere visitor and its effect on the children.

[Lois]

Ann Widdecombe's third novel is a generous stab at giving the boys a hand. Its message is simple: "men are human beings too". Our hero, Jason Kirk, is a history teacher who finds himself caught in the 21st century, among "men who struggled as flies in its web", when he arrives home to find that Kat, his wife of 10 years, has left him and taken their two children with her. This betrayal takes us behind the headlines, to witness one man become "an almost dad", excluded from family life while his ex-wife manipulates and deceives. ~ Sheena Joughin

Ann Widdecombe's way of writing is extraordinary. What a lesson to see things through the man's point-of-view. Superior expressions and heartfelt.

[Angie Swain]

Told from the perspective of the father, faced with the walking out by his wife from their marriage and the loss of his children, he tries to make sense of it. He has always loved his wife but now faces a hostile person he does not know, his children do not understand the situation and social services take the traditional route of blaming him and extracting every cent out of him in order to maintain his wife and children. It is well told and is, I am sure, the story of many husbands/fathers who find themselves in the same situation

[Veronica Castle]

I passed over this book in a charity shop as it's not my usual read: my friend bought it instead and insisted I read it, and I'm glad she did.

It's not that I hadn't understood the difficulties that can arise around child access when a couple split up, but this book was so well written that it drew one into what is quite an uncomfortable area. I was so glad it ended on a reasonably happy note: you really felt for the main character and his bewilderment and anger were accurately portrayed.

A definite five stars.

[Janet Roberts]

I know Ann Widdecombe as an out-spoken politician and had no idea she was also and accomplished author and I had no idea what to expect from this book which I picked up in a charity shop. In fact it's extremely well researched and reads well, but the subject matter, whilst important, is very bleak and somewhat depressing. Still I was pleased I'd found her and will look out for other books by her.

[Mardi Stewart]

I was surprised by this book( a book club read) and although sceptical I enjoyed it. The information on fathers whose children are with their mother was a real eye opener. This book had so many facts about custody of children that it read more like a documentary at times. I did not wholeheartedly enjoy it but it was much better than \I had expected

[Vanda Bromwich]

A very interesting book. It makes a change to see the breakup of a marriage and the ensuing trauma from a man’s perspective.
Ann Widdecombe obviously hasn’t got a high regard for the CPS and social services!

[Rebecca Reddy]

Enjoyable read - light enough but deals with a very real subject from a different perspective.

[Kath]

Empathetically and well written but too sad for light reading as it covers the pain of divorce and separation from children.