Suzanne Askham

Books

Oh Hell: Two nurses in 1920s London, a memoir

They could be nurses, decided their father. No one could ever earn enough as a hospital nurse to be independent. They would get the much-needed firm hand, exactly how firm he was yet to discover. And he would know where to find them. 

When Freda and Nan Russell-Davis began their training in 1927, they had no idea what they were facing. The sheltered sisters would soon learn London’s worst kept secret: probationer nurses were cheaper to employ than maids. True, between cleaning, mopping and brass polishing, they would also become useful cooks. Oh, and Freda might get slightly stabbed…

Freda Russell-Davis and her great niece, Suzanne Askham, provide a rare glimpse of a time when ‘the noble profession’ of nursing earned the lowest of salaries. Training had yet to be regulated. While the powers that be argued on the matter, the probationers struggled on. Thank goodness for a sense of humour. Not to mention a pair of striped bloomers…

This One is Special, a memoir

Suzanne Askham’s world was turned upside down when her first child was born with profound disabilities. In ‘This One is Special’, she tells her family’s story: how they learnt from trauma to become truly resilient. Relevant to anyone going through challenging life conditions, this book is packed with practical and intuitive insights designed to help you thrive.

“I stayed up far too long last night reading ‘This One is Special’ from start to finish. I love it. It is like a cool, clear, endless glass of water on a warm summer’s day – it has such clarity and depth.”
Gillian Clark, Chair of The Healing Trust

“A radiant and inspiring story of how to make happiness out of adversity, by having faith in goodness, learning from dreams, and trusting in intuition.”
Adrian Poole, Fellow in English, Trinity College, Cambridge

“This book perfectly captures the conflict between one’s own positive views of one’s disabled child and the defeatist attitude of professionals. It’s life-affirming to see how Tim progresses as Suzanne begins to trust her instincts, her dreams and, most of all, her son.”
James Melville-Ross, author of Two for Joy and ambassador for Scope