Goodbye, Dearest Holly - Hardcover

Kevin Wells

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0907633021 ISBN 13: 9780907633020

Publisher: Psychology News Press Ltd, 2005

Synopsis

Some tragedies become part of our national history. On August 4, 2002 Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman went missing in Soham. The police searched, the girls' families searched, the local community searched, Kevin Wells, Holly's father, became a familiar figure on TV as he prayed for good news - the good news that never came. After 13 days, the bodies of Holly and Jessica were found. Within 48 hours, Ian Huntley was charged with their murder. There is nothing more dreadful than losing a child. Kevin had no idea what had happened to the daughter he loved and had such high hopes for in the terrible days after Holly went missing, Kevin found himself overwhelmed with emotion. He cried and was often embarrassed to cry. He faced situations he never imagined in his worst nightmares. Under stress, he feared he might forget important details of the worst days of his life. So he started to make notes. He didn't think of it as being therapeutic. At first his wife Nicola didn't see the point but she soon changed her mind. Kevin's diary couldn't alter anything but it did feel as if their lives were a little less out of their control. Kevin's book is that diary which he kept until well after the trial of Ian Huntley and Maxine Carr was over.

About this title

Review:

essential reading to understand what happens to families bereaved by homicide...am extremly powerful and gripping account --Glynis Bliss of Victim Support, Community Care

From the Publisher:

My company made the ITV film Our Daughter Holly and that is why we are publishing Kevin's book. We are very proud to be doing so. Goodbye, Dearest Holly gives a brutally frank account of what it feels like to be caught up in such a trauma - and tells how the Wells family have survived their ordeal. The book is not just very truthful but of great relevance to a number of professions - including the police, teachers and social workers.

Sarah Oliver of the Mail on Sunday has followed the story
and read the book. She told us; "A brutally honest account of what happens when innocence meets evil. Kevin Wells' book is about a father's love, a family's loss and a nation's horror. If you want to know the true story of Soham, read it."

About this edition

• Publisher: Psychology News Press Ltd
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 0907633021
• ISBN 13: 9780907633020
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 278