My parents definitely marched to the beat of a different drummer. It wasn’t until I went to school that I realized we weren’t like other families, but the differences were funny, educational and challenging.
Fifty years of their unconventional voyage through life provided the inspiration to write this memoir. Riddled with fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants adventures, Following Daddy is about my parents who educated us on the run, considered love and laughter important ingredients in character building and emphasized togetherness, even if it was from a distance.
Filled with humor, adventure and poignancy, Following Daddy is a light-hearted narrative memoir written in the spirit of books such as Sometimes I Dream in Italian, by Rita Ciresi, Erma Brombeck’s The Grass is Always Greener Over the Septic Tank and Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank Gilbreth.
Page 163 "Memories are priceless whether they are good ones or not-so-good-ones because they are the texture of your life. I'm the same little girl who sat on the cellar floor with sawdust in her hair, sorting nails and screws. I was part of the fishing team that cast a line into the surf in Cap May and dragged smelly fish heads through the water luring crabs into the boat."
Page 18 "It was okay to get sawdust in your hair, spill varnish down the cellar steps, and burn a pie. I learned that some seeds grow and some don’t, that pets die, and that adventure can be found in unsuspected places. Mistakes are part of life, it’s learning how to correct them, laugh over them, or just plain deal with them, that’s the real lesson. Some lessons I learned from watching my parents, some I had to learn for myself, and some I haven’t learned yet."
Professional Reviews
Daren Lamb, author of Djakarta! and Fool's Challenge
Following Daddy is a warm, nostalgic journey that will touch the hearts of everyone. Sunny Serafino has the ability to make you laugh aloud one chapter and cause you to cry the next. This beautifully written memoir of her early family life is by far her best work.
Swanee Ballman, Jawbone Publishing
Meet one of the most amazing families ever! Following Daddy is the tale of a young man, the sone of wealthy British parents, who moves to America during the Great Depression. Begin a journey with Sunny as she relates years of heart-warming extraordinary parents.
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Reviews for "Following Daddy"
Reviewed by Bette Crosby
1/26/2008
Loved it. Following Daddy is Sunny Serafino's only memoir, but if this is a sample of the stories she had to tell, perhaps she should consider doing more. I loved the off-beat humor that told of the mishaps that happened to everyone in her family, including the dog. In reading this memoir, I felt a real longing for my own parent who are now gone from this world. Her book captures that quirky but truly sincere love that siblings and parents feel toward each other. You'll laugh and cry, but you'll love every page and hate for the book to end. I did. BLC
She never felt safe at home as a young girl, and didn't understand why when she finally escaped she wasn't safe in the big wide world either ...effectively jumping out of the frying pan into the fire!
The true story of Cheryl Pierson Cuccio who made headlines in 1986 and her husband Rob Cuccio. Cheryl was abused sexually and physically and Rob died for 43 minutes on Cheryl's 43rd birthday.
