Matt Crawford speaks with author Denise Haynes about her book, Talent Show. Do you really know your parents? We all think we do but never consider them as persons before parenthood descended. And do they know you? In Talent Show an introverted father becomes talkative and lifts the curtain on who his wife was before she was a mother, who she became after, and who each of his children were in his eyes. He reveals a few secrets of his own and describes life in a household of ten children as a perpetual talent show. Everyone is always anxious to perform, to shine and to receive applause, even if they don’t know what their talent is. Life is a rehearsal for the family talent shows, or is it the other way around? The children get their bit in as they reply with their own versions and reveal who they are. One thing is clear- there is no shared version of a family’s life. Everyone has their own and pain is often hidden in the busyness of family life until family members speak honestly.