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THE OSCAR BOOK EVERYBODY’S TALKING ABOUT

Ever since well-known author and journalist Melinda Ferguson revealed that she was working on an Oscar book with “somebody close to the case”, the question on everyone’s lips has been “who is it?”

After months of waiting, we now know who’s co-authored Oscar: An accident waiting to happen – it’s Patricia Taylor. Better known as Trish, she’s the mother of Samantha Taylor, who Oscar dated for 18 months.

When Reeva Steenkamp was shot and killed on 14 February 2013, Trish famously posted this status on her Facebook page that soon went viral:

“I am so glad that Sammy is safe and sound and out of the clutches of that man. There were a few occasions where things could have gone wrong with her and his gun during the time they dated. My condolences to the family whose daughter has passed away. My heart breaks for you.”

Now, with the court proceedings over, where her daughter Sam was called as a state witness and endless requests for interviews, Trish has decided to break her silence, telling the world how Oscar Pistorius had been included into the Taylor family for close on two years. And how he, in the end, left a path of destruction.

THE EARLY DAYS

Trish says that her daughter met Oscar at Ellis Park Stadium in August 2010. She was 16 and he was 23. Although she was hesitant at first, Trish describes how the young couple had an instant spark and were soon deeply in love.

Over the course of a few months, she describes how Oscar became part of the family and how she took on a mothering role towards him.

“One reason Oscar and I established such an immediate and intense bond, I believe, is because my mothering instincts are so strong and Oscar’s need for mothering is so huge. It was like a magnetic effect – both of us fulfilling a need in the other.”

SIGNS OF TROUBLE

Although Trish often speaks of how Oscar was welcomed with joy into her family, she slowly started to see signs of trouble after numerous incidents, including lying, drunken visits and simply not arriving to pick her daughter up as he’d promised.

Although the warning signs were there, Trish says that Oscar became emotional and she fell for his charms – even pushing for her daughter to reconcile with him after Samantha had decided to end it.

ANOTHER SIDE TO OZ

Perhaps the most striking part of the book is what was going on behind the scenes before and during the London Olympics. While Oscar was being hailed a hero in South Africa and across the world, Trish tells a very different story. She claims that the athlete “wept constantly, saying how he didn’t want to be there. He was distraught about the upcoming games. There was so much pressure on him to perform, I don’t think ever we, who were aware of a lot, knew how much it was”.

 Oscar: An accident waiting to happen is on sale from 12 September at Exclusive Books, CNA and amazon.com.

*The official launch is 18 September, 6pm, Exclusive Books, Rosebank Mall. Both authors will be present.

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