Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)This is a courageous and wonderful book that ought to be known by every household in the country. The author tackles the subject of child abuse head-on because this is the only way to be just to the victims. The heart of the book comprises six true stories of child abuse, giving examples of physical, emotional and sexual abuse. Three of the stories are about women and three about men. The great virtue of this book is that it tells it like it is. The personal history of each survivor is given : family background, when the abuse commenced, the type of abuse and the victim's reaction, the effect on the victim's life, help or therapy sought, and much much more. Episodes of abuse are described in some detail in the context of the relationship with the abuser and family members.
This is not an "inspirational" book. It does not peddle the lie that every abuse survivor can overcome abuse and achieve resounding success in life. As you read the book you will see that some survivors are able to achieve success in life, often in spite of the fact they receive little understanding from family or friends. For others, however, the psychological injuries are so severe as to preclude success.
I am in this book and in chapter five Morven tells my story of severe emotional abuse growing up in postwar London. The other five survivors are younger than me, with ages ranging from twenty-five to about forty-five.
The book includes a useful introduction and also a final chapter about the malign influence of Sigmund Freud upon psychiatry and psychology. To many across the pond Freud is considered a quack and a charlatan because he taught that reports of sexual abuse were mere fantasies. The last chapter discusses Freud's pivotal role in the establishment's denial of child abuse and the marginalisation of victims.
The book is written in clear and simple English so that anyone can educate themselves about childhood abuse.
Buy this book and help put an end to the scourge of childhood abuse.
I understand that Survivors' Stories Volume 2 will be coming out in March 2008.
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'Survivors' Stories': an Enlightening Journey through the Differing Lives of Child Abuse SurvivorsThis book is about ordinary people living in the UK today; most of whom still hide their childhoods from nearly everyone they know. With more and more survivor's biographies becoming little more than moving works of literature, this book was written to break through our social isolation on this issue. It brings a communicative bridge of understanding to a wide range of child abuse survivors whose lives seem impossible to tell apart from the norm. Through these stories, you lose your doubts about exactly what child abuse is, and how to communicate about it. You gain knowledge of its effects upon a whole range of long term adult relationships, and learn how survivors and their families might adopt various ways of healing. Survivors' Stories also works as an excellent self-development and training resource that need not be confined to a classroom or lecture hall. It's where education gets personal, as the section 'How to Talk about Abuse' describes the necessary steps to create a safe space before you attempt to talk or listen. It gives you tools to create straightforward ongoing relationships in risky new territory. Each separate story covers aspects everybody shares in common; Home background. Control, discipline and punishment. Good and bad bonding in relationships. School; other institutions, and relationships between institutions and principle carers. Money, possessions and resources. The form(s) that the more secret abuse took. The secret; thoughts and feelings in private and in public as a child. Telling; when did the survivor first tell, and what happened as a result? Addictive patterns with alcohol, drugs or any other forms of addiction. Becoming an adult; ambition, education, career, talent and involvement in the world. Adult relationships - how abuse affects family and other relationships; the secret few understand; living as the victim or the perpetrator of patterns of abuse (including abuse of self); irresolvable ongoing thoughts - like being `caught in a loop'. More intimate relationships & sexuality. Getting help, looking for answers, companionship, therapy and healing. Snapshot of adult life now. The final section informs us why child abuse has been so hard to address since modern times began, fuelling us with a strong motivational rationale that gives us the confidence and courage to speak our minds and contribute to this changing voice within our wider culture. 'Survivors' Stories': an Enlightening Journey through the Differing Lives of Child Abuse Survivors by Morven Fyfe"Maya Angelou and Oprah Winfrey were amongst the first to reveal the truth about their childhoods. In the UK, Billy Connolly and Sinead O'Connor spoke out to enable others to break the silence ...but how do we break the silence, and what on earth do we say? This is the first in the series, 'Survivors' Stories', whereby one by one, child abuse survivors talk about their lives. Based on a wide range of backgrounds and child abuse experiences, these accounts convey the bigger picture of child abuse survivors' lives in a revealing and compelling way. Biographies are shared thoroughly, alongside information, questions and comments. There are practical guidelines to enable discussion, and through being better informed, you'll acquire the self-assurance to communicate about this complex subject with greater sensitivity, and increasing authority. Written for a wide audience, this book is for survivors, parents, foster carers of abused children, teachers and staff in schools, doctors, nurses, mental health professionals, social workers, dentists, police officers and the legal profession as a whole, counsellors, therapists, body oriented therapists and healing therapists, workers and representatives from religious groups, journalists, writers, film, media and TV production teams and finally, all proactive adults who wish to protect children from abuse.
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