Imagine ... growing up in an unfinished geodesic dome home with no heat or running water, wearing the same clothes to school every day, and eating breakfast cereal with warm goat milk. In this whimsical, poetic, and gripping autobiographical account, Jennifer Asbenson describes her abusive, dysfunctional, and chaotic upbringing, her abduction and escape from a serial killer, her years in and out of mental hospitals, her decision to heal herself, and...

Sunday Times bestselling author and foster carer Casey Watson's first heartbreaking memoir. Justin was five years old; his brothers two and three. Their mother, a heroin addict, had left them alone again. Later that day, after trying to burn down the family home, Justin was taken into care. Justin was taken into care at the age of five after deliberately burning down his family home. Six years on, after 20 failed placements, Justin arrives at Casey's...

"A shocking expose of the dark, secret history of Catholic orphanages--the violence, abuse, and even murder that took place within their walls-- and a call to hold the powerful to account. More than 5 million Americans passed through orphanages in the 20th century alone. At its peak in the 1930s, the American orphanage system included more than 1,600 institutions, partly supported with public funding but usually run by religious orders, including...

Tears tell truths. Heal your heart. Feeling angry, depressed or traumatized? There are so many reasons why you should look for the gift buried within your pain. If you need some help, look no further than this book. Children cannot choose their parents. Unfortunately, many individuals grow up suffering the life-shaping adversities of having emotionally immature, neglectful parents. With wisdom and compassion, Cassandra Gaisford, an extremely experienced...

Murphy's Kids. What a strange moniker. It corresponds with the so-called Murphy's Law that states if a series of things can potentially go wrong, they will. As incredible as it sounds, there are some kids who, from the day they are born until they leave this earth, encounter more than their fair share of bad luck and misfortune. It is as if a vixen were attached to their spinal cord. Most children learn to adapt, but far too many acquiesce. They become...

This book is about the courage to overcome childhood neglect and the fears of child abuse to find a way to overcome pain and make another world so safe and far from the discomfort of childhood abuse. Dive headlong into a made-up world of love and laughter-a world of poetry and endless beauty besides. A book full of beautiful poems to brighten people's lives.

A TRUE STORY told by the daughter of the SURVIVORWhat is it like to be the daughter of a mentally ill patient? A patient who is not mentally ill by nature but made into one by her own family and above all, by her own step-father. Being a victim to not only incest but molestation and rape, the confessions from the daughter of the mentally ill mother are nerve-wrecking, heinous to envision, and wake-up calls for the survivors of incest, molestation...

This moving and simply stated true story takes you along Cecilia's journey from child abuse, as she moves through and past her violent upbringing. She discovers her ability to imagine away the pain from her past in order to cope with the traumatic memories that were holding her back from truly living. Cecilia learns the power of forgiveness in order to release herself from pent up toxicity, and the sharing of her story with her abusive father leads...

Child sexual abuse (CSA) is an insidious crime that can destroy the lives of innocent children and leave their families devastated. The topic of child sexual abuse is, at best, a difficult subject to discuss and at worst, a horrifying one. Child sexual abuse has been defined as: "Child sexual abuse involves any sexual activity with a child where consent is not or cannot be given. This includes sexual contact that is accomplished by force or threat...