Stars: ****
I received this book for review through Bostick Communications.
Summary: Children often hide the abuses of their parents. Left to fend for themselves, many children are thrown into the adult world at an early age, never given the chance to be a kid and most of all, never trusting others.
Brenda Youngerman follows the lives four children, two sets of siblings, who are exposed to abusive parents in Hidden Truths.
I’ve read quite a few books on child abuse (most before I started this blog) but I’ve never seen one written through the child’s point of view. What an intriguing idea. If you want to know more details on what happens in the book, check out Bobbie’s review of the book below.
I “enjoyed” the book, as much as you can a book about child abuse. It was well written. You can read chapter one here.
I couldn’t find any explanation on if these stories were real or not. Even if they’re not, they are very real and could be real as this sort of thing happens. However I asked the author and she said it’s fiction. It sure fooled me though, it could definitely pass as non-fiction.
It’s not a short story book though. The children are connected and not just the siblings. There are four parts. I loved the way it all came together in the end. Another thing, although the book is about abuse and sexual abuse is in there too, it’s not too descriptive so it’s not as hard to read. It’s just enough that you can imagine and understand how horrible it must have been but enough to make you wish you hadn’t read it.
I think this would be a good book for a child who was abused but is now and adult as they could identify with the children but also see that things can turn out for the better. It’s also good for anyone wanting to know more about abuse from the child’s point of view of course.
Brenda Youngerman is also the author of Private Scars and Public Lies. You can find out more about her at her site.
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