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Question about the book "A Child Called It"


Guest LilaFowler

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I've never heard it was confirmed to be a fake, but the entire time I was reading it, I was questioning how someone could pull up such detailed memories of his day-to-day life going back to such an early age. Especially without someone around who was an adult at the time to help fill in what must have been huge gaps.

Apparently there is some corroboration from at least one of his brothers and from teachers and social workers. So while I suspect he was an abused child, my guess is that much of the book was semi-fictionalized.

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I've never heard it was confirmed to be a fake, but the entire time I was reading it, I was questioning how someone could pull up such detailed memories of his day-to-day life going back to such an early age. Especially without someone around who was an adult at the time to help fill in what must have been huge gaps.

Apparently there is some corroboration from at least one of his brothers and from teachers and social workers. So while I suspect he was an abused child, my guess is that much of the book was semi-fictionalized.

Not saying that the book might not have been fictionalized, but I'm one of those people who have very clear childhood memories: I remember moving into our house when I was two and a half, and seeing the kid next door playing "laundry" by hanging doll clothes on the screen door's grill. (No recollection of the plumber having replaced my water heater thirteen years ago, though, even though he showed me proof.)

As glad as I am that Pelzer's books may be helping people who suffered through childhood abuse, I wish we had proof that they were 100% accurate.

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I think the general consensus is that he's played up a lot of what happened, to make it larger than life. There are apparently many incidents of retellings with added, more florid, details.

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I think the general consensus is that he's played up a lot of what happened, to make it larger than life. There are apparently many incidents of retellings with added, more florid, details.

Yeah, like the stabbing thing. In later stories he started saying his mother actually stabbed him in the heart.

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Not saying that the book might not have been fictionalized, but I'm one of those people who have very clear childhood memories: I remember moving into our house when I was two and a half, and seeing the kid next door playing "laundry" by hanging doll clothes on the screen .

Most of us can remember snatches of times from childhood, even as far back as two and a half.

But very few of us can recall what events happened on a particular Wednesday when we were six, remember how we felt about those events, quote what those around us said, and then describe in detail the follow up events that occurred on Thursday. He certainly didn't maintain a journal at that age and there were no adult witnesses to help him later put things in context or chronological order.

He was removed from the home and I believe he suffered at the hands of his mother. But the book almost certainly has to be part fiction.

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I read the book and it's horrifying. I want it to be fake just so I don't have to think about monsters like his mom actually existing. But it probably is at least mostly true. It doesn't surprised me that one brother would deny it; that's extremely common with abuse. Remember that all abuse has a psychological component to it. Even for the boys who weren't physically abused, their mother surely manipulated them. Denial can also be a coping mechanism for someone who sees their loved one being victimized, but it powerless to stop it and feels guilty. A family member denying it absolutely does not indicate that the story is false, IMO. The story may or may not have been exaggerated. For the sake of that poor little boy, I hope it wasn't actually that bad. But there is probably at least some truth to the story.

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I should admit, when I read it I found it completely over the top and dramatically fabricated. It seems like its a huge money maker, as the writing is not concise and font is huge, and there are 3 books for like 15dollars floating around. Also, when I read the book, it seems like he was the only child abused in the family. And of course, surviving a 4 inch gaping chest wound is a wee bit farfetched.

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I read the book, thought it was horrible and also found it totally over the top and unbelievable. However, I have super-super vivid memories going back to when I was two years old. And I'm sure if I was going to write a book about my life, I could sort out what day some things happened pretty close to the exact date and day of the week based around major events of the year - it that x happened a few weeks after my birthday and it was gym day at school and gym was always on Wednesday. KWIM?

If you want to read novels about children in terrible situations, you're much better off to read books by Torey Hayden. They are much, much better written and are non-fiction (with names and identifying details changed) of children that she worked with in her years as a special education student. They're sad, but also very good.

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If you want to read novels about children in terrible situations, you're much better off to read books by Torey Hayden. They are much, much better written and are non-fiction (with names and identifying details changed) of children that she worked with in her years as a special education student. They're sad, but also very good.

Thanks for reminding me of them! I agree completely.

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Most of us can remember snatches of times from childhood, even as far back as two and a half.

But very few of us can recall what events happened on a particular Wednesday when we were six, remember how we felt about those events, quote what those around us said, and then describe in detail the follow up events that occurred on Thursday. He certainly didn't maintain a journal at that age and there were no adult witnesses to help him later put things in context or chronological order.

He was removed from the home and I believe he suffered at the hands of his mother. But the book almost certainly has to be part fiction.

This how I feel about the book. I saw Dave on Oprah years ago talking about his mom and I remember the descriptions of the some incidents were very sad. I read last winter when I was housesitting for my aunt and uncle. I found the book in their bookshelf. Some of the incidents seemed to be over the top and fictionalized.

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It can't ALL be real, i remember reading it and thinking "if you were going to write a book using every cliche of horrific shocking abuse this would be it."

I'm sure he was abused, I'm positive also that a LOT of the stuff was exaggerated.

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I should admit, when I read it I found it completely over the top and dramatically fabricated. It seems like its a huge money maker, as the writing is not concise and font is huge, and there are 3 books for like 15dollars floating around. Also, when I read the book, it seems like he was the only child abused in the family. And of course, surviving a 4 inch gaping chest wound is a wee bit farfetched.

Just want to say, that it is not unusual for abusive parents to have one "scapegoat" child who receives most or all of the abuse.

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Just want to say, that it is not unusual for abusive parents to have one "scapegoat" child who receives most or all of the abuse.

Not unusual at all. And regardless of the actual extent of the abuse he suffered, it's pretty clear David was scapegoated.

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If you want to read novels about children in terrible situations, you're much better off to read books by Torey Hayden. They are much, much better written and are non-fiction (with names and identifying details changed) of children that she worked with in her years as a special education student. They're sad, but also very good.

I am a HUGE Torey Hayden fangirl, she's the reason I went into the Special Ed field. I urge everyone to read her books, they're simultaneously fascinating and gut wrenching, and she has some updates of the people in her stories on her website.

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I remember reading this book in about an hour and a half, and being horrified. I didn't really read it critically, as it was recommended by the social worker who was doing our homestudy for foster care.

Looking back, I have a lot of questions about the veracity of many events, including the bathtub incident and the stabbing.

Do I think Dave Pelzer was an abused child? Yes. Do I believe 100% of his books? No. I think he stretches the truth, and ad libs what he can't remember. Perhaps some incidents were drawn from kids in other foster homes--exaggeration is very common with foster kids when they are trying to look tough to each other. Kind of my battle scars are worse than yours sort of a thing.

I also remember that his case was billed as the "worst in California history." I don't know about that. Most sensationalized, yes. Who can say if it's the worst. Lydia Schatz would disagree if she was still alive.

Despite all of that, if it raises awareness about children in pain, I'm all for it.

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I like Torey Hayden's books, but I hate the way they're presented, the whole 'saved by one teacher who DARED TO CARE' bullshit. I think it's disrespectful to the kids, and to all the other special ed teachers out there. But that's not her fault. Also, some of the stuff she says about selective mutism and autism is contrary to what's known today about those conditions, and I kind of wonder if people are reading the shiny new editions of her books and getting misinformation, not realising that what she's saying is what they thought thirty years ago.

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he stabbing is dragged out over 13 pages. It begins: ''a sharp pain erupted from just above my stomach . . . a warm sensation flowing from my chest . . . where dark red blood pumped out . . . pain ripped through my ribs and blood seeped through my ragged T-shirt . . . pinched the slit. . . . I saw a yellowish-white substance begin to ooze from the red, angry gash. . . . I wiped away the pus . . . until blood seeped through.''

There is no pus in a wound that has just occurred. It is many days before you'd get pus, since an infection needs to set in.

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I remember reading this book in about an hour and a half, and being horrified. I didn't really read it critically, as it was recommended by the social worker who was doing our homestudy for foster care.

Looking back, I have a lot of questions about the veracity of many events, including the bathtub incident and the stabbing.

Do I think Dave Pelzer was an abused child? Yes. Do I believe 100% of his books? No. I think he stretches the truth, and ad libs what he can't remember. Perhaps some incidents were drawn from kids in other foster homes--exaggeration is very common with foster kids when they are trying to look tough to each other. Kind of my battle scars are worse than yours sort of a thing.

I also remember that his case was billed as the "worst in California history." I don't know about that. Most sensationalized, yes. Who can say if it's the worst. Lydia Schatz would disagree if she was still alive.

Despite all of that, if it raises awareness about children in pain, I'm all for it.

Hmmm. I relate all fundy stuff in my head to my particular brand of fundy politics ;) and to me this is the "lying to the [working] class" argument. Is it right to lie to achieve short term gains?

I do believe the end justifies the means, but the means have to be workable in the long term too. Supposing this guy made it all up, or large parts, and gets caught? How many people are then going to think abused children are all exaggerating for effect and it can't have been that bad, because that one guy...?

Not worth the risk, if he is as dodgy as he appears to be.

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I remember reading this book in about an hour and a half, and being horrified. I didn't really read it critically, as it was recommended by the social worker who was doing our homestudy for foster care.

Looking back, I have a lot of questions about the veracity of many events, including the bathtub incident and the stabbing.

Do I think Dave Pelzer was an abused child? Yes. Do I believe 100% of his books? No. I think he stretches the truth, and ad libs what he can't remember. Perhaps some incidents were drawn from kids in other foster homes--exaggeration is very common with foster kids when they are trying to look tough to each other. Kind of my battle scars are worse than yours sort of a thing.

I also remember that his case was billed as the "worst in California history." I don't know about that. Most sensationalized, yes. Who can say if it's the worst. Lydia Schatz would disagree if she was still alive.

Despite all of that, if it raises awareness about children in pain, I'm all for it.

It was billed like that on Oprah and in articles and I also wondered if their was truth to that.

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