Books that deal with heavy topics such as child abuse are often among the most popular, explaining the enduring success of A Child Called "It", a victim's memoir published in 1995. Stitches, a memoir in graphic format, tells of the author's traumatic childhood in which his radiologist father tormented him until the author ran away at the age of 16. The Martian Child, also a true story, is slightly more uplifting, telling the inspirational story of a single man who adopts an abused child. The recently published fictional title Room, which tells the story of an abused son who is raised in a closet-sized room, is so popular that the library had to purchase seven copies (plus a few in large print and audio) to keep up with the demand. And the library's copy of You Don't Know Me, the fictional story of a 14 year old boy's abuse at the hands of his stepfather was last checked out mere days ago, despite the fact that it has been a full decade since it was published. For more stories on this heavy topic, search the keywords "child abuse" or "abused children" in your Community Library's catalog.
I've read all the Child Called It books at least a dozen times and each time they're more powerful. Maybe I'll try a few of these others as well.
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