Damaged

I bought Damaged many years ago but had never gotten around to reading it. 

A couple of days ago, I was cleaning my bookshelves and it was there, still waiting to be read. I placed it into my bag so that I could read it on the train the next morning.  

I couldn't put the book down once I started. I finished the book within 2 days.

Damaged is a true story about a girl, Jodie, whose world was unbelievably messed up by the people who were supposed to protect and love her; her parents. 

Cathy Glass is a foster carer, and Jodie was an almost-eight-year-old girl who was placed under her care. Jodie was extremely difficult in the beginning (think using poo-smearing as a threat), and took on such threatening, scary behaviour that I seriously thought Jodie had to be possessed by an evil spirit. However, as time passed, Cathay uncovered Jodie's painful and absurd past. 

She was her parents' and their friends' sexual toy. 

It was painful to read the abuse of such a young child. Not only was Jodie's learning ability comprised, she also switched between personalities to protect herself, unknowingly. 

As Jodie divulged more, she began to spiral out of control mentally. She was eventually sent to an institution to get better. 

I was very keen to know how Jodie turned out in the end. I really didn't want a sad ending, or not knowing how Jodie's story ended. Glass provided a closure thankfully. While Jodie never made a full recovery due to the extensive damage caused when she was young, she did become better. It kind of made things better for me, as a very-emotionally-involved reader. There was something sweet at the end. Read to find out.

For such a gloomy subject, the story unfolded in a rather fast pace. This made the read refreshing despite the depressing material.

If you think you have it tough, read this book. 

Surprisingly, Singapore National Library does not seem to carry this book  (at the time when I was preparing the post) though it carries Glass's other titles. 

Check out the book at Book Depository or Amazon. Don't forget to take the shipping cost into consideration!