... The following pages relate the details of his tortured boyhood and are followed, in the latter part of the book, by a testimonial from Steven Zeigler, his 5th Grade homeroom teacher, and extracts from the next books in the series "The Lost Boy" and "A Man Named Dave".
The first one hundred ... Read review
David J. Pelzer's mother, Catherine Roerva, was, he writes in this ghastly, fascinating ... more
memoir, a devoted den mother to the Cub Scouts in her care but not to David, her son, whom she referred to as "an It". This book is a brief, horrifying account of the bizarre tortures she inflicted on him, told from the point of view of the author as a young boy being starved, stabbed, smashed face-first into mirrors, forced to eat the contents of his sibling's diapers and a spoonful of ammonia, and burned over a gas stove by a maniacal, alcoholic mom. Sometimes she claimed he had violated some rule--no walking on the grass at school--but mostly it was pure sadism. Inexplicably, his father didn't protect him; only an alert schoolteacher saved David. One wants to learn more about his ordeal and its aftermath, and now he's written a sequel,The Lost Boy, detailing his life in the foster-care system.Though it's a grim story, A Child Called "It" is very much in the tradition of Chicken Soup for the Couple's Soul and the many books in that upbeat series, whose author Pelzer thanks for helping get his book going. It's all about weathering adversity to find love and Pelzer is an expert witness.--Christine Buttery
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...to intervene to protect him, a 5th Grade student. Following a weekly inspection of his bruised body, his injuries recorded in detail by the school nurse, they contacted the Police and he was taken into the care of the San Mateo Juvenile Department.
His is the third worse case of child abuse recorded in California. I shudder to think about those two worse cases.
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"It" vanished for ever on 5th March 1973 with the words, "David, you're free. Your mother is never going to hurt you again."
These twelve words were spoken by the Policeman who had taken the twelve-year-old Dave Pelzer away from his school.
They were spoken the day after he had been thrown down the garage stairs by his mother.
They were spoken on the day the staff at Thomas Edison Elementary School laid their jobs on the line to intervene to protect him, a 5th Grade student. Following a weekly inspection of his bruised body, his injuries recorded in detail by the school nurse, they contacted the Police and he was taken into the care of the San Mateo Juvenile Department.
His is the third worse case of child abuse recorded in California. I shudder to think about those two worse cases.
I first heard of this book some years ago, when it was serialised in the Daily Mail. Last Saturday during my trip to the library I spotted a copy on the shelf and brought it home. Yesterday evening I started to read.
It has taken me around 4 hours in total to read the whole 216 pages of the book.
Written using the words of a child, the book begins with an introductory chapter telling of his rescue. The following pages relate the details of his tortured boyhood and are followed, in the latter part of the book, by a testimonial from Steven Zeigler, his 5th Grade homeroom teacher, and extracts from the next books in the series "The Lost Boy" and "A Man Named Dave".
The first one hundred and sixty nine pages held me mesmerised, bewitched as if I was reading a Grimm's Tale. I devoured the story in its horrific detail, unable to believe I was reading autobiographical fact. It is not fiction. This story is true!
In these few hours I have read of a little boy whose first years were magical, a perfect life. He tells of family life with his two older brothers, his hard-working Fireman father and an enthusiastic mother, who would spend hours cooking fantastic meals in a well maintained and well cared for home, a home that would sparkle with Christmas decorations. He tells of holidays and introduces his favourite place in the world - the banks of the Russian River at Guerneville, California.
The good times didn't last. There is no clear reason given, perhaps the boy was louder than his older siblings. In any case, how would a child know the cause? When Dave was four his now alcohol dependent mother took to spending the days on the sofa watching television, and increasingly treated the young Dave as less than a servant and worthy of only derision. His brothers were, apparently, treated normally, looking on and as they grew older they began to join in, egged on by the younger Russell who made up stories to get Dave into trouble.
I have read of a little boy whose arm was damaged by his mother, who left him overnight and in pain, only taking him to the hospital the following morning so that she could claim he fell out of his bunk. He didn't question her decision and here begins a pattern for the next eight years of his life.
I have read of a boy who was starved, for sometimes as long as ten days in succession, only able to drink water out of the tap in the garage where he had an army camp bed to sleep on, no heat and no decent covering.
I have read of a young child given the responsibility for keeping a house clean, a little boy who is beaten, his face smashed against a counter if his chores take longer than the time limit allocated by his mother.
I have read of a boy who is given only scraps of food. In desperation he takes that of the family pets, eating out of their bowls and gulping the food down in case he is spotted, which would only result in further beating. Here is a boy who steals food from his classmates in order to survive.
I have read of a boy who was tortured. Dave is forced to remain for hours at a time in "POW position", sitting on the ground with his hands beneath him and his head arched backwards. He is left alone in the garden, seated like this whilst the rest of the family have a day out, he daren't move. He knows his mother could be watching for him to break the rules, resulting in the thrashing he deserves for such misdemeanours.
I have read of a boy who is locked in the bathroom where his tormentor had placed a bucket containing a deadly combination of Chlorox (bleach) and Ammonia, the fumes strip the lining of his mouth. He is made to lie in a cold bath, face down, for hours on end, his skin wrinkling and turning white. His brothers use the bathroom, only glancing at his partly submerged body they make no attempt to rescue him. When allowed to climb from the water he is forbidden to dry himself, only permitted to dress in his ragged, stinking clothing.
I have read of a boy who is stabbed by his mother and who treats his festering wound himself, cleaning it with a filthy cloth moistened from a dripping tap, a tap he is too scared to turn on properly in case his mother hears the water running through the pipes.
I have read of a boy ordered to eat the contents of a soiled nappy and who, on refusal, had his face pushed into the faeces.
I have read of his school tormentors, led by Clifford and Aggie, aggressors who suggest he should kill himself, his only way out.
I have read of a dysfunctional family who have learned their own survival strategies, letting David be the scapegoat, fearing for their own safety should they make the slightest attempt to support him, stand up for him or try to defend him. He feels abandoned by his Father who leaves home, for ever, unable to cope any longer and just a few months before Dave's own rescue.
Not during the first part, but whilst reading the latter section detailing Dave's rescue and the time leading up to the court case, when his fear of his mother's wroth made him change his story and brought Ms Gold, his social worker, to her knees in despair.
I always knew he was to be rescued from his tormentor; the first chapter contains the details. I know there are other books detailing his later life. I knew he had survived. Without that knowledge I don't think I could have read on, unless some morbid fascination compelled me to do so. I knew it came to an end and that the boy survived to become the man who has been able to tell his tale.
Right now I'm shaking and my stomach is churning. It's only two hours since I finished reading. I opened the book last night and was compelled to finish it this morning. Why? I don't know, perhaps I had to be sure the brutality came to an end that something good in came from amongst all that evil.
I wasn't shaking when I started writing this review, I had a clear picture of what I was going to share on this page and how it was to be presented, but as I have recorded and recalled some of the details I have found it harder to move forwards through my plan. My thoughts have become disjointed, my emotions in tatters.
My son is called David; he is called Dave by his friends. He is sixteen, a tall young man of whom I'm immensely proud. Throughout his growing years he has made me laugh, he has made me cry too, when he has been hurt and I haven't been able to take the pain away. I just can't imagine how anybody can treat another person, let alone their flesh and blood, in this appalling way. I'm struggling for words to explain how I feel.
I have thoughts whizzing through my head of other cases of torture I have heard and read about, of crimes against humanity and how the perpetrators were brought to answer for their crimes. In the past, when torture led to death, those who did the deed were themselves punished by losing their own lives. This little boy Dave wasn't killed, he was however scarred both physically and emotionally and I, somehow, need to know what happened next.
I need to know what happened to Dave and his family. I know he grows to adulthood, joins the Air Force and has at least one child of his own, but what about the rest of his family ~ his brothers, two older than him and two younger? How did they deal with the aftermath of their appalling childhood, where they had been forced to see this treatment meted out to their brother? They weren't taken away, or were they?
I'm also questioning myself. I know that for some writing is cathartic, I believe that was the purpose behind this book and the other two that tell Dave Pelzer's story. For me I am questioning my compulsion, just why did I have to read on? Why couldn't I put the book down at its gut wrenching worst? Is it part of the mindset of today, where we voyeuristically observe the minutiae of the lives of others in "real life" television? On balance I don't think so, I think it is a part of the human psyche to observe brutality, to look on and detach ourselves in the hope that our non-intervention will keep us safe from harm. We hope that "somebody else" will deal with it and bring it to a halt.
However, in the safety of our own homes we can read books such as this one and can learn, absorb, and hopefully become brave enough to intervene, not be mere head-shaking observers, and have the courage to help the helpless and to halt brutality in its tracks.
I hesitated for a moment when deciding on the ratings, selected "Excellent" because I truly believe those of you who choose to read this book will experience something unforgettable.
Those brave enough to read about "It" can borrow this book from your local library or can buy it from any usual store.
"A Child Called 'It' is currently listed on Amazon.
Advantages: Perhaps helped the guy heal. Disadvantages: Badly put together and contradictions appearing throughout.
A CHILD CALLED "IT"
"As a child, Dave Pelzer was brutally beaten and starved by his emotionally unstable, alcoholic mother, a mother who played tortuous, unpredictable games that left one of her sons nearly dead. She no longer considered him a son, but a slave, no longer a boy, but an "it". The outside world knew nothing of the nightmare played out behind closed doors."
Mail on Sunday
Alarm bells started to ring when I began to read this book, ... ...outline of the story and a little knowledge of what to expect, although the alarm bells for me began right at the beginning of the book when he acknowledges that the book is heavily edited by Marsha Donohoe, an editor by profession, in an attempt to make the story seem as if it were told by a child. Surely a story of what purports to be "one of the most disturbing child abuse cases in the history of California" should have stood its' ground without ...
thingywhatsit 06.06.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Child Called It - Dave Pelzer
...readitswapit asked to swap with a book in my list a couple of weeks ago and I saw this on theirs, so thought I would take up the opportunity.
I wasn’t going to write a review on this book as I thought it would be hard to rate it with the 5 stars it should deserve, marking it as excellent, because of the devastating content of the book. However, I decided that the book, despite its content, was far too good not to give it a mention.
The main thing ... ...sick, had actually happened to a frightened, lonely little boy and I could not understand how any woman could treat her own son like Dave Pelzer’s mother did.
That said – I guess I should tell you about the book and about the boy that was called ‘It’.
*********************************************
Dave Pelzer has written this book in the words of a child and begins by telling the reader of his rescue. What follows, however, are the details of his ...
NewYork2006 22.06.2007
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Child Called It - Dave Pelzer
Advantages: Opens your eyes to what really goes on behind closed doors Disadvantages: Very graphic, may be too upsetting for some
I finally got it! a charity shop buy admittedly but this book has finally found its way into my possession and read rather rapidly! There could be a problem with writing about this book, the danger being that it would be really easy to write about what's in the book and to expand on the subject rather than look at the book as a whole. I will endeavour to look at the book as a whole but please feel free to leave a comment if you feel i don't. A child ... ...years old. His was a nice normal all american family. It consisted of his mother Catherine, fire-fighter dad, Stephen and his brothers Ronald and Stan. They are one happy loved-up family, David describes how happy the major holidays were, the holidays and trips and how he used to watch his parents prepare drinks and dance cheek to cheek. Then things began to change, Dave tells us that he may have been a loud child or the one that always got caught ...
Emma1973 01.12.2003
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Child Called It - Dave Pelzer
Advantages: EXCELLENT, RAISES AWARENESS OF IMPORTANT ISSUES Disadvantages: TRAUMATIC TO READ
A child called it is one of the most moving true stories I have ever read. It was written by Dave Pelzer, who, as a child, was abused so badly by his mother that it was documented as the third worst child abuse case ever recorded in California. The most appauling thing about this, as you will discover on reading the book, is that there have actually been two children treated worse than he was. And, of course, others across the world will also have ... ...written from the perspective of a child going through such a horrible experience, so the vocabulary is fairly limited. The next book in the series, the lost boy, is about the chapter of his life when he was in foster care, and the final book, a man named Dave tells of his life as an adult. The book begins with the story of how Dave was rescued from his evil mother by the people he now regards as heros. The reason for starting at this point in time ...
NATI 19.03.2002
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Child Called It - Dave Pelzer
Advantages: Quick reading. Riveting story. Disadvantages: Harrowing and true
...David’s harrowing experiences he created a trilogy of books, the first being “A Child Called It”
I came across the title many times and read a great many reviews before ever considering reading the book One of the reasons I resisted the temptation to read was that I felt it may be simply one of those things that I would be better off not knowing about. Child abuse despite being common place and far more widely acknowledged than in the past, is still ... ...as a subject in general.
The first impression of the book was it’s seaming lack of content, after all it was a mere 148 pages long and in a format that dedicated half the words per page compared to my usual literary material.How wrong could I be.
In a slightly unusual way the book is broken into several parts, with dedications, acknowledgements and notes preceding the main story and ending with sections from relevant teacher encountered in his ...
Simply_Sensual 22.01.2005 (23.01.2005)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of A Child Called It - Dave Pelzer
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Advantages: The way this young boy copes with the abuse is inspiring Disadvantages: To find out the extent to which an innocent young child can be abused
A CHILDCALLED 'IT'
This is a book that is set in the 1970's in California. It is written by a man calledDavePelzer, and this book is all about DavePelzer's life as he grew up between the ages of 4yrs and 12yrs old.
It's about a young boy who starts off in a very warm and happy family. He has at the beginning a very caring mother, a father and 2 brothers. His mother sounds wonderful to all her children and takes them on lots of trips and holidays and gives them all lots of treats. Several years on however and things take a dramatic turn. David's mother starts to drink heavily, David's father often works 24hr shifts and David gradually becomes the victim of his mothers rapidly changing attitudes. She treats her other two children with respect, but for David he becomes her slave. He is constantly given chores to do around the house ...
Advantages: First person writing well suited to narration Disadvantages: Does not allow you to colour the characters
Audio books have never appealed to me. I've tried, on several occasions, to see if there is something that could make me change my mind but, no matter how many different genres, narrators and authors I try I just haven't been able to see the appeal. Until now.
Dave Peltzer's "A ChildCalled "It"" caused quite a stir in literary circles when it was published a few years back. It details the life of the author as a child, growing up in California in the 1970s. Dave has no ordinary childhood. In fact, the account is of one of the most extraordinary childhood's. It starts in a fairly ordinary way, some would say the epitome of the American Dream, until something snaps. Suddenly, this young boy is thrown into a world and a way of life that we would not wish on anyone or anything. We crawl, with Dave, through this world, finding ...
Advantages: Easy to read, opened your eyes to child cruelty Disadvantages: bit sad most of the time
I have just finished reading this book and it was a very easy to read book which was sad for the majority of the way through.
The book tells the story of a childcalled 'Dave,' who lives with his mother, father and two brothers. At first Dave had the perfect life of being loved and going on family outings and holidays. Then his mother suddenly changed she began drinking and his world fell apart. For some reason his mother decided to pick on just Dave and the other two brothers were left in peace. Their father grew too afraid of their mother to do anything about it.
The book gives horrific accounts of child abuse. These are things like starving him and when he would steal food she made him vomit and then eat the vomit. She would beat him with a brush around his head and body. In one account she takes his arm and holds it over ...
Product Information for "A Child Called It - Dave Pelzer" »
Product details
Type
Non-Fiction
Genre
Biography
Title
A Child Called It
Author
Dave Pelzer
ISBN
0752832220; 0752833944; 0752837508
Manufacturer's product description
Dave Pelzer's story is the story of a child brutally beaten and starved by his emotionally unstable, alcoholic mother: a mother who played tortuous, unpredictable games - games that left one of her three sons nearly dead. Dave had to learn how to play his mother's games in order to survive because she no longer considered him a son, but a slave; and no longer a boy but an 'it'. His bed was an old army cot in the basement, his clothes were torn and smelly and when he was allowed the luxury of food it was scraps from the dogs' bowl. The outside world knew nothing of the nightmare played out behind closed doors. But throughout Dave kept alive dreams of finding a family to love him, care for him, call him their son. It took many years of struggle, deprivation and despair to find his dream and then to make something of himself in the world. This book covers the early years of his life and is an affecting and inspirational look at the horrors of child abuse and the steadfast determination of one child to survive despite the odds. See all Product Description
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