Abuse Books

I live less than a mile from the facility in this book. I grew up here in Lexington during the Narcotics Farm hey day and knew very little about it. This is a great account, with lots of pictures to show how it was. This account shows how much we have gained as well as how little we truly know about addiction, drug abuse & the criminal aspects associated with it. This book is great fro any one working in Corrections (as I do), in a medical field or in drug rehab & treatment. I highly recommend it. It would also make a great gift for anyone in those fields or anyone in Central Kentucky interested in the history of the area.

Having spent some federal prison time at "The Narco Farm" I can tell you it was a gallant if failed experiment. In the early days it was a voluntary treatment center but as "the War On Drugs" raged on it became the concentration camp for addicts and dealers. The European approach of "Harm Reduction Therapy" seems to be the best course of action. Less harm to society, the addict's health, and the government in general. Let's hope that the seven million people in Federal, State and County jails will not be the wave of the future.

Opened in 1935, the Lexington (Kentucky) Hospital of the United States Public Health Service was for four decades the only place that persons dependent on narcotics could go for help. It was a pioneering effort on the part of a then enlightened federal government to assist a population that was, and still is, almost universally shunned. Although I was on the staff of the hospital for a period of two years, the book contains views of parts of the institution that I never saw; it is highly comprehensive. Many of the photographs are themselves works of art, and all are an important part of the historical record of this now-vanished institution, which established the base of what is now known about narcotic addiction. Lexington was a noble effort, and here it is finally given its due. I understand that the book is the basis for a PBS documentary that will air later this fall.

"The Narcotic Farm" is the first book to tell the many-faceted story of The Narcotic Farm, a federal hospital/prison for drug addicts in Lexington, Kentucky that opened in 1935 and closed forty years later. Though it failed to cure addiction, Narco (as locals called it) pioneered most of the treatments used today, and trained many of the leaders of addiction research. Campbell, Olsen, and Walden tell it all: the hopes attending its founding, the experiences of its inmates from admission through rehabilitation to release - and readmission, the pioneering treatments and scientific research, the ethical quandaries that finally shut it down. They tell it well; the style is clear and jargon-free, and the photographs, culled from attics and archives, bring the story to life. And they tell it like it was. As a "Narco Brat" who grew up on the grounds, I had the run of the place. Everything in this fascinating book jibes with my memories -- the patients and the doctors, the cows and the jazz.

I think this is one of the best books I ever read. I compare it with Old Yeller and Where the Red Fern Grows it is so good. How he struggles with his family and becomes a great baseball player.

This is an elegant and haunting depiction of adolescence. I came across this book while browsing... and was stuck by its cover. I expected a lighthearted book about little league baseball. I discovered something much greater. This story and these characters have strayed with me for weeks. I look forward to reading more of Mr. Johnston's work.

Tex gets something quite different for the summer when instead of spending the time with his father and his new girlfriend, he lands in the lap of his mother and her new family. Tex's friendship with his new stepfather is uncertain, until a common connection in baseball introduces him to a new world and brings new family ties. Just as all seems to be coming together, Tex makes a discovery which will again change his family's life. Realistic, involving fiction.

I am a fifth grade teacher and am always on the lookout for new books to challenge students. I picked up this novel and looked at the jacket. It seemed innocent enough for a fifth grader. Upon reading it I felt that the subject matter was far to advanced for my classroom. I believe that the seventh grade might be a better spot for this novel.

The book itself was very engaging. The author uses baseball as a venue for healing. I think that Mr. Johnson has quite a future ahead of him.

This book is so large, so comprehensive in the details it relates, and so thorough in its discussion of the relationship between Bill Wilson and his real spiritual teacher that many of its comments still seem to remain unnoticed. But the book, revised in the second edition, gives you some extremely useful spiritual history and tools. It reviews almost every book that Sam Shoemaker wrote. It covers the relationship between A.A. Cofounder Bill Wilson and the clergyman who taught him most of the Step material. It shows precisely the Shoemaker ideas and language that can be found in the Twelve Steps and the Big Book. It reports Shoemaker's talks to AAs at two of their International Conventions--St. Louis and Long Beach. It reveals the extensive findings of the author and his son at the Episcopal Church Archives in Austin, Texas where the vast number of Shoemaker papers are lodged. In the second edition, it gives a great picture of Sam Shoemaker in action after he took his second major church rectorship--in Pittsburgh. Wade through it. Get informed. And see how much about A.A., Bill Wilson, and Sam Shoemaker you never knew. I recommend it highly.

This book is a tough chew because it covers so many items in such great depth. It details some of Rev.Sam Shoemaker's life. It covers his personal relationship with A.A. and Bill Wilson. To make a knowledge of Shoemaker writings much easier, it specifically reviews almost every Shoemaker book written from 1921 through the year A.A.'s Big Book was published. And it touches on those published thereafter which commented on A.A. or contained repeat and relevant materials. It lists the dozens of words and phrases from Shoemaker writings that can be found in the Big Book, Twelve Steps, and A.A. materials. And, in its body and appendices, it covers the astonishing body of Shoemaker treasures Dick unearthed at the Episcopal Church Archives in Austin, Texas; at Shoemaker's two Calvary churches in Pittsburgh and New York; in Shoemaker's books and articles and sermons; in Sam's personal journals--never before seen or reported; and in the minds and memories of those friends who knew and worked with Sam. The particular treasure was the Pittsburgh section. Dick went back to Pittsburgh and interviewed the "golf club crowd" which Sam had rounded up and put to work in the Pittsburgh Experiment, businessmen's prayer meetings, and other unique outreach. These old-timers were alive and kicking and gave their reports on Sam and his methods with lots of enthusiams. There's plenty more. But I wanted to report that I've learned much much more in the last few years about the Rev. Sam Shoemaker that every A.A. ought to know. For it was to Sam that Bill turned and asked if Sam would actually write the Twelve Steps--Sam humbly declining.

During my high school and early college years, I was a member of The Rev. Sam Shoemaker's congregation in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I got to know him and his family quite well. He was, without doubt, the most dynamic and holy man I have ever had the privilege of knowing. Since that time, I have spoken with many alcoholism counselors as well as A.A. members -- all (who knew anything about the history of A.A.) had only positive things to say about the role "Sam" played in helping to develop the "12 step" program. Now, having said that, let's get to the book itself.

I found this book to be a very extensive and, I believe, thorough account of the influence of this one Episcopal clergyman (and the God who obviously directed him) on the wording of the twelve steps. I would highly recommend the book to anyone who would like to know more about the early development of A.A. and the clergyman working behind the scenes during that development.

Bill W. called Rev. Shoemaker a co-founder of A.A. He said most of the ideas in the 12 Steps came from Rev. Shoemaker, and he actually asked Shoemaker to write the 12 Steps, but Shoemaker declined, saying they should come from an alcoholic. Shoemaker's books, articles, and talks from beginning to end were about faith, prayer, and the Bible. This book helps to bring the A.A. roots and the Bible into focus

THis book helped me get through a difficult time, when night time seem to be the hardest. I am now buying it for a friend that needs positive messages to help her through her difficult time. Even in good times, I find it inspirational.

i love this book. used this book in the parent meeting we have here in san antonio like alaon. the parents group share on a very good leval and new parents also. I would use this book again. thanks for writing this. barbara

First meditation book for evenings I have seen and I love it! Gives you something to think about and great for journal writing.

I also own Peace of Mind which i read in the morning, I read this book before I go t bed, I really enjoy, GOD BLESS

Ken Cole's book illustrates with simplicity how our children can look within themselves to find and to make good news. The story depicts a young boy walking alone to the local barbershop to get his haircut. On his way he notices all things negative. After his interaction with the barbershop clientele, he leaves and notices all of the positive things around him. The story hits home for many of our inner city youth. However we can, we have to remind them that there is good news out there. We have to make sure that they know how to see it and how to find it. Cole's book is an excellent tool to use to introduce our youth to finding the "Good News" everywhere.

Given as a gift to me, I loved the photos and story, but at age 5 this has become my son's favorite book & his bedtime must read.

The first time I read this book, I was struck by the simple story line. A haircut for this little boy represents a major step towards growing up. The book effectively delivers that message that there is hope in every situation. I shared this book with my seven year old son, who also enjoyed the book. The pictures are almost surreal by transitioning from black and white photos in the beginning to a colorized version when the little boy's attitude changes. I would strongly recommend adding this book to any child's collection.

This powerfully simple illustration teaches children to look at the positive and more importantly, look within themselves for "good news".
Our non-profit organization will be ordering 300 for our kids so that they can see that they are "good news" too!

Once I started reading I could not put this book down. I was compelled to read more about a girl who at first has a normal life but then something happens and she sacrifices herself physically and emotionally to keep up the fascade to everyone that is close to her and eventually will shut them out but that is not where the story ends.

The more I read the more I became a part of the story as Ms. Hoesch is a master at the descriptive word that you are there at the scene as it is unfolding.

I look foward to reading more about Ms. Moorhaven and any books written of course by Ms. Hoesch.

Dana Hoesch did an outstanding job on her first novel. The story took me on a journey that was heartwarming, exciting, and sometimes painful. It compelled me to think about the hidden pain of others and how the human spirit can move us to victory. This book was a great read for me. Good job Ms. Hoesch!

This book is wonderfully written and touching. Abuse is a very sensitive subject to talk about,let alone write about, especially when it comes to children. Dana Hoesch has done a fantastic job of bringing the reader into the realities of what can happen to an abused child and the effects it has on those that love her. I look forward to reading Dana's next book!

This story pulls you in to a world that many children face in their lives, yet don't tell their stories. This shows what struggles they face and the strength, resilience, and perseverance the human spirit can have to get them through it. It makes you wonder what is going on behind the doors in the houses in your neighborhood. Very uplifting...Thank you!!!

I am a religious leader in Tucson, Arizona. I sometimes see husbands become angry with their wives and children. This book provides an inside view of the emotional abuse that follows unchecked anger. It will help those who deal with victims of emotional abuse to better understand the terrible pain and suffering that come from the deep wounds that follow emotional abuse. I am thankful to the missionaries in Florida that sent me my copy of this book and I recommend it to the clergy and social workers.

C.G.

Susan Clay's book was very painful for me to read. I have been married now for nearly thirty years and most of our children are starting families of their own. Susan Clay brings out in her book that her husband's father abused his wife and that her husband was following the example of his father. The scary thing for me is that my sons may emotional abuse their wives as my husband and my sons have me. I have tried to stay safely in denial, but I would never want another woman to walk the road that I have had to walk. This book has helped me see that abuse is an age old problem that will require the help of our whole society to keep in check. I highly recommend this book, even though, I will probably never be able to tell my husband that I read it. He would become very angry with me, if he found out that I had read it. He has never let me forget the last time I went for help.

The following quote from the scriptures found in "No Man Knows My Story" hits very close to home. "It is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority, as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion." My husband has twice served in high positions in our church. These were the times when he was most abusive to me. This book has a lot of food for thought.

I wish somehow my husband could find this book on his own and ponder the contents.

-afraid to come out of denial-

I just finished reading this very powerful book. It will be a very important tool to help victims of emotional abuse untangle themselves from the webs they are in.

I just went through a divorce three months ago and my emotional scares are still very deep. I am now alone with three children, it is hard! Susan Clay's book, "No Man Knows My Story" is right on. I really don't think that a man could understand what a woman in my position is going through, no matter how hard he tried. This book has helped me deepen my relationship with my God.

I am an accountant for a group of doctors in my area. I hear about abuse cases all the time while talking to the doctors I work with and was intrigued when I heard the title of this new book, "No Man Knows My Story" by Susan Clay. After I started reading the book, it was difficult for me to put down until I had finished it. It caused me to examine myself and to reexamine the priority of those things which matter most to me. It has also caused me to listen more closely to the things my wife shares with me. I feel it has deepened our feelings for and our understandings of each other.

Susan Clay uses numerous scriptures to explain the types of emotional abuse she went through in her marriage. As I read her book, I found my knowledge and understanding of the scriptures deepening.

I think that every husband, church leader, and counselor should read this book for their own benefit as well as for the benefit of those they seek to help.

M.J.

Anyone involved at any point in the public school food-chain should be required to read this. It is a masterpiece. The first chapter describes the hell of it all in such a vivid way that I was crying to hard to keep reading. It's a short read, but life-changing.

This is the book that youth groups should mass order. Peretti recounts his own childhood growing up as a victim of both cystic hygroma (causing stunted growth and a speech impediment, among other problems) and bullying. He shares with painful detail how constant bullying effected his self-image ("I thought I was a monster") and how the school system typically does little or nothing to protect the weak. Even further, he illustrates his view of the world as governed by a higher system of rules, explaining why "Might makes right" is both a dangerous and a flawed philosophy. Peretti even confesses his own faults as an occasional bully, his failures to stick up for those weaker than himself. This is a super-quick read that will challenge adults to a new awareness of the bullying problem and will benefit every teen/pre-teen reader, whether he is a bully, a victim, or someone caught in the middle who doesn't know how to change "the way things are."

I was moved beyond words after reading this book. Peretti has a way of touching you and challenging you to meet the issues of our day with the love and compassion of Christ.

This is such an awesome book and maybe one of Peretti's best. He speaks of the dangers that our words and actions have on the outcome of ones personal as well as emotional life, if our society and schools keep going the way that they are. I definitely recommend this book to everyone who feels they are 'different' inside. Actually, everyone still in highschool and college should read it before it is too late.

In this already venerated work, Catherine Clark Kroger and Nancy Nason-Clark embark on a research-supported analysis and exploration into the widespread abuse of women existing both in and out of the evangelical Christian Church.

This book is not specifically written for abused women. Instead, it is directed toward Christian pastors and laypeople willing to increase their awareness of, and provide support to, abuse victims around the world. The global prevalence of abuse and violence against females is surveyed throughout the text, along with a concluding chapter on our "global responsibility" to suffering women.

In its scope, a reader will learn 59% of female homicides occur by the hand of an intimate partner (in Zimbabwe); that 18% of women seek emergency care because of domestic violence (in Papua New Guinea); and that (in Cambodia) 50% of women report sustained injuries due to spousal abuse. In addition, the authors address female circumcision, foot-binding, dowries, and other important global issues.

A useful resource, this book provides insight into the dynamics of abuse: cycles of violence, why women remain in dangerous environments, the personal characteristics of the abusive man, etc. Useful tools for Christian counselors and pastors are specified, for instance, "Questions to Ask Yourself When Responding to an Abused Woman," and checklists such as "How Caring is My Congregation" and "Unhealthy [Church] Responses [to Abused Women]," are interspersed within the chapters.

One's heart and stomach will turn while reading these pages, endeavoring to maintain the sentiment of Philippians 4:8 "...whatever is...noble,...right,...pure,...lovely,...admirable,...excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things" while still addressing this troublesome issue. Vignettes of women experiencing physical and sexual abuse at the hands of their husbands offer more than a glance at the most disturbing reality of violence and serve to provide the reader deep awareness, sympathy, shock and motivation to promote change.

Critiques of the Church are present throughout, illustrating instances where churches have acted with neglect and evil: a Bible college dismissing a woman who was beaten in public by her husband, a parish condemning the divorce of a woman who was left for dead in the woods after a third murder attempt, a woman beaten with a metal tricycle in her sleep, a husband trying to turn his wife into a prostitute (and "despite her frequent pleas" she was encouraged to endure), one vignette where a pastor rapes a parishioner, and there are many more.

To balance, the text provides several examples of ministries that provide excellent support and care for abused women, churches that hold up women through long periods of need.
In addition, the authors do well to provide a biblically solid position against abuse, and correct several misuses of Scripture including 1 Peter 3:1-6, "...For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful. They were submissive to their own husbands, like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her master..." which is often misused to the travail of women.
The greatest asset of this book is its solid research foundation, for all points are referenced fittingly, and I

commend this text for lacking any breaks in logic, or unsupported speculations. In the end, this scripturally sound book is disquieting, eye-opening, and persistently optimistic about reform and an improved future for women worldwide.

FInal Note: Telephone and Online Counseling might be a good way of helping hurting women. To learn how to provide telephone and online counseling, try this very well prepared book: The Therapist's Clinical Guide to Online Counseling and Telephone Counseling: The Definitive Training Guide for Clinical Practice

I teach a distance learning course about family violence and this is the required reading for my course. The students are required to write a paper on this book, and usually their response includes that they can't believe that spousal abuse happens in the church.

Christians can easily hide abuse that happens within the home. We can easily put on our "Sunday face" when we're around our church family, but at home, it's a different story. If you work in any ministry within the church, I would recommend that you read this book. What I like about this book is that it also has an international focus - it's not just focused on the U.S. So, even if you're a missionary in another country, this is a good read for you too. This will help you to understand the problem and cycle of spousal abuse and how you can help those in the midst of it.

I teach on the college level on the topic of The Biblical Role of Men and Women. I found this and the other books by Catherin Clark Kroeger to be excellent! How in the world did The Prince of Peace's followers ever think that violence was approved by Jesus Christ? He never did! This book should be made available to every pastor, teenager and young engaged couple! A must read!

This book is a MUST HAVE. You can be free from abuse!!
If you have been looking for a book that speaks on abuse and what God says about it, look no further. This is an excellent book, a resource for every library. This book is a helpful tool for an abused woman who finds herself in an abusive relationship but feels trapped due to traditional teachings on marriage and family. What does God say about it? It will show her how clearly the Lord is vehemently opposed to abuse and what she can do about it. This book is invaluable in the hands of leaders in the church and lay people who find themselves face to face with abuse, whether it be a friend or relative or church member. You can be instrumental in ministering hope and healing for those involved in such relationships. I also recommend with five stars "The Verbal Abusive Relationship: how to recognize it and how to respond" by Patricia Evans. Another fantastic book that gives an inside window view of the day in the life of a marriage suffering with abuse and real helps for those hurting.

This is my favorite book. I read it in less than a day wich is rare for me. Some other books I love are Catcher and the Rye, and The Sound and the Furry. Donna Williams is amazing. This book is amazing.

This is my favorite book. I read it in less than a day wich is rare for me. Some other books I love are Catcher and the Rye, and The Sound and the Furry. Donna Williams is amazing. This book is amazing.

At the age of four Donna's main carers are gone when her grandfather dies and her grandmother is sent away. Now, with her surreal and eccentric father basically banned from contact with her, she becomes the possession of a disability-phobic, obsessive, disturbed and alcoholic mother who is determined to play out her own lost childhood and make her seemingly deaf, somewhat 'psychotic' and disturbed idiot daughter a pretty and perfect dancing doll.

But inside of Donna there are other people she has collected along her road to survival; Willie who is like a civil rights activist on steroids and the smiling facade of Carol.

Carol plays the mother's doll to protect the soul of the real Donna. Intertwined with Willie's violent and defensive outbursts and paranoic protection and Donna's often bizarre and quite Autistic responses and behaviours, Carol, behaving like people on TV sit-coms, goes to school,even goes through the motions of 'friends', and develops a broad range of mimicked speech, stored phrases and charicatures, saving Donna from a life in an institution and often from the very real threat of death.

As the teenage years approach Carol and Willie fight it out for control of the body with the real Donna on the sidelines as the lot of them drift into homelessness, poverty and domestic prostitution passed from stranger to stranger.

After an attempted suicide she falls into the care of a psychiatrist and goes on to get a university education. But knowlege is not wisdom and without independence skills, Donna follows a stranger across the ocean where, on arrival, he abandons her to an itinerant bag-lady existance throughout Europe. This second journey begins with a man who will change her life and sense of self forever as she meets and falls in love with a real life 'mirror'with the same challenges as her own and, later faced with the loss of this first deep love, goes on a desperate and dangerous quest to find out 'what kind of mad' she is in the hope there is hope she can change it and as a result finds out she is Autistic; a realisation that ends up changing the entire field of Developmental Disabilities forever.

An international bestseller, in over 17 languages throughout the world, Nobody Nowhere is a moving, gripping, surreal, myth-shattering, sometimes hilarious but ultimately uplifting book and one that will stay with you as one of the most moving and exceptional works you will ever read.

Life, normality and reality will not be the same after you read this book.

I think Donna Williams is one of the world's greatest authors. Although she suffers from pervasive developmental disorder, (autism related), she has shown great courage and will be of great benefit in the future for other people with disabilities.

I suffer, myself, from Asperger's Syndrome (I am 23 years old) and I have benefited from Donna's three autobiographies written.

I am trying hard to find information and correspondence with other autistic people like myself; but the process has not been a walover. I recommend reading of the books, from "Nobody Nowhere"(first) to "Like Color to the Blind" (third) because all three books run in sequence.

I have rated Nobody Nowhere a perfect 10!

Adrian Pooley