Memoir Dysfunctional

At the tender ages of five and seven years old, sisters Judy and Cherie were removed from the loving home of their maternal grandparent's farm in Sycamore Illinois and put on a plane to go live in Southern California with their mother and soon to be stepfather; a sadistic perpetrator and child molester. Violence, torture, sexual abuse, and the unconscionable acts of their mother would be the theme of their lives for the next eleven years. Even though they were physically separated from their grandparents, the grandparents never forgot their granddaughters. Their continuous love and devotion...

A moving, compelling memoir about growing up and escaping the tragic legacy of mental illness, suicide, addiction, and depression in one of America's most famous families: the Hemingways.

When you’re a scapegoat in a cruel and abusive household, the scapegoating doesn’t end when you turn 18. Author Dani Donnelly is just now finding this out at age 50 (Yes, FIFTY), and she’s about to tell the world through her memoirs how pervasively damaging an abusive home can be. Her own mother, a.k.a. her lifelong narcissistic abuser, has other plans: She is taking wild and unthinkable steps to put a halt to the completion of Dani’s book. This novel is a chilling tale of survival.

Devastating family drama, abandonment, and drugs are balanced with laugh-out-loud humor that will keep you turning pages. You'll laugh, cry, and be left begging for more. The story begins with an episode that occurred in 1974. When Tom Bross (age 12) experiences a sudden move from Davis to San Anselmo to live with their God Family. Just two months later they move back to Davis with no place to live. His brother and sisters are dropped off at their friend's houses.

"It’s a dark story that forced me to think more expansively about what constitutes a cult." —The New York Times' Ernesto Londoño "Although this is Mestyanek Young’s first time narrating, listeners will appreciate hearing this deeply personal story told by the author herself. Share with...

These pages contain more blood and tears than ink. This book was not “inspired by actual events,” or “based on a true story,” this is a true story. The pain, tears, soul-shattering grief and amazing triumph are all real. From the years of horrific abuse, through my pain-filled teens and twenties, this book details my thirst for vengeance and the final, miraculous event that changed my life. It is a raw, no holds barred, look at a life filled with tragedy and the demons spawned by a mother’s evil. From the terrible secrets we were forced to keep, to the bodies piling up, my quest ...

A heartbreaking and empowering debut memoir about a mother’s all-consuming love, a son’s perilous quest to discover the world beyond the front door and the unregulated homeschool system that impacts millions like him Stefan Merrill Block was nine when his mother pulled him from school...

The story fast forwards to 1996 when a suspicious death in the family leaves the fate of two young boys in the hands of Tom’s dysfunctional family. Tom, the quintessential lifetime bachelor, and geeky Don Draper is thrust headfirst back into the mayhem of his family’s hippie lifestyle.

THE GIRL THAT NO ONE CLAIMED is the true story of a child everyone saw but no one truly protected. As a little girl, Lena learned early how to disappear in plain sight. Behind the closed doors of a small-town home, she faced the kind of fear most people only see on the news—violence, manipulation, and adults who cared more about protecting themselves than protecting her. When she finally spoke up, the system that promised safety gave her something else instead: disbelief, blame, and a courtroom that broke her all over again. This memoir follows her life before and after the day the state ...

9-year-old Nichole and her parents are evicted from their home because both of her parents are addicted to heroin. With nowhere left to turn, they are now homeless. In order to survive they must dig through dumpsters, beg, and steal. While living on the streets, Nichole struggles to understand why people treat them differently.

This memoir offers an intimate look at the generational impact of alcoholism within a New York family. By documenting his journey through foster care and family shelters, the author illustrates the systemic nature of addiction and trauma. It is both a tragic exploration of a broken childhood and an inspiring blueprint for survival and recovery "Gut wrenching, inspiring and crushing as only real life can be. A guide out of hell if you're determined to make the journey." - book lover "Where Has This Great Book Been Hiding?" - bookworm "Fast-moving, gripping...." - NY Shannon "... very ...

…until you looked beneath the surface, and the ugly, hidden realities appeared. How is it possible for two utterly broken people to survive a marriage and build a family while fraught with deep wounds from the past and often crippling stresses from the present? Especially when hidden agendas are at work, and power and control patterns run the show? The Sullivans were seen as “the perfect family” by most people in their community and church family. Ann was known as a stellar mom, and Tim, a successful farmer, landowner, and premier home builder. Beneath the surface lay serious ...

In this final episode of this memoir series, Tom, the lifetime bachelor, takes in his two young nephews to keep his sister's children in the family. The enormous challenges of this sudden and abrupt change leads to life-altering changes.

“Wickedly funny and always movingly illuminating, thanks to kick-ass storytelling and a poet's ear.” –Oprah.com The New York Times bestselling, hilarious tale of Mary Karr’s hardscrabble Texas childhood that Oprah.com calls the best memoir of a generation. The Liars’ Club took the...

Little Boy Lost – the true story of one boy’s heartache and hope while coming of age in small-town Tennessee in the 1970s. As the youngest of three sons and a bona fide momma’s boy, David Peters thinks that having a mother who spends months at a time in psychiatric hospitals is normal. Then on St. Patrick’s Day 1974, his world shatters when she commits suicide. At the age of 13, he’s left struggling to make sense of his mother’s death while facing a host of new challenges: the father who has lost his business and checked out of society, the stepmother who despises him and his ...

Growing up, Joanne suffered at the hands of a violent boyfriend and controlling relatives, as her mother lapsed into a downward spiral following the break-up of her marriage. But the consequences of her mother's lifestyle turned out to be worse than Joanne could ever have imagined. She already knew about the baby buried in a shallow makeshift grave next to the family plot. But when Joanne came across a red plastic bin in her mother's wardrobe in 2009, she realised that the family home held an even more sinister secret.

David Sedaris tells all in a book that is, literally, a lifetime in the making. For forty years, David Sedaris has kept a diary in which he records everything that captures his attention-overheard comments, salacious gossip, soap opera plot twists, secrets confided by total strangers. These...

This program is read by the author. A groundbreaking work of narrative nonfiction that investigates Munchausen by Proxy from the host and creator of the award-winning true crime podcast Nobody Should Believe Me. "I devoured this chilling yet critically important book in 48 hours, unable to...

Steve Barton, co-founder and former Editor-in-Chief of Dread Central, stands as a trailblazer in horror journalism, marking his place as one of the internet's first genre influencers. His autobiography transcends mere industry insights, offering a poignant journey through peaks and valleys with unfiltered emotional honesty. From grappling with the stark realities of 9/11 to being mentored by icons like George A. Romero and Sid Haig, and ultimately playing a pivotal role in the success of the Terrifier film franchise.

At the age of five, Megan Phelps-Roper began protesting homosexuality and other alleged vices alongside fellow members of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas. Founded by her grandfather and consisting almost entirely of her extended family, the tiny group would gain worldwide notoriety for its pickets at military funerals and celebrations of death and tragedy.