Hidden

Betrayed, Exploited and Forgotten - How One Boy Overcame the Odds

By: Cathy Glass

Narrated by: Denica Fairman

Length: 9 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's summary

From the author of Number One bestseller Damaged comes the poignant and shocking memoir of Cathy's recent relationship with Tayo, a young boy she fosters whose good behaviour and polite manners hide a terrible past.

Tayo arrives at Cathy's with only the clothes he stands up in. He has been brought to her by the police, but he is calm, polite, and very well spoken, and not at all like the children she normally fosters. The social worker gives Cathy the forms which should contain Tayo's history, but apart from his name and age, it is blank. Tayo has no past.

Tayo is an 'invisible' child, kidnapped from his loving father in Nigeria and brought illegally to the UK by his drink and drugs dependent prostitute mother, where he is put to work in a sweat shop in Central London. When he sustains an injury and is no longer earning, he is cast out.

When Cathy takes Tayo to school and he points out a dozen different addresses where he has stayed in the last six months, often being left alone. Tayo lies, and manipulates situations to his own advantage and Cathy has to be continually on guard. Tayo's social worker searches all computer databases but there is no record of Tayo - he has only attended school for 3 terms and has never seen a doctor. He and his mother have been evading the authorities by living ‘underground'.

With his mother recently released from prison, Tayo is desperate to live with his father in Nigeria, but no one can track him down or even prove that he exists.

©2014 Cathy Glass (P)2014 HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Critic reviews

"Plays out like a juicy ITV1 drama…at times heartbreaking. But Hidden is also a life -affirming read which proves that, despite the bad press, Social Services do have their successes - and ultimately, sometimes a little hope is all you need." ( Heat)

Reviews for Damaged:

"Cannot fail to move those who read it." (Adoption-net)
"Heartbreaking." (The Mirror)
"A truly harrowing read that made me cry." (The Sun)
"A true tale of hope. ****." (OK!)
"Foster carers rarely get the praise they deserve, but Cathy Glass's book should change all that.****" (First Magazine)
"A hugely touching and emotional true tale." (Star Magazine)

One of the happiest stories I've read in a long time

This is truly a remarkable story of the undying love a father and son have for each other. It is a love that endures years of forced separation and affirms for all of us that miracles truly do happen. Little Tayo has lived through horrors most of us can't fathom. In spite of everything, he knows his daddy and Gran are out there searching for him. As with all the other books by Cathy Glass, I laughed and cried rooting for Tayo and his father. This author has a true gift for not only telling the stories of these children, but also handling difficult and emotional situations with compassion and sensitivity. Hidden is one of my top five favorites of these memoirs.

What an Emotional Roller Coaster

Would you listen to Hidden again? Why?

Yes! It is an amazing and entertaining story.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

The most compelling aspect was how accurate young Tao's memory of his father was, coupled with his unwavering belief in his father ability to find him. Even after all this youngster went through, he never let the ugliness of his world taint his belief in his father.

What about Denica Fairman’s performance did you like?

I like the consistency in her voice of the different main characters. Example: the voice used for Paula has "aged" in subsequent books but it is still recognizable as Paula. The same is true for the voice of Adrian, he has gotten older but the cadence of his words is consistently Adrian.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I find that all of Ms. Glass' books are difficult to put down. And after several poorly timed late night marathons listening sessions, I have learned my lesson. ....Never ever start a new book if I must be asleep in less than 8 hours. :)

Any additional comments?

While I concur Ms. Glass is an extremely talented writer and her all her book are undeniably entertaining. Each Ms. Glass books takes on some of the most challenging issues faced by our society. In the case of Hidden, readers are alerted to some of the startling effects children faced by children caught in the net of illegal immigration. We are reminded of the effects of undocumented workers are not limited to the adults and their far reaching consequences for the children who may have had little choice in their parents' choice.

best Cathy Glass book I've read so far.

loved it. toward the end I couldn't put it down. wonderful storytelling. I love this narrator. I could listen to her all day.

Heartwrenching and warming

Narrated perfectly to give each character personality. This story both breaks your heart completely and fills your heart full to the top with love. Hard to put down!

Great story

It was yet another great book by Cathy
I love the narrator
I can put myself into the book and came to learn the personalities of everyone

Mixed feelings

This was a joyful book, but at the beginning I felt a little odd about Cathy’s relationship with him; it felt a little—this is going to sound ridiculous—like flirting. It just had that sort of “playfulness in front of others” thing that felt odd to me. This story left me feeling a mix of happy and unsure. But, as we all filter things through our own experiences, that probably has a lot to do with my discomfort.

I also kept waiting for the other shoe to drop with the outcome.

It was entirely finished, with even an update, yet somehow felt unfinished.

BEST ENDING!!!

I absolutely love the books written by Cathy Glass. The Narration by Denica Fairman truly brings these stories to life. This story had the BEST ending I'm in tears. What a truly beautiful story!

Hidden

As a foster parent in the U.S.A. For 30 years, I have enjoyed listening to the stories and comparing the differences between here and the UK. Although the children’s cases are not that different than many of my own.

Favorite!

This is one of my favorite books by Cathy thus far!
It’s a feel good read.

Absolutely incredible!

Tayo's story is one that I will never forget. Tears of joy and sorrow followed me throughout this beautiful story of love and determination

a heart warming story.

Knowing that this is based on real events makes me wonder how many more children like Tayo there are. I have enjoyed all the audio books of Cathy Glass thst i have listened to, but this one had me wanting to skip yo rhe end to see who Tayo went to live with.

as usual cathy glass took my heart...

beautiful storry. breath taking moments. one of this stories which make you belivie again in better world better people. after every single book I put on consideration fostering. I wish I could be able to help poor unfair threat and vulnerable kids. they all deserving for chance no matter what.

FANTASTIC!!

Listened to this while driving, had to pull over a few times to wipe my tears. What a fantastic story.

very moving story

very moving an emotional story regarding his dad love and determination for his son wish them well in there future 😊

Excellent

Another heart-touching read from Cathy Glass. Well written and read beautifully.
Easy to listen to and keep track of

fabulous

OMG ! Heart rending story... im so happy for that little boy x Cathy you are a saint

Brilliant as always!!

All Cathy’s books are a real openers as to what’s involved with a foster carer. And Cathy goes beyond her duty in every book. There obviously very short of foster caters in the uk. It makes me wonder why it’s so hard nowadays and takes so long to get into it when there’s such a big need!
Well done Cathy I loved it

loved it

Another gripping story from Cathy. well read by DeNica Fairman . sad with a happy outcome .

excellent

absolutely in love with this Cathy Glass story it is written in such an eloquent and detailed way!!!

Hidden

This was a really good book kept me on my toes would recommended to my mates