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From the age of three Sheena Harrison was brought up by her grandmother whilst her own mother, Kathleen, sought work in America. Kathleen later returned for her daughter, but her mother refused to hand her over, saying Sheena had settled into her new home. She left once more for the States, believing that Sheena would be loved, cared for and kept safe. What she did not know was that Granny Morag would go on to allow, indeed facilitate, the horrific abuse of little Sheena. From the age of four, she was appallingly abused by members of her own family, being little more than a plaything for their perverted desires. Her uncle and others saw abuse as normal, and they raped and assaulted her with ...
'One of Ireland's most powerful campaigners' The Kavanagh Sisters I look back now and see that I never stood a chance. It's hard when you realise your whole childhood was taken away. I never got the chance to be a child.' Shaneda Daly was only four when her father started grooming her. For nearly 15 years, he would go on to sexually abuse his daughter every day. The emotional and physical toll was immense and, eventually, her ex-army and prison officer father admitted to his family what he had been doing. Leaving home for only a year to get help, he was welcomed back 'a changed man'. With no choice but to accept it, Shaneda lived alongside him again only for him to try and abuse her once more. After realising she had no choice but to leave home, Shaneda finally reclaimed her power by standing up to the man who destroyed her childhood and contacted the police. Decades later, in 2011, she watched as her father was convicted of 227 counts of abuse. Shaneda now fights as a campaigner for other victims and is bravely telling her story fully for the first time: the story of a survivor.
‘I was trapped.I’d been raped so many times, abused by hundreds, if not thousands. They could have left every door open and it would have made no difference. And I always came back –they always brought me back.’ From the age of 14, Caitlin was controlled, raped, sold and passed on to new gangs across the UK over and over again. Her abusers were blatant in their attacks upon her, often collecting her from school or home, to be taken to flats they owned, family homes, or hotels booked for the day, to be horrifically and systematically abused. Having finally escaped, Please, Let Me Go is Caitlin’s shocking story of abuse and survival.
The true story of Donna Ford, who between the ages of five and eleven was abused by her stepmother Helen. Labelled 'the bastard', the 'little witch' and 'the evil one'; beaten, isolated and afraid to even look at her own reflection, this beautiful little child was told she was lucky to be the victim of abuse - abuse which began as physical and mental, but progressed to the most appalling sexual attacks. Despite an horrendous early life, Donna is now a successful artist and mother of three with an enormous enthusiasm and an optimism which completely belies her experiences. In 2003, Donna watched as her stepmother was found guilty of 'procuring a minor' for sexual abuse and sentenced to two years in prison. Beautifully written and savagely honest, The Step Child is Donna's story. It is an inspiring tribute to the resilience of the human spirit.
Casper became a national celebrity when newspapers ran the story of the amazing cat that regularly took the No. 3 bus on 11-mile journeys around his home town, Plymouth, in Devon. While his devoted owner, Susan Finden, had wondered where her elusive pet was disappearing to each day, Casper was brightening the lives of countless commuters as they went about their business. Bus drivers, too, were getting well-acquainted with Casper, and notices went up in their depot alerting staff that a very special passenger might board their vehicle. In fact, he became a mascot for the bus company, and pictures of him and Susan adorned No. 3 buses. When Casper was sadly killed by a car in early 2010 messages of sympathy flooded in from places as far a field as Australia and Argentina. It quickly became clear that Casper and his remarkable story had touched the lives of so many people around the world. Movingly told by the owner who loved him dearly, Casper the Commuting Catis the touching story of a very special black-and-white cat who rode the bus and stole our hearts.
DON'T SAY A WORD is the empowering memoir of Kate Marshall, a mother-of-four from Manchester. Ripped from her many brothers and sisters at the age of eight, Kate's mother uproots her to a new life in which love and safety are not priorities. With few explanations, Kate is thrown into a world of chaos and neglect, a world which her Uncle Phil exploits through a campaign of shocking abuse over many years. The lessons Kate learns in those early years leave her extremely vulnerable and, while still a teenager, she marries an emotionally abusive, gaslighting fraudster, spending years in a controlled marriage punctuated by bulimia and a fierce desire to protect her beloved children. Finally finding the courage to leave, she seizes control of her own destiny by taking her paedophile uncle to court, where his guilt on all charges sees him finally face up to what he has done. From that moment, Kate vows she will never again be the victim of those who chose to control and abuse her, that she will fight for herself and for others with every breath she has - that she will never be silenced again.
As a little girl Scarlett knows nothing about normal life. Subjected to constant sexual abuse at the hands of her father, she cannot see a way to escape. Until one day things go from bad to worse. Walking home from school, Scarlett is befriended by a young man called Mike, who tells her that a friend of his is keen to meet her. Scarlett eventually agrees, and Mike takes her to his house. But there is no friend waiting for them. As her life is torn apart by a vicious grooming gang, Scarlett begins to believe this is just how her world should be. In her darkest hour, will she find the courage to confront her abusers and seek justice? This is the heart-breaking story of a destroyed childhood and how our past must not shape our future.
"It has been seventeen years since you went missing, princess. It has been twenty-five years since you were born. There have been too many Christmases without you ..." In the summer of 2000, schoolgirl Sarah Payne went missing from a beach where she played with her siblings. The nation waited with her whole family as the search for the little girl touched the hearts of everyone in the country. After Sarah's body was found, abducted and murdered by convicted pedophile Roy Whiting, her mother, Sara, spoke of how she had survived those terrible times. Now, seventeen years later, Sara wants to tell the full story of how she coped then, and how she has survived. Through a series of letters to her beloved daughter, she takes the reader on a heart-breaking but uplifting journey through every parent's worst nightmare in a moving account of the ultimate emotional survival. It is a story for the little girl who was taken, but a reminder to us all that hope never dies - and love never ends.
Following Kate Marshall's first year in the mortuary at a north of England NHS hospital, with each month exploring the people she meets, in life and death, as well as her own growing awareness of life behind the veil. Meet Mr X Found in his apartment months after his death, Mr X has no relatives that can be traced. He is the longest-serving resident of the mortuary, having been there for almost a year while the search for his elusive family continues. The staff talk to him like an old friend, but Mr X is disintegrating and a decision has to be made soon. Meet Mary Her baby girl has been lost in the 15th week of pregnancy, Mary's last chance to have a child. Mary won't allow Abigail to leave ...
Sophie Young tells her shocking true story in Please Will Someone Help Me? Sophie Young was born into a dysfunctional family, with a violent mother and father. Sophie was routinely neglected and harmed, starved and left to fend for herself. Social workers were often involved but, despite numerous visits and extensive reports, nothing was ever done. When Sophie was six, her life took another horrible turn: her adored grandfather began to sexually abuse her. Please Will Someone Help Me? is Sophie Young's heartbreaking story about a young girl at the mercy of the adult world. With full access to her social work files, she shows how those who are meant to help children can be blind to the reality of their lives; but how, ultimately, love conquers all. Sophie Young was the eldest of three, born into a dysfunctional family that she fought for years to escape. Now forty years old, she lives in England with her husband and children, and works as a volunteer for a national children's charity.