A Child Called It

7 Pages 1741 Words

Running Head: A CHILD CALLED IT: One Child’s Courage to Survive

A Child Called It: One Child’s Courage to Survive

Abstract
This is one of the best, yet saddest books that I have ever read. There are so many terrible things
out there that are happening to good people. We just have no idea. One never knows what is
going on behind closed doors. I am so lucky not to have experienced anything like this growing
up. There is so much reality in this book, but I never knew that reality was ever this horrifying. It
brought me to a realization that I have never known before. It is extremely sad that something
like this really did happen to such a sweet little boy.


A Child Called It: One Child’s Courage to Survive

Summary
A Child Called “It” is a story based on a little boy’s tribulations with his mother’s
shocking abuse. The first part of Dave's life was idyllic in his memory. He says his family was
"the Brady Bunch" that included a loving mother and father with whom he enjoyed wonderful
holidays and a happy trip to the Russian River. Everyone on the outside thought that David’s
family was perfect. No one in their neighborhood would have suspected anything was wrong. All
that changed when Dave was in first grade. For no known reason, his mother singled him out
from his siblings and began abusing him. The abuse began relatively mildly. When he and his
brothers did something wrong, Dave was the one to receive punishment--at first simply
banishment to the corner of a bedroom. Then, his mother began spending her days watching TV
and drinking beer. Easily irritated, she yelled at Dave for the slightest reason, or sometimes for
no reason at all. Soon, instead of making him go down to the basement, Mrs. Pelzer smashed
Dave's face against the mirror, then made him repeat, over and over, "I'm a bad boy! I'm a bad
boy!" He was forced to stand for hours staring into that mirror. Dave's father soon joined ...