Gripping, harrowing and graphic
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Scarred is a moving and harrowing memoir of one woman's sexual abuse, self-harm and psychiatric treatment. It's very well written, and I love the way it opens with Sophie's admission to the psych ward, with flashbacks to the abuse. It must have taken a lot of courage to write and publish and I commend Sophie for speaking out and raising public awareness of self-harm and the effects of abuse. What shocked me most wasn't the abuse itself or the cutting, but the way Sophie continued to let her father and other men take advantage of her sexually after she had been "rescued". Unfortunately, this is all too common.
The book does include some fairly graphic descriptions of rape and self-injury, and while these only add to its power, I would suggest that if you're an abuse survivor or a self-harmer yourself, you think carefully about whether you could cope with these before reading Scarred.
If I have one criticism, it's that the book seems to gloss over Sophie's recovery and how she was able to stop self-harming for good. I would have liked more details about this, especially as Sophie seemed so unwell for so long, and shunned all forms of professional help (turning only to the Samaritans) after leaving hospital. It is inspirational that Sophie was able to overcome her past, but I think the book would have been more uplifting if this part of the story was given more attention, and if we had more insight into how she did it. Perhaps this is an unfortunate consequence of the public's thirst for "misery memoirs"?
But that said, Sophie Andrews has written an excellent, brave and thought-provoking memoir. Highly recommended... if you are up to it.
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Speechless
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Im speechless to how good this book is. (i dont mean in that way)
Horrifying in most parts how a father can do such evil things to his own daughter men like that need to be shot.
As a self harmer myself i could identify with alot of the feelings she decribed in the book.
What a fighter tho i dont know how anyone could go through so much.
Read this book!
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Outstanding read and a true survivor - God Bless you!
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Sophie's book yet again highlights how a young innocent child can become trapped under the physical, emotional and mental control of an adult. We walk with Sophie every step of the way and in parts its heart wtrenching and you want to scream 'get her out of there'. All to often this is the truth, this is the reality, it is happening right now so wake up and smell the coffee. We don't talk or tell or even know what is happening to us is wrong. We are children - so we love our parents and peers and in return all we want is to be loved, protected and cared for. Sophie from one survivor to another - head up girl you did us all proud and allowed yourself not to become another statistic. Support the Samaritans because they support you!
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Scarred
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An absolutely sensational book.
A must for anyone who works in the 'caring' field or who is touched by self-harm or abuse directly or indirectly.
Easy to read on a very difficult and emotional subject but written with such honesty it tears at the heart strings.
A very brave author.
A survivor.
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Scarred
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There are so many emotions this book takes you through and there are no words that can describe how you are left feeling afterwards. This book took me to places I'd never imagined existed, or wanted to go, but I'm glad of the opportunity, no matter how painful this expereince was to have read this book. Sophie is truly an inspirational person and the way she has dealt with her life, and people along the way too, is amazing.
Learning about self harm from Scarred has meant I have a better understanding of this much mis-understood subject. Sophie's clear and very eloquently written book means that the ordinary person can relate to what is being said and challenges the myth that self harm is about dying, when in fact it's about staying alive. The book is written in such a way that it's very easy to read - it's just the content that is hard to diget!
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