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leach2225's review against another edition
5.0
long book but a great read. Many hardships in this book.
readhikerepeat's review against another edition
4.0
Originally reviewed at The Book Wheel.
A couple of years ago, I read a powerfully moving book titled Etched in Sand. It’s the story of Regina Calcaterra and the abuses she and her four siblings endured at the hands of their mother and the utter failures of the foster care system. It’s a heartbreaking story that is hard to read but also showcases the power of perseverance. In her book, Calcaterra carefully protects her siblings by holding back on some of their experiences, partly because she was not always present, but mostly because it wasn’t her story to tell.
Now, three years later, Regina’s youngest sister, Rosie Maloney, is ready to share what she endured during the years that she was separated, along with her brother, from her siblings. LikeEtched in Sand, Girl Unbroken a difficult story to read, but it is such an important one. The story begins with Rosie, age 8, being taken away from her sisters and sent to foster care with her brother. This was to be a better life, for she spent her early years scrounging for food while their mother went on binges for weeks and months at a time with whomever her boyfriend was at the time. But foster care systems are often riddled with failures and, like many children, Rosie and her brother fell through the cracks. Rather than land in a safe place, they found themselves the victims of new types of abuses.
Upon hearing about the abuses, Rosie’s mother, Cookie, kidnaps her two youngest children and flees to Idaho. Over the next decade, Rosie and Norm endure physical, verbal, and emotional abuse while moving from one place to the next. Their mother, an alcoholic with a predictable mean streak and unpredictable ways of inflicting it, fluttered from one man to the next, but while their scenery changed, the abuse remained steady. Not unsurprisingly, many of these men were not good people, with some turning a blind eye to the abuse and others taking advantage of the situation and inflicting their own on them, particularly Rosie. The actions and their aftermath are devastating and I am in awe of Rosie for not only telling her story, but for surviving it in the first place. Girl Unbroken is aptly named, for most people would break under a fraction of the abuses that Rosie survived.
But shining through the darkness were pockets of light – the librarians who gave her safe shelter, the friends whose kindness saved her, her horses, and the salvation found in a high school teacher. There were men in her mother’s life who tried to care for the children, only to find themselves at the receiving end of Cookie’s rampages for diverting their attention from her. But it was Rosie’s fervent belief that she would one day be happy with her sisters again that kept her putting one foot in front of the other. Despite the beatings and battered self-esteem, the knowledge that she was loved and would one day be safe with her sisters allowed her to persevere against the odds.
Girl Unbroken is an incredible story of survival. Rosie, who was given every excuse to fail, chose to succeed. It wasn’t easy and she still, to this day, struggles with the longterm effects of her upbringing, but her determination to make a better life for herself and her family is palpable. Despite the horrors described within these pages, and they are plentiful, it is clear that Rosie was a fierce child who ultimately found peace as a fierce adult.
A couple of years ago, I read a powerfully moving book titled Etched in Sand. It’s the story of Regina Calcaterra and the abuses she and her four siblings endured at the hands of their mother and the utter failures of the foster care system. It’s a heartbreaking story that is hard to read but also showcases the power of perseverance. In her book, Calcaterra carefully protects her siblings by holding back on some of their experiences, partly because she was not always present, but mostly because it wasn’t her story to tell.
Now, three years later, Regina’s youngest sister, Rosie Maloney, is ready to share what she endured during the years that she was separated, along with her brother, from her siblings. LikeEtched in Sand, Girl Unbroken a difficult story to read, but it is such an important one. The story begins with Rosie, age 8, being taken away from her sisters and sent to foster care with her brother. This was to be a better life, for she spent her early years scrounging for food while their mother went on binges for weeks and months at a time with whomever her boyfriend was at the time. But foster care systems are often riddled with failures and, like many children, Rosie and her brother fell through the cracks. Rather than land in a safe place, they found themselves the victims of new types of abuses.
Upon hearing about the abuses, Rosie’s mother, Cookie, kidnaps her two youngest children and flees to Idaho. Over the next decade, Rosie and Norm endure physical, verbal, and emotional abuse while moving from one place to the next. Their mother, an alcoholic with a predictable mean streak and unpredictable ways of inflicting it, fluttered from one man to the next, but while their scenery changed, the abuse remained steady. Not unsurprisingly, many of these men were not good people, with some turning a blind eye to the abuse and others taking advantage of the situation and inflicting their own on them, particularly Rosie. The actions and their aftermath are devastating and I am in awe of Rosie for not only telling her story, but for surviving it in the first place. Girl Unbroken is aptly named, for most people would break under a fraction of the abuses that Rosie survived.
But shining through the darkness were pockets of light – the librarians who gave her safe shelter, the friends whose kindness saved her, her horses, and the salvation found in a high school teacher. There were men in her mother’s life who tried to care for the children, only to find themselves at the receiving end of Cookie’s rampages for diverting their attention from her. But it was Rosie’s fervent belief that she would one day be happy with her sisters again that kept her putting one foot in front of the other. Despite the beatings and battered self-esteem, the knowledge that she was loved and would one day be safe with her sisters allowed her to persevere against the odds.
Girl Unbroken is an incredible story of survival. Rosie, who was given every excuse to fail, chose to succeed. It wasn’t easy and she still, to this day, struggles with the longterm effects of her upbringing, but her determination to make a better life for herself and her family is palpable. Despite the horrors described within these pages, and they are plentiful, it is clear that Rosie was a fierce child who ultimately found peace as a fierce adult.
heatherreadshershelf's review against another edition
5.0
This is a sequel to Etched in Sand, another troubling story from an older sister who endured a traumatic childhood full of abuse on many levels. The story reminds me of something my siblings say to one another after we revisit some of our not so pleasant childhood memories and that is, you can be a victim or a survivor and this family is surviving. I applaud them for sharing their story because I believe it will open others eyes and step out to help others they may otherwise see through. One of my favorite lines Rose mentioned and I paraphrase is that never feel or think that someone has it better than you because never know what goes one behind closed doors. This book can make you shutter and it has very sensitive subject matter but the editors and writer did a great job sharing just enough. May god continue to bless this family.
stephanieinger's review against another edition
5.0
It was just as heart wrenching as Etched in Sand. It really gives you the sense of how the system does not work in the correct way. It warmed my heart to read the they ALL survived in their own way and have learned what love is.
brittthebull93's review against another edition
5.0
What a tear jerker. I could not put this book down. It is the equivalent or riding a roller coaster right along with the author.
jereshkigal's review against another edition
5.0
This audiobook told the story of Rosie Maloney. She wrote her memoir after her older sister, Regina, published her own memoir about the abusive childhood they had at the hands of their mother. It was interesting hearing their individual stories within their family and how those stories compared and contrasted with each other. Their childhoods were very tough but both of these women have grown to be inspiring women in their respective ways.
anneaustex's review
4.0
I think I read this entire book with my heart in my throat. I was waiting for something horrible to happen, I was hoping for something wonderful to happen--and it did. I have the utmost admiration for Rosie finding the will to survive, the strength to forgive, the hope to keep going, and people who make her happy. I can't even imagine the feelings one must have after telling a story like this and then setting it free in the world.
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