A Heartbreaking Work of Bad Parenting

There is nothing more heartbreaking than abuse. The fact that a parent could subject their own child to such debasement is unthinkable. I know there are no morality police for people who have not been brought to justice, but I can only hope that if there is a hell that child abusers rot in it. There is no excuse for child abuse, ever. One tale of horrifying neglect has become a bestselling book dubbed A Child Called “IT”. This book details with unsettling clarity the story of Dave Pelzer’s deplorable life.

Growing up in the Pelzer house was not dissimilar from your average American family. Dinner at seven, weekends playing games, that is if you were not little Davey. For a while his life was normal. His brothers played with him, his dad cherished him, and his mom treated him like a person. One fateful day, that all changed for Dave. There never was a clear reason explained in the book as to why his mom snapped on only him and continued on her torturous rampage for as long as she was able to. I can only assume that he himself does not know the answer to that question.

Instead of staying in his old, childhood room he was banished to the basement. David was starved for days at a time until he was forced to find, beg, and steal for his meals. Once his mother discovered his tricks, she quickly cut off his source. She began to hide the leftover food and dispose of it so her son could not retrieve it. She even went so far as to put chemicals in the food hoping he would eat it. Shameful. Being made to clean the dishes was an extra insult to serious injury and was one of the few times little Davey was allowed out of the basement. He was also forced on one very appalling occasion to put his face in his brother’s diaper and told to eat.

A few times while reading this book I had to take a break from the carnage. Though I did enjoy the story I am sorry it had to happen at all. No one should have to go through that. I discovered that there is a sequel to this book that accounts for Mr. Pelzer’s journey through the foster care system. The book is called The Lost Boy. Here’s hoping this trip is much easier for our unsung hero.