Thursday, June 29, 2017

First Line Friday

***Warning: This week's line is from a book about a journalist who was sexually assaulted while on assignment and her subsequent investigation into the man's life***



Happy Friday all!

It is no secret that I am addicted to books. Seriously addicted. I can not stop wandering the shelves in search of new books, when I already have so many at home. This week has been especially rough, as we have been to one library twice so Eleanor and her BFF could play and we are going to a different library tomorrow for story time. Needless to say, I now have a stack of about 30 books by the couch, when there are already so many that I own on my desk and Kindle. On the other hand, there are worse things to be addicted to, so...

I came across this book in the biography section and the title intrigued me. I had no idea what it was about until I saw the cover. I considered putting it back; it is heavy subject matter and truth be told, once I had a child I could not even watch Law and Order: SVU anymore, so the idea of reading about one woman's real life trauma was almost too much. But then I reconsidered. While I am not a survivor of sexual assault, I know many women who are. I have a daughter who I am raising in this incredibly difficult time when rape-culture and victim-blaming is still the norm. So, with caution I am starting this one tonight after I post the line.

26820815

"I was thirty years old when I left my body for the first time."

Let me know what you think of the line, and/or leave a line of your own. Then, visit my fellow First-Liners to see what they have this week.


Rachel - Bookworm Mama




Lauraine - Lauraine's Notes

Andi - Radiant Light


Robin - Robin's Nest

(Sydney is currently on hiatus but her previous FLF posts will still be available)

Kathleen - Kathleen Denly



Jeanette - CJaneReads

Christina - Moments Dipped in Ink


If you want to join in on First Line Friday, let Carrie know!

Happy Reading!
Sarah

22 comments:

  1. I used to read a lot of these real life abuse survival kind of books but it had a bad affect on my depression so I had to stop. The last one I read was 'Lucky' by Alice Sebold. It was a really good book. I liked it much better than her fiction books.

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    1. I have never really been into true crime or stories like this, exactly for the reason you said. I don't deal with depression, but it is all just so heartbreaking to think this is constantly happening all over the world.

      I was drawn to this story because of the survivor's reaction, and her need to know about the man who raped her. Her look into his life was completely heartbreaking as well. His father was very abusive to all of the kids, either physically or verbally. He was a pimp and there were a couple women and their kids living in the house. I think all the siblings were into drugs and alcohol early and most were addicts and criminals themselves. it does not excuse what he did in the slightest and I feel zero empathy for the rapist in terms of his sentencing for the assault. I do feel sympathy for him as the child he had been. His brother made a good point, asking from jail what any of them had done to deserve the abuse, they didn't ask to be born.

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  2. Happy Friday!
    My first line is from Rediscovering Americanism by Mark R. Levin: "I often wonder what Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, James Madison, John Adams, George Mason, Benjamin Franklin, and the other Founders would think about today's America.

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    1. Hi Becky, happy Saturday and thank you for sharing your line this week!

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  3. PROLOGUE
    The stack of photographs slipped to the floor, splaying across the wood planks like wildflowers over a grassy meadow. - Strand of Deception by Robin Caroll

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  4. My first line is from Healing Love by Jennifer Slattery.

    "I've spent over $100,000 and two of grad school for this?"

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  5. So hard to watch or read about those tough topics when you have a daughter!! But sometimes we can learn from it to. The first line certainly intrigued me!

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    1. Hi Jessica, yes it is so hard when you have little ones and especially daughters. I really am in awe of the author and her attempts to reconcile what happened to her 30 years ago with her life now. She found early on that her rapist died in jail, so she set out to find his family to see where he came from. I can't imagine having that kind of strength and I pray to God I never have to, either for myself or my daughter. I d recommend reading the book, though will caution that she is very explicit when describing the rape. I agree with her decision to do so, but I had to skim much of it for my own sanity.

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  6. Not sure I'd be brave enough to read that at this point in time!

    I have the first line from Over Maya Dead Body on my blog today, but I’m going to share the first line from another great read about to release, Susan May Warren’s “A Matter of Trust”:

    “Gage Watson blamed the trouble on the bright, sunny day.”

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    1. Hi Katie, thank you for sharing a line!

      It was a difficult read for sure, but I found I could not put it down. While she does describe in explicit detail the rape itself, much of the book is focused on her investigating the life of the man who assaulted her. She meets a lot of his siblings and finds out that their childhood was awful, father was a pimp and very abusive physically to the boys. Most of the kids were in and out of fail and if I recall correctly all the ones she talked to had dealt with drug addiction at some point. It is easy to see how they all turned to drugs, alcohol, and/or crime. It does not excuse what her rapist did to her and I feel no sympathy for him in regards to his jail sentence or the fact that he died in prison. But I do have sympathy for the child he was, and his siblings were. They never had a chance.

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  7. That is a perfect first line for the subject matter and I can completely relate. Happy 4th Weekend!!

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    1. Thank you! it was a difficult read but one I found I could not put down. I had to know what made her rapist into the person that he was. I think there is much to learn from a book like this and the author's experience and perspective.

      Happy 4th, have a wonderful weekend

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  8. Happy Friday!
    My first line is: “This fairy tale begins in 1968 during a garbage strike.” ~ The Changeling by Victor Lavalle.
    Dinh@Arlene's Book Club

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  9. Sounds intense, Sarah :)

    Dutch Whitney hit the bog hard, tumbling forward to smack facedown into the muck. - Grounded Hearts by Jeanne M. Dickson

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    1. Hi Beth - it was! She spared no detail and was very blunt about both the assault itself and the aftermath. I had to skim a bit here and there.

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  10. Wow. That is an interesting first line.


    Here's mine. "Ross Springer knew he was going into the drink the second Abby Cushman stepped up to the mark, fixed those intelligent blue eyes on the bull's-eye, and let the beanbag zip." Hook, Line, and Sinker by Susan May Warren

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    1. It was. She started with the assault right out of the gate. I was not expecting that. Very intense, but a worthwhile read.

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