The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things
by J. T. Leroy
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Book Summary Information
Author: J. T. LeroyEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2002-06-01
ISBN: 1582342113
Number of pages: 250
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA
Book Reviews of The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things
Book Review: Shame that a lie overshadowed a horrific but very realistic novel
Summary: 5 Stars
As someone who works in child protection (in the UK not the US) I can honestly say that this book, more so than the more surreal Sarah, is VERY realistic. The way the innocent child's view of the world and their own self worth is skewed and how the child becomes conditioned to the abuse and thinks it normal. This is the reason those abused sometimes go on to abuse others. It is gripping (if you can stomach it but) not a pleasant read and as such it without the Leroy charade it probably wouldn't have become such a big hit but it is certainly a realistic and harrowing account of child abuse. To me this book is scarier and harder to read than the goriest horror novel.
It is a pity that Albert chose to lie like this as I suspect these books would have become cult classics (and may still). Unfortunately there is not much appetite amongst mainstream readers for books that decribe this sort of abuse unless they contain the true life "I got out" ending.
I have lost count of the poorly written autobiographies by genuine survivors of abuse. They appear on Oprah etc and the book sells a few more copies and I guess having been through what they have no one can grudge them that. However, often those books feel like reading a TV movie where the worse of it is only hinted at but mostly glossed over and maybe understandly but the postitives are highlighted (I found god and he got me through it etc). This book does not do that. True or not it is an accurate account of how children are being exploited in the US, UK and almost everywhere else in the world. This book should be used to highlight the plight of the forgotten children of the underclass of society not slated because it didn't happen. Alas for every one child that is rescued or gets out some other way there are 10 that don't.
I would like to take a positive note that at least the acts described did not actually happen, but sadly that is not true these types of acts happen all the time. This is NOT sensationalist nonsense it is the saddest book I have ever read.
Summary of The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things
The extraordinary stories that brought the author a cult following at the age of sixteen.
These are the stories of a young boy on the run, away from his past, hellbent towards an unknown future. Connected, they form a sometimes harrowing, sometimes bleakly funny, and often tender portrait of a complicated life. Like a modern-day Voltaire, LeRoy bounces his characters from adventure to adventure, each of them unyielding in the belief that the best of all possible worlds lies just around the next corner. Fresh, raw, and absolutely unforgettable, The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things has further established the acclaimed author of Sarah as one of the most compelling voices in contemporary fiction.
These are the stories of a young boy on the run, away from his past, hellbent towards an unknown future. Connected, they form a sometimes harrowing, sometimes bleakly funny, and often tender portrait of a complicated life. Like a modern-day Voltaire, LeRoy bounces his characters from adventure to adventure, each of them unyielding in the belief that the best of all possible worlds lies just around the next corner. Fresh, raw, and absolutely unforgettable, The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things has further established the acclaimed author of Sarah as one of the most compelling voices in contemporary fiction.
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