Book Review

A Child Called “It” by David Pelzer is an amazing auto biography that took me, deep as a reader, into the painful experiences he had faced. David Pelzer is a very inspiring person through his perseverance and hope he was able to live through the abuse as a child. I would symbolize David as a heart with a white dove. This is the universal sign of hope, which David had very much and can relate to many ways we need hope today.

In the auto-biography, A Child Called “It”, David is a young elementary student who is slowly eliminated from the family and is forced to sleep on an army cot out in the garage. David is not the only child; three brothers that are treated well but their mother who is addicted to alcohol seems to despise David. His mother prefers to call him “It” and put him through astonishing punishments that are cruel and traitorous, most taking his life. As David goes through every day he struggles to have a relationship with anyone. Looking for a great escape, David pushes to have a relationship with anyone that he meets, though his history pushes people away.

Some of the most suspenseful parts of this book are cruel but being empathic towards harmful situations makes you want to keep reading. David’s mother finds new corrupted ways to punish him every time. Believing that his mother once did love his son is hard, but through her corrupted ways, she portrays terrible parental care.

This book I believe would appeal to many 8th grades and anyone of that age or older. I believe due to the experiences that teenagers go through; they would be able to relate to a stressful situation or a hardship. I would give A Child Called “It” five stars because the book I believe is very touching and teaches so many lessons. It shows the theme of abuse, betrayal, struggle, perseverance and hope.