Film & TV Dave and Richard Pelzer.

[k69atie]

I am currently reading "A brothers Journey" (surviving a childhood of abuse) by Richard Pelzer. (He has also written A teenagers Journey).

Has anyone read any of his books? Or books my his brother Dave Pelzer (A child called it, My story).

I am interested to know if dave and richard speak as on richard's website he says that dave fell out with him over the writing of his books?

Has anyone read the books? Or know anything about them?

 

[Jibster]

Yeah, i've read A Child Called It and the follow ups. Very inspiring books. Some of thethings he was put through are totally unbelievable, i'd be disgusted if an army put a prisoner of war through that, never mind a mother putting their own child through it.

Things like burning his arm (and holding it there) over the naked flame of the cooker, stabbing him, putting hisface in dog shit, making him sleep and live in a dirty old garage. It's amazing the guy is here and sane enough to give his story.

I haven't read Richard's though. What's it about? Does it comment on David's traumas etc or is it unrelated? If it does what's his opinions of it?

 

[k69atie]

Richards story is about his side of growing up, it talks about david and how his mother made him live in the basement, about how he witnessed his mother stabbing david, about how his mother used him to tell tales on david and how he would tell lies about things david had done so david would get the beating and not him.

it goes on til david gets taken away by the police and then when david goes richard himself is then the victim of his mothers drunken rages.

The story of Dave Pelzer is a legend of our times: the shattering tale of the child called 'It' who was forced to live in the basement. His mother was the perpetrator of the horror, but she had a willing accomplice. It was Dave's brother Richard - the author of this book. When Dave was twelve the police removed him from the household, but the cycle of abuse continued. Mrs Pelzer had a new target for her crazed, alcoholic wrath. The hunter became the hunted -- at the age of nine. This is his story. Recounting the warped dynamics of a family riven by abuse, he reveals his guilt at being the abuser, his scarring at being abused, the complete lack of questioning within the family about what was happening -- and even the twisted respect the boys had for their mother. Richard became the target of his mother's artillery of insanity, the victim of savage beatings leading to hospitalization, the boy denied clean clothes, the one who 'deserved' whole bottles of hot Tabasco sauce poured down his throat ...

Then the 2nd story - A Teenagers journey:

At the end of A BROTHER'S JOURNEY, Richard Pelzer's mother and three brothers are moving to Salt Lake City, Utah. He has the choice of joining them - unwanted - or staying behind. But where can he live? What can he live on? Defeated - he follows them. So continues Richard's alcoholic mother's physical abuse of Richard. But gradually he is growing up - not just in years but stature. His mother cannot treat him in quite the same way and mostly it is with neglect. Richard runs away and tries to commit suicide several times, and he has a stint with a foster home. He turns to soft drugs, then hard drugs. Finally he goes to live with John and Darlene Nichols who try to show him some family love. At the age of 21 he gets a full time job and tries to learn to be a big brother to the foster parents' children. And begins to get his life together...An uplifting and inspiring story about someone who retains his religion and regains basic morals - despite everything going against him.

I have ordered daves book (the on called "My story" which roles all 3 of his books into one)


It says on rickards website that dave doesn't speak to him anyone cos he printed his books? Do you know anything about this?

It makes you wonder how their mother got away with such horrific things for such a long time, i mean why only take david? why didn't they take all the children?

 

[FroDawgg]

i just got done reading the first 2 of dave's books and am about to start "a man named dave" (really excited about it, too!). these books are easy reads and good, although they're very disturbing. i din't know his bro wrote one, so i might have to check that out.

katie, i think i know what you're talking about that dave and richard don't speak. i just read a harsh review of dave's books, trying to disprove them, saying that dave just exaggerated his stories and made them WAY worse than they were, and one of his brothers (can't remember if it was richard or not) was quoted as saying that dave was a trouble maker and really exaggerated the stories (ie. he never was stabbed, he was just cut a little bit after trying to take the knife from mom). this might be the reason they don't talk?

 

[k69atie]

I am not sure, some reviews i read said richard was just trying to jump on the band wagon.

and dave did get stabbed - richard describes it in his book.

let me know what daves books are like, mine are being delivered any day soon.

 

[Jibster]

I'd imagine that Dave not speaking to Richard is something to do with Richard trying to cash in on the fame David found with his books, which is how it looks to me. All of a sudden he is trying to associate and align himself with David now he has recognition but when David needed him Richard was stirring it up and siding with his mother. It must have been very tough for David mentally aswell as physically to have both your mother and brother gang up on you in your own home must have been awful.

It is amazing that all the children weren't taken away from their mother but it shows how manipulative his mother was that she convinced the authorities that he was to blame.

 

[k69atie]

Yeah true.

I am on the last couple of chapters of richards book, so will start davids then.

Richard says that he had already written his book, before his brother bought is out.

Was it just david and richard who were abused by their mother?

It was different in those days. Richard had plenty of chances to get gelp, but he never did. probably cos his mum told him that david was in prison for being so bad, maybe he thought the same would happen to him too?