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Brenda Youngerman
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Title: Private Scars
Genre: Fiction/Family
Pages: 184
Synopsis:
Nancy Lewiston is an average middle class girl who was raised to believe that she would meet Prince Charming and live happily ever after. No one is ever taught to look out for a master manipulator who could sell ice to anyone in the middle of a snow storm. Follow her life as she is completely taken away from everyone and everything she loves as she allows her husband to control her and what and how she manages to gain that control back.
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Private Scars
by Brenda Youngerman
iUniverse, 2006, US
Poetry, 172 pages
Paperback, $13.95
ISBN: 978-0-595-40292-5
Review by Ruth Cox
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Voted Most Likely to Succeed in her graduating class, Nancy looked forward to what her future held in store for her. But little girl dreams are not always what real life turns out to be. Sometimes, growing up in middle class affluence, a young girl is shielded from harsh realities.
In Private Scars, author Brenda Youngerman introduces her readers, as well as her character, Nancy, to the real world. Going away to college, Nancy's new-found freedom and enthusiasm for life would be short-lived. Here, she would learn life lessons she hadn't planned on learning. Here, she would learn about death, about violence, about rape, and she would learn about feeling all alone in the world.
Eventually, Nancy would leave the university of her childhood dreams to return home to the safety net of her family. And here she would learn that some things are revealed, never to be spoken of again.
Nancy would fall in love, and lose. She would fall in love again, and marry. Unfortunately, she would marry into a life of domestic violence.
Throughout this journey, you, the reader, may find yourself thinking Nancy isn't "Miss Innocent" herself and you may even find yourself unsympathetic to her at times. Don't let yourself be fooled. This is a part of the reality of abuse that Youngerman wants you to see and to feel. You will learn through the eyes of the victim the devastation of self that befalls those caught up in the horrors of abuse. And you will learn that family abuse reaches far beyond the victim, touching the lives of all who love and know her.
It is Brenda Youngerman's hope that her readers will come away from Private Scars with a better understanding of what a victim of abuse endures. It is also Youngerman's desire, in telling Nancy's story, for all to know "that there really is help out there and it is NOT OK to be a victim of domestic violence."
Private Scars stands well on its own. However, there is a sequel -- Public Lies, the next chapter in Nancy's tumultuous life.
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This review is written and ©Ruth Cox.
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For your convenience, I have provided you with a link to purchase your copy of this book from Amazon.com: Private Scars
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Private Scars
by Brenda Youngerman
Review by John Allen
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Youngerman’s easy-going style is clearly evident in this engaging story. Nancy’s life and loves are a panorama of hit-and-miss decision making, and our young heroine is best summed up by her sister Olivia, who tells her she has a way of leading with her heart, not her head. In short, Nancy, the California sunshine girl, is very gullible.
The author’s characters and settings are well described: the grimy Ohio household is so credible I felt like taking a shower, and the ‘bad guy’ is extremely convincing. The real surprise, however, is the ending, which is not only original and well thought out, but also leads to the sequel to Private Scars. All told, the author has delivered a satisfying read.
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Private Scars
by Brenda Youngerman
172 pgs iUniverse, Inc.
Review by Deanna Lee Warren
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Private Scars is the heartbreaking story of Nancy Lewiston, a young woman who
loses her best friend in a car crash when they were mere girls. Not allowed to
attend her friend's funeral, there is no closure. Nancy moves on with her life,
but is brutally raped on the campus grounds. Like a bandaid placed on a
gusher of blood, the rape is dealt with by her family and neatly tucked away,
leaving Nancy vulnerable and suffering low self-esteem. Nancy wants to marry
and have childen, and when she meets loving and gentle Vince, she thinks she
has met the man of her dreams. Vince reveals his dark side on their wedding
night, and Nancy is in a state of disbelief. Her troubles are just beginning as
she realizes the man she married is not the same man at all, but a brutal and
twisted man who thinks only of himself. Nancy and life as she had known it
begin to disappear.
I wished I could have stepped into the pages of this book and shaken her. When
Nancy leaves Vince, I went weak with relief, but waited in sheer terror to
see what was going to happen.
Brenda Youngerman writes with startling clarity. I felt all the emotions a
reader should feel: outrage, anger, and sorrow, as I joined her character,
Nancy, through the horror and disbelief that was her life.
I look forward to reading Public Lies, the next chapter in Nancy's life.
I am happy to add Brenda Youngerman to my list of favorite authors.
Thank you for allowing me to review this book.
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