Customer Reviews

Blackbird: A Childhood Lost and Found

5 star:		(96)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I was up until 4 a.m. finishing Jennifer Lauck's gripping story of her childhood. The pages seemed to turn themselves as I followed the early loss of her tenderhearted mother, her panicky father's remarriage, and her experiences at the hands of a neurotic stepmother. What makes this debut all the more impressive is Lauck's clear and compelling prose style. Early in the book, the childlike tone seems potentially grating, but the reader is quickly drawn under Lauck's spell as that voice rapidly hardens and matures in the face of a tough life. More important, there's an astonishing lack of self-pity that makes the story all the more chilling. This is not one of those horrifying stories of child abuse and molestation that, no matter how shocking, we like to think of as happening on the fringes of society. Instead, this is a straightforward recounting of life's circumstantial horrors, namely what happens to children when the people who are supposed to take care of them die and there's no one to take the adults' places. It seems too easy (and unfair) to compare her to Mary Karr, but Lauck displays the same surefootedness and narrative tautness that kept readers of "The Liars Club" enthralled. The only happy ending is her smiling author photo, and I don't know if I could have gone to sleep as dawn approached except that her acknowledgements thanked a husband and son for an unconditional love that she thought she'd never feel again.I'm thankful for Jennifer Lauck's happy adult life (and I feel the need after this glowing review to say that I don't know the woman at all), and I'm thankful as well for the talents that allowed her to turn an incredibly painful childhood into a gripping piece of literature.

After seeing Jennifer Lauck on Oprah I began my search for this book. Once in hand, I read it in a period of 14 hours almost right through since I was unable to put it down, and unable to stop my tears. How desperately I wanted to take this poor child in my arms and hold her forever. It brought great comfort to remember her on Oprah...that she has survived, but even so I had to keep flipping to the back cover to see her smiling face to assure myself that her suffering is over now. I became so angry at society - I am sure there were many opportunities for adults to notice this child and her situation, but no one helped. This book reminded me of my own childhood pain, and helps me to perfect some of my parenting skills, and I truly hope that this book will serve the ultimate purpose and awaken us to the plight of children. Jennifer's story is heartbreaking, but she is not alone in a world that still largely minimizes children. Thank you dear sweet Jennifer for telling your story, and I truly hope that your words reverberate throughout the world as they allow insight into lonliness, grief, rejection and abandonment as seen through the eyes of a child. I tremendously look forward to the sequel.

I just finished this book 10 minutes ago...I read it very quickly because I had to find out what happened to Jennifer. This is a very well-written book. It is very harrowing and made me very mad that no adults came through to help Jennifer and her brother. I can only wonder how Jennifer made it through to where she is now. If I could do anything this minute it would be to call the author on the phone and find out what happened to her in the ensuing years. On the back fly leaf of the book it says that she is at work on a sequel, I will be anxiously awaiting her next book. I am awestruck by her ability to thrive under the circumstances she grew up in. This book will stay with me forever for many reasons. It is truely amazing. Read it.

What a beautiful story--it's so incredibly well written. Makes you want to find the author and give her a huge hug! We've all had difficult lives, and Jennifer reminds us all to look back and remember. I lost my mother, too, and I found myself trying to reconstruct my feelings. It's just tremendously powerful. Congratulations to a new voice on the memoir scene--can't wait to read the next from Jennifer.

I saw Jennifer Lauck on "Oprah" on Friday, and was so moved by her story and resilience that I bought the book on Saturday, and read the whole thing.

It is an amazing story of hardship and survival, of added insults to injuries, and she not only lives to the tell the tale, but seems to have made peace with her difficult past.

I had a difficult childhood myself, and her story rings absolutely true: she captures the loneliness and confusion perfectly. I can't wait to share the book with a friend.

Blackbird proves that no matter how much pain a child or young adult endures, if they're strong enough it is possible to grow up to lead a well balanced and productive life. All too often, with the help of psychologists and therapists, adults blame their lack of success in life on their parents. We are all so busy spending so much time blaming others, we fail to reach our potential.

Jennifer Lauck, the author of Blackbird, suffered greatly and uses her childhood experiences to tell a spellbinding and heart-rending story of the loss of innocence and survival. It is amazing that a 6 year old child could not only survive the pain that was inflicted on her, but rise above it and tell her story to the entire world.

The writing style is unique. Written in the perspective of 6 yr old Lauck, the story tells everything from the kitchen counter down. Some passages and thoughts are totally random and Lauck goes into great detail about the strangest subjects... just like the mind of a 6 yr old. I think this is one reasons I like the book so much. Lauck was able to capture and describe the way a child thinks and views the world in an incredible way.

I look forward to reading the follow-up to Blackbird. I am concerned for lauck's brother B.J./Bryan. Lauck describes his deeply burried anger throughout the book, and I fear for his ability to cope with that anger later in life.

This book had been sitting on my shelf forever, so it was high time I read it. The story is like White Oleander, only worse, because this one happened for real.

Boy, if you thought you had a rough childhood, you should read this. Or if your kids whine and complain about how bad you are, hand them this book. The parallels between Snow White and Jennifer's story are plentiful.

The writing is super-slooooooow, and somewhat exasperating: "I took the cereal out of the cupboard. I grabbed a bowl. I put some cereal in it. I went to the fridge and got some milk. I poured the milk into the bowl"... You get the idea.

I knew nothing about this true story before I started reading it, so I don't want to give too much away. I like being surprised. For example, I found out there is a sequel to this story, Still Waters, and I read somewhere a little of what happens in it, and I am bummed out that I found out some details.

Suffice it to say that it is not fair for a human being to have such rotten bad luck, in so many levels. This could be a good anthem book for the disintegration of the American family. When the mother dies, the dad decides to stay in LA, instead of going back to Nevada, where he could have had the support of his extended family. After you read the book, you realize that selfishness makes adults see kids as irrelevant as furniture. Where were Jennifer's grandparents, aunts, uncles, when her life started to unravel?

I did a web search after reading Blackbird, wanting to learn more about Deb. I then learned about the heated debate that exists between one side and the other. Who to trust? I was, again, a little deflated by the controversy.

I have never taken the time to review a book before, which says something right there. How the author is not "damaged", after a childhood the likes of hers,is a testament to her inner strenth and beauty. It was difficult reading this book without tears in my eyes or moans coming from my mouth. My husband thought I was really suffering each time I picked the book up. The author does such a magnificient job,I can't wait until the sequel. I am agonizing over the next part of her life.

When I see the lovely face on the jacket of the book and realize that Ms. Lauck has been successful it makes my heart sing.

Spanning a scant six years of Jennifer Lauck's life, Blackbird is a emotionally compelling memoir. Young Jennifer's world is controlled by her young mother's terminal illness and her father's workaholic tendenancies. Trying to seize any control that a six year old can grab, Jennifer strives to be the catetaker of her mother and the daughter her father wants. Her only friend is a childless woman who notices the lonely child and invites her in and befriends her. Her brother B.J. is also struggling to keep his head above water, his coping skills are marked by anger and cruelty towards his sister. The passages in which Jennifer describes her mother and father are so tender and descriptive that you feel the child's longing to please. After her mother's death, Jennifer's father moves in with Deb (who he had been seeing for some time) and her children. There is an uneasy alliance among the children,and Jennifer retreats. Her father is less and less available, trying to please a demanding (and slightly unstable) Deb, and trying to keep up with increasing expectations and debt. The 70's are in full bloom in Southern California and there are many changes to cope with, and no one to talk to. Soon, Jennifer's life is ripped apart again, and what follows is the two and a half year oddesy of a child in the grip of forces that she cannot escape. There are those along the way who nuture the child, and who try to help, but Jennifer is forced to develop coping skills far beyond her young age. I had to keep reminding myself as I read, that this was just a child. The book ends with Jennifer and her brother being rescued by relatives when she is just 11. The people who reached out to nuture the lonely child, and the angry, yet bright resiliance of Jennifer are the saving grace of this part of her life. The story will grab you and you will be hard pressed to lay this book aside. One of the very best books of the recent years.

How can someone say this is self-serving? This is not a politician's book. It's a story I'm sure every reader can relate to on some level. I sure did. It brought back a lot of negative feelings I had for my parents, and other authority figures, who have no respect for the emotions and experiences of children. True, everyone has struggled through his/her own bad times. This is just one of those accounts, but very well-written and a very fast read. I couldn't stop.