A Man Called Dave
 David J. Pelzer
 (Reviewed by The Editor - Rebecca Brown)
 1999 Dutton/Penguin Putnam, New York, USA
  ISBN: 0525945210


Dave's father never intervened as his mother abused him with regular brutality, isolation & starvation. His younger brothers learnt to avoid the violence. Until his school teachers stepped in.

In this final book of his trilogy, David Pelzer tells his courageous story from the day he is finally taken away to safety, through his foster homes, the military, marriage & the travail to discover his life's passions.

What a read! What a childhood, a coming of age & a reckoning! A Man Named Dave is difficult to read. In part because Dave grew up before the new child abuse laws were enacted, before teachers were allowed to lodge complaints, in a time when what went on in a family's home was treated the same way foreign diplomats still are, with astonishing immunity.

Difficult in part because nowhere did I read that Dave was given any mental health counselling which might have paved his way a little easier. Then again, his life experiences would have been quite different.

Here is one son's story of reconciliation with his dying father, a slow & dangerous understanding of how his mother manipulated all who swim within her ken & the redemption of himself & his brothers from the dark hole of their childhood.

With the tenacity & remarkable spirit he showed during the siege of his childhood, Dave pursues his dream of a career in the air force, attaining a level of rank & responsibility against all odds: his lack of education & ability to socialize. Along the way he meets a girl & begets the son who will give his life meaning.

For years Dave speaks to groups about abused childhoods, traveling all over the country, bolstered by the worthwhile results of his talks. When he retires from the military his marriage falls apart as he struggles to get his story published only to discover that the agent carrying his books has been sitting on them.

Then the light at the end of the tunnel begins to glow when he meets the love of his life, his former wife becomes his friend & his fatherhood brings him all the love & pleasure he never knew as a son.

David Pelzer has an eloquent & straightforward way of telling his story. What a struggle! What a life! Exceptional, moving & dramatic. Very well done! Highly recommended.

More from David Pelzer: A Child called “It” & The Lost Boy

Contact:
D-ESPRIT
P. O. Box 1385
Guerneville, CA 95446
707-869-2877
fax: 707-869-4424
http://www.davepelzer.com
(07/30/00)

Rebecca