A Child Called "It"
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A Child Called "It": One Child's Courage to Survive is David J. Pelzer's 1995 autobiographical account of his maltreatment as a child by his alcoholic mother, Catherine Roerva, who singled him out much more so from among her other children as an object of abuse.
[edit] Synopsis
Dave Pelzer was the second of five boys. His father was a fireman and, according to David, his mother was originally a loving, kind and caring person.
The book states that around the time that the author turned five, things within the family slowly began to change. While his father was away at work often, his mother became an alcoholic. The author's mother has claimed that Dave was so badly behaved that he required punishment. The summer before Dave started kindergarten his mother reportedly beat him, dislocating his shoulder. The book goes on to describe a period of mixed emotions over the following few years with the increasingly abusive and damaging behavior from Ms Roerva gradually ostracizing Dave from the rest of the family.
The book describes the worsening abuse which Dave suffered at the hand of his mother and her alcoholism. Among the many incidents discussed is that Ms. Roerva attempted to burn Dave on a stove when he was eight years old. By this point he was no longer considered as part of the family and lived in the basement denied basic contact, play or food. Ms. Roerva has stated that she did not want Dave to interact with "her family" demonstrating the lack of regard in which he was held.
Over time the depth of the abuse worsened. Dave claims he was forced to sit in the Prisoner of War position (head bent backwards facing sky and sitting on hands). His mother stopped using his name and began referring to him first as "The Boy" and finally "It". The punishments are reported to have evolved into 'sick games' in which Ms. Roerva made her son suffer.
Incidents cited in the book include; making him drink ammonia, cleaning the bathroom with ammonia mixed with chlorine bleach resulting in a near fatal outcome, inducing vomit followed by forced ingestion, smashing his face against the mirror while screaming "I'm a bad boy", lying in the bathtub naked with freezing water for hours, stabbing, rubbing his face in his brother's dirty diaper/nappy, making him eat dog's feces and starvation.[citation needed]
[edit] Reaction
His father apparently distanced himself from the house. At first he tried to stop the abuse but as time went on felt unable to intervene. His father gradually spent less time at home as a result. Two months before Dave's rescue he separated from his mother and moved out. In the book his father would not come home at all or come home very late. He would stay at friends houses or hotels before he separated from his wife.
Dave claims to have learned how to survive his mother's abuse. He often prays to God and is said to be angry at God for ignoring his prayers.[citation needed]
On March 5, 1973, after nearly 8 years of abuse, David, then aged 12, was rescued by teachers at his school.[citation needed]
Per Oprah.com, Dave Pelzer was judged the third worst case of child abuse in the state of California out of 38,000 cases.
[edit] Sequels
A 1997 sequel, The Lost Boy, details Pelzer's experience in the foster care system. In 1999, the third book, A Man Named Dave was published, detailing his life as an adult. The three were compiled into a single book called My Story in 2002.
