Recently we had the opportunity to read a book by a local author. The book, The House on Sunset, is a book about surviving domestic violence. The main character, Sarafina, tells her story upfront and personal. She describes the process of falling in love, and then watching it turn into brutal abuse at the hands of her boyfriend. In the story she weaves the signs of abuse, the circular cycle of reconciliation, the beatings, the mental abuse and torment that an abuser does with the skill of a brain surgeon.
I had to read Sarafina's story in small chunks, because the prose would take my breath away in unexpected ways. You can feel your insides start to quiver, and shrink, when what you thought was going to happen, did, but worse than you could have imagined. When the story ends, you are certain that her life will never be the same, and you are worried for her.
I was fortunate to get to meet with the author, the Sarafina of the story, and see that after years of counseling she is blossoming and loving and kind. Her message of survival is filled with hope for those who are in an abusive relationship. I am amazed how she is able to discuss her abuse openingly with those of us who read of her struggles and are amazed that she is still alive and with us.
Our book club met with the author, Lindsay Fischer, at a local restaurant. We asked all kinds of questions, becoming more and more relaxed as we can see her evident success at survival. We moved the meeting to our beloved Wine Bar, where we continued to enjoy each other's company and learn more about Lindsay's story. We were pleased to learn that she is a guest speaker, sharing her story with police departments, abuse centers and others, to help them learn how to better serve abuse victims within the system.
Lindsay blogs at Survivors Will Be Heard. There you can follow her story and learn what we can do to help with her work.
Our Book Club was in agreement that this was a wonderful meeting, our best yet, and we plan to purchase and read book 2 that was recently started. For those of you who haven't read The House on Sunset, go and check it out.
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| Our book club with Lindsay, the second from the right. |
I was fortunate to get to meet with the author, the Sarafina of the story, and see that after years of counseling she is blossoming and loving and kind. Her message of survival is filled with hope for those who are in an abusive relationship. I am amazed how she is able to discuss her abuse openingly with those of us who read of her struggles and are amazed that she is still alive and with us.
Our book club met with the author, Lindsay Fischer, at a local restaurant. We asked all kinds of questions, becoming more and more relaxed as we can see her evident success at survival. We moved the meeting to our beloved Wine Bar, where we continued to enjoy each other's company and learn more about Lindsay's story. We were pleased to learn that she is a guest speaker, sharing her story with police departments, abuse centers and others, to help them learn how to better serve abuse victims within the system.
Lindsay blogs at Survivors Will Be Heard. There you can follow her story and learn what we can do to help with her work.
Our Book Club was in agreement that this was a wonderful meeting, our best yet, and we plan to purchase and read book 2 that was recently started. For those of you who haven't read The House on Sunset, go and check it out.
