Trigger Warning: This article contains mentions of domestic violence and attempted homicide that may be triggering for some readers. Please exercise personal care when reading.
Domestic violence is a pressing issue deserving of serious attention; one of the most potent forms of education on the topic are the stories told by those who have experienced it. Reclaiming their stories and spreading awareness for experiences no one should have, here are five memoirs about perseverance, compassion, and the path to recovery from domestic violence survivors.
Stronger Than That: A Domestic Violence Survivor Uncovers the Truth About Her Abuser by Sarah Doucette
When she was 21, Sarah Doucette married a charming and attentive man. Six years later, Doucette left her marriage with PTSD and dissociation after suffering years of physical and emotional abuse. After her ex committed suicide, she embarked on a journey to learn the destructive patterns that shaped him and their relationship by interviewing those who knew him. Doucette sets out to tell her story of domestic abuse survival while outlining different types of abuse to help others survive their trauma.
Everything I Never Dreamed: My Life Surviving and Standing Up to Domestic Violence by Ruth M. Glenn
Ruth M. Glenn shares her story of survival with a moving call to action in Everything I Never Dreamed. She suffered unspeakable abuse at the hands of her husband, and after being shot three times by him, Glenn resolved to stand up to domestic violence for herself and others. Revealing her path to obtaining advanced degrees and making it through that near-death experience, Glenn addresses the dynamics of domestic violence, the perceived inferior status of women and children, how to stop victim-blaming, and how to understand domestic violence so that the cycle finally stops.
Goodbye, Sweet Girl: A Story of Domestic Violence and Survival by Kelly Sundberg
Kelly Sundberg takes readers on a harrowing journey through understanding herself and her nearly decade-long marriage to her vengeful husband, Caleb. She shares the ups and downs that came with the difficult realization that Caleb would never change, in the process presenting a glimpse into why women stay in dangerous relationships. Sundberg’s reflections lead her to examine her childhood in Salmon, Idaho, which, like her marriage, is full of deep contradictions. Goodbye, Sweet Girl is a cautionary yet redemptive tale in which Sundberg details her transformation from rejecting her violent marriage to learning that she deserves better.
Playing Dead: A Memoir of Terror and Survival by Monique Faison Ross
After discovering she was pregnant with his child, Monique Faison Ross married her high school sweetheart, Chris. Their relationship had always been rocky, but soon his verbal abuse intensified and led to physical attacks. When Ross left and took their children with her, Chris resorted to stalking and threatened her before one day kidnapping her. Following a horrific car ride, Chris left Ross for dead in the woods, and playing dead ended up saving her life. Readers have dubbed Playing Dead a “powerful indictment of domestic and spousal violence.”
Crazy Love: A Memoir by Leslie Morgan Steiner
At 22, Leslie Morgan Steiner had a degree from Harvard, a stable job, an apartment in New York City, and a handsome boyfriend who loved her. But behind the facade of success was a dark secret: Conor was extremely abusive and threatened to kill Steiner on multiple occasions. Conor said he was abused since he was young, cultivating a pattern of both love and rage in his psyche. Crazy Love explores the devastating world of intimate partner violence and how the powerlessness of abuse can happen anywhere to anyone.
Supporting survivors of domestic violence means listening to and reading their stories without blame or judgment. Recognizing and appreciating the vulnerability and honesty these authors have to talk about what they’ve gone through helps destigmatize domestic violence and promote a society that uplifts these stories in an effort to enact change.
To read more about books that discuss the importance of domestic violence awareness, click here.
Find these books and more on our Non-Fiction Titles for the Enlightened Mind booklist on Bookshop.org.
