books with child's face on cover, handwriting style type...

[MaryAnnSingleton]

Was in the library yesterday and on the fast backs table there were at least 3 of these titles,all practically identical...wtf ?

Yes its called Mis Lit (Misery Literature)

One man has even written a series of them about his life, and his brother has also written a book. I know cos there are always tons of them in the charity shop.

Usually they are followed by the siblings books - telling the mis lit author to get a grip and stop fantasising...

Was in Tesco choosing books the other day and more than half of those available were of that genre- almost all about children who have been neglected, abused etc. I do find these quite interesting to read occasionally but I thought 'This is overkill, surely'!

I find the people who read these wierd. My SIL has openly told me she finds them fascinating and is unable to put them down. Wierd.

I suppose it may be therapeutic for the writer but why publish it?

Flibberty the books you are refferring to is the 'CHild called It' series. by Dave Pelzer, they are very good they are nsparational TBH.

Although the one by his brother was utter crap I must say.

I actually do find some of these books fascinating. I'm not sure why started when I was in school, it's not like I am into child abuse or nothing like that it's more a case of I find them interesting and insparational as they mostly end up kind of happy.

well they all look as though they're exactly the same, which I suppose is the point to encourage people to keep reading the same old toss..

in my local whsmiths they have a shelf block labelled tragic life stories fll of these books keep intending to take a picture as it always makes me laugh

whilst I know that some writers have been found to be lying (nad I truely can't understand that at all, and think it's sick), a lot of these authors have had childhoods of hell, and I find the dismissive way that people talk about their experiences truely awful....

I am someone who reads real like stories, and they are interesting....I don't think I am a sick kind of person because I read these books...I understand not everyone wants to read about the awful things that happen to others, but that does NOT make people who do want to read about it weird...I mean, just how closeminded can you get...

Well it's good that the authors who have had bad childhoods find writing about it therapeutic. Writing-as-therapy is often useful for the author. But having has a shit life doesn't make you a good writer if you had no aptitude for it anyway, and apart from the amusement that can be derived from comparing the titles (don;t you ever want to rearrange them on the shelves so they go from 'Waaah, they never bought me a Playstation' to @AARGH! AAARGH! PLEASE DON't FEED ME THROUGH A WOODCHIPPER'.
Apparently there;s a brilliant parody one called Abused, Betrayed and Stuck TO The WIndow, which I must look out for.
People who read these things regularly are witless bucketheads though.

wow, you are not generelising much then....

You do know that your last post was really really disrespectful and belittling of those having gone through an abusive chldhood?

But yes, you are right, not everyone is meant to be a writer....there will be books that really were never meant to be published and shouldn't...but that is a whole different story and doesn't give anyone the right to be this disrespectful....

Ugh, my aunt gave me one of these (why??? no idea) - by Martine McCutcheon's mother iirc. I got as far as a scene where her dad takes her to a paedophile porn director's house and had to leave it there. I felt like the creepiest kind of rubbernecker.

I mean, yes, perhaps people don't realise how very, very grim some children's lives are, and no doubt the end of the book might have been redemptive and uplifting. The mass market for it baffles me, though.

How am I belittling people who have had bad experiences by saying that their experiences don't make them gifted writers? Having a bad experience doesn;t turn you into a pop star or an astrophysicist either.
I reserve most of my contempt for the publishers of this badly-written swill though.

I don't think it's rubbernecking, because a author will, or should at least, write a book that they want others to read...surely...

I read the book you mentioned and I supose the happy end is, that she grew into a strong woman...and obviosuly a very good mother....

like I said, I can understand why some people might not want to read that kinda book...but then, you wouldn't get me near Shakespear...we all have different likes and dislikes, doesn't make us right or wrong....

that, solidbrass, was not the part I felt disrespectful.... but your "waah I never got a Playstation crap, that was disrespectful....

but obviously I am a witless buckethead....so, don't mind me

Well, yes, FairLady, she clearly has written a book others want to read, because it's a bestseller .

I don't have any beef with the individual authors - I can totally see why they're doing it; fair play to them. I do think the publishers are a bit cynical though, turning all this horror into a 'publishing phenomenon'.

I haven't got any respct for the publishers of this crap, FLRAL. But my comment was directed at the titles given to such books, which often seem to be trying to outdo each other - and the fact that soon they'll run out of major horrors (Murdered Three TImes, Run OVer, CUt Up, Stuffed in a Sack and Now I'm World Monopoly Champion) and have to set up a new publishing category for slightly-less-miserable ones (Nooo, not the Comfy Chair...)

oh right god you solidbrass....and like I said, some books are so badly written they should not have been published...
I read one recently, about catholic industrial boy school and one of the previous inmates....and well...it was mostly about getting your ass whooped and I felt after the unmptiest time of this being mentioned, that it all became a bit repetitive....it was NOT the best book...

Some are most definitely better written then others... Tony McGuire forinstance has a fabulous way with words ...