Dugard memoir captures a life of captivity
By Kathryn Reed
Some books I don’t want to read, but I know should. Such was the case with “A Stolen Life” – Jaycee Lee Dugard’s memoir.
It was also one of those books that I wanted to be done with fast. Selfishly, I just didn’t want Dugard’s 18-year ordeal to linger long on my nightstand. Though, truth be told, I have had it for more than a year. I just needed to be ready to read it. And when I was, I read it fast.
I wasn’t living in South Lake Tahoe when Dugard, who was 11 at the time, was snatched from a school bus stop in Meyers. But I was here in 2009 when word came she had been found – alive – living in Antioch (just three hours away) and had given birth to children who were fathered by her kidnapper-rapist.
The book is worth reading no matter how many news accounts you’ve read.
It would make for an interesting high school or college level project – perhaps in an English, psychology, or criminal justice class. It is definitely not a book to be read by all ages.
I was surprised that the emotion I was left with at the end of the 273 pages was disbelief. Still, I cannot believe Dugard’s will to live. I don’t know how she endured the endless sexual, emotional and verbal abuse.
She writes about how she got through it all. Her thoughts. Her mindset. Her emotions.
It’s a gritty book. It’s an honest book. It will make you angry and sad. But in the end I was just amazed by this woman’s journey from innocent child to bruised woman. Battered, yes, but nowhere near broken.
That is what is so remarkable – that at least when the book came out in 2011 – is that Dugard was well on the road to recovery.
In some ways I would like to read the next chapter, so to speak, of her life. And another side of me hopes she goes on to live a life without a spotlight on her or any member of her family.
I, too, felt compelled to read this story. I could not put it down. What a testament to the strength and will to live of this remarkable young woman.
I remember when she was taken…my own children are just a few years older.
That Jaycee not only survived, but thrived and eventually became the instrument of her own rescue, is a story that is both haunting and heartwarming.
Way to go, Jaycee. I hope you have found peace.
I was hesitant to read the book because I didn’t want to know all the ugly details of her ordeal. But I was amazed at how she dealt with it all. It was written honestly and yet the ugliness did not become the central feature of the book. Her indominitable spirit and wonderful will to survive are the main message that I took away from this book. Jaycee is an amazing person to have lived through what she did and not become embittered, overwhelmingly sad or vengeful. We can all learn something from her. Bless you Jaycee.
It is a beautifully written book of bravery and recovery. We wish for Jaycee a life of happy futures.
I was 6 years old when she was taken and went to the same school as her. I will never forget when that happened and when she was found! The community remembered her during every event and never stopped searching. This book is truly a testimony to her strength and courage. May God continue to give you strength Jaycee as you heal.