DAMAGED

No.1 Sunday Times Bestseller , 4th bestselling memoir of the year.
No 3 in the Top 50 Biography bestseller list.

Damaged is the true story of the relationship between Jodie and me. Jodie was the most disturbed and abused child I had ever looked after, and her behaviour was so difficult that she has seen off five carers in four months. When she first came into my home it didn’t begin well – she soiled herself, and then wiped it on her face, grinning wickedly. When she met my teenage children: Adrian, Paula and Lucy, she greeted each of them with a sharp kick. Later, when I asked them for their first impressions of Jodie, Adrian looked very guilty when he said that Jodie reminded him of Chucky, the doll from the horror film Child’s Play.

But Jodie trusted me and began to ‘disclose’, revealing details of the horrendous abuse she had suffered from the very people who should have loved and protected her. And although Jodie had been on the child protection register since birth, the Social Services were largely unaware of what had been going on. During the time Jodie was with me I formed a very close relationship with her, and I know from your emails that many of you felt you got to know Jodie from reading Damaged.

Reviews for Damaged:

“Heartbreaking.”
The Mirror

“A true tale of hope.”
OK!

“A truly harrowing read that made me cry – and angry.”
The Sun

“A hugely touching and emotional true tale.”
Star Magazine

“Foster carers rarely get the praise they deserve, but Cathy Glass’s book should change all that.”
First Magazine

“Damaged is the best book I’ve read for a year. I was extremely moved by it and also uplifted. I am looking forward to her next book.”
Warren, Auckland, NZ Times on Line

“Cathy Glass tells this terrible true story so poignantly that it cannot fail to move those who choose to read it. Thankfully, despite her confidence being knocked by Jodie’s case, she continues to foster to this day.”
Adoption-net