Book Review: The Lost Boy (4 Stars)

The Lost Boy continues Dave Pelzer's story of his child abuse. On March 5, 1973, he was rescued from the vindictive and abusive relationship with his alcoholic mother. A Child Called 'It' chronicles Pelzer's story from ages 4-12 and is told from a child's point of view. The Lost Boy continues this story  as Pelzer goes through his teenage years in foster care, which is ages 12-18.

It's during these seven crucial years Pelzer has to learn how to socialize with other children. He learns how to be a kid through hard lessons such as getting involved with the wrong crowd. He's trying so hard to fit in, while his defiant behavior doesn't stop him from fighting back. In Daley City, he stole candy bars from a local grocery store. The crowd of children out of the store cheering him on encouraged him to steal the candy, until he was caught by one of the child's fathers.

He has been isolated for so long and dealt with so much abuse, he spends most of foster care asking 'Why?' Why did my mother treat me the way she did? Each visit from 'The Mother' causes David to panic because he is certain she is coming to take him back. On each visit, she sits emotionless and her tone is cold. David is finally freed from her grip at the trial that releases him to the state of California. He's in shock of never seeing his family again.

His social workers dread calls from 'The Mother' when she reports that Pelzer was 'terrorizing the neighborhood' while riding his bike. Multiple times she threatens for the social workers to 'handle the boy' or she would find someone that will. Each foster family encourages Pelzer to be on his best behavior, but peer pressure is too much for David. On a few occasions he had to go to 'The Hill' which was juvenile hall. He got great reports from the staff at juvenile hall, but the outside influences were too great to deny him temptation.

While in foster care, David learns how to work hard. Lillian, one of his many foster mothers, is the first to give him an opportunity to earn money. After David's mother and brothers drop off David's damaged bike, he wants to fix it up. Lillian gives him this opportunity by paying him to do chores. A strong work ethic develops in David, which is a main reason he has chosen to go into the air force and follow in his father's footsteps. In A Child Called 'It', David's father was his 'Superman.'

Throughout the book, Dave goes through five foster families. However, it's Harold & Alice which Dave feels comfortable enough to call Mom & Dad. Throughout this book, you're going to cry, worry and celebrate the courage of Dave Pelzer. He learns tough lessons, but he triumphs through them. Towards the end, he starts to entertain the idea of becoming an airman in the air force. This trilogy of books is an important story to tell and it has a message of survival. It's the courageous story of a child who has survived violence and broken the chain. It's a story of hope.