Reviewed by Jennifer Senick for Readers' Favorite

Healing often begins with questions we never wanted to ask. The Darkness My Father Brought by Cathy Beck is a memoir about a woman who spends much of her life struggling with feelings and behaviors she can't fully explain. On the outside, Cathy remembers her childhood as being pretty typical. She loves her father very much. Her relationship with her mother is often strained. She grows into adulthood carrying emotional pain, relationship difficulties, and a constant sense that something is wrong. She eventually seeks help. It’s during her therapy sessions that some difficult hidden memories come to the surface. She gets glimpses of episodes linked to abuse she received as a child. For the first time, all the dots in her life start connecting. Cathy also talks about dynamics within her family, dissociative identity disorder, the difficult process of understanding what happened to her, and more. She digs deep, searching for answers because she wants to heal and reclaim her life.

When I finished The Darkness My Father Brought by Cathy Beck, I understood childhood trauma and dissociative identity disorder better than I had before. I don't usually choose books about abuse, but the cover really caught my attention. I wanted to know the story of the sweet-looking little girl there. I found myself hoping she would persevere. The author writes about traumatic experiences in an honest, clear way. I appreciated the parts involving therapy. I think it’s realistic that Cathy would become emotionally attached to her counselor. He gave her a safe place to talk and helped her work through painful memories. This book has a heavy subject matter, but it’s ultimately about healing, self-discovery, and hope. Anyone interested in survivor stories, recovery, or personal journeys will want to give this one a try. Trigger warnings for this book include child sexual abuse, sexual assault, and suicidal thoughts.