A Child Called "It" (1995) (edit title/settings)

Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis edit see section history

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Summary edit see section history

Characters/People edit see section history

• David Pelzer: A young boy being terribly abused and neglected by his family.
• Catherine Roerva: David's mother who drinks and abuses David psychologically and physically. Refers to David as "it', and abuses him terribly. It is fairly evident that she has psychological problems.
• Dave Pelzer: David's father who is a firefighter. He is under a lot of stress in the household because of Catherine, and has no power in the household. Dave is abused by his mother and no one is willing to help.
• Russell: David's younger brother who is taught by Catherine to hate David.
• Stan: David's brother who is one year younger.
• Mr. Ziegler: David's home room teacher.
• Kevin: David's youngest brother who David loves.
• Ronald: David's other older brother who David is not to close to.
• Stephen: Eye Opener
• Shirley: This innocent child gets abused by his brutal mother,
• Clifford: One of David's bullies at school.
• Father: David's dad. He tries to help him as much as possible but there's not much he can do, David's abusive mother always wins. Calls David "Tiger".
• Miss Woods: teacher

Quotes edit see section history

• “I found that words like 'hope' & 'faith' were only letters, randomly put together into something meaningless - words only for fairy tales.”

  David Pelzer

• “Love and honor thy mother, for she is the fruit that gives thou life.”

• “You're all mine now”

  Mother

• “Mother was as solid as a rock. If anything, her drunkenness made it worst. Mother became more like a monster”

• “I no longer awoke in the mornings refreshed; I was tired and told myself that I had one day less to live in this world”

• “Get one thing straight, you little son of a b***h! There is nothing you can do to impress me! Do you understand me? You are a nobody! An It! You are nonexistent! You are a bastard child! I hate you and I wish you were dead! Dead! Do you hear me? Dead!”

• “I was nothing but an 'it'.”

• “Inside, my soul became so cold I hated everything.”

• “What little hope I had I was gone. I no longer had the will to carry on. I felt as if i were a man on death row, not knowing when my time would come.”

• “I believe it is important for people to know that no matter what lies in their past, they can overcome the dark side and press on to a brighter world.”

  Dave Pelzer

• “I am so alive.”

  Dave Pelzer

Setting & Locations edit see section history

• Daly City: This is the town, located in San Mateo County, where David grows up. The majority of theaction takes place within David’s home. He lives in a middle class neighborhood in an average house. The citystretches to the Pacific Ocean on the West and almost to the San Francisco Bay on the East. It shares a borderwith San Francisco.
• Chinatown, San Francisco: Where Mom took the boys on a day trip during the “good days.” She taught themabout the Chinese people and their culture. After returning home, she played Oriental music and decorated thehome with Chinese lanterns. For dinner she prepared Chinese food and gave the…….

First Sentence edit see section history

Table of Contents edit see section history

Themes & Symbolism edit see section history

• Child Abuse: Child abuse and a mother will to dominate the household. A boy become trapped inside his own home under the will of his mother. The father spends less time at home and more time at work so he has no control of what is going on.
• Ability of the human spirit to overcome remarkable odds.: The major theme of A Child Called “It” is the ability of the human spirit to overcome remarkable odds.Mother progressively treats David worse- yet he becomes stronger despite an escalating sense of isolation. Hesurvives.
• Deterioration: This can be seen with Mother, Father, the general relationships with in the family, and placessuch as the Russian River. This theme also supports the major theme of the ability of the human spirit. This isaccomplished by juxtaposing David with Mother and Father. Mother succumbs to her “odds.” Because Davidnarrates the story, we do not know what the motive is for her treacherous behavior; however, it is fair to assumeshe is acting in response to ill forces working in her life.
• Hero figures: This can be seen with Mom, Father, God, and David when he calls himself Superman. Mom isthe hero of David’s childhood; she abruptly becomes the villain of his youth. Father is David’s hero during thedays of Mother’s torture because while he is home, David is safe.
• Survival: Pelzer emphasizes early on the theme of survival: . “Mother can beat me all she wants, but I haven’t let her take away my will to somehow survive”

Series & Lists edit see section history

Followed by The Lost Boy.

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

1. Dave J. Pelzer (Author)

First Edition edit see section history

Classification edit see section history

• Library of Congress: Add the Library of Congress Classification.
• Dewey: 362.76092

Notes for Parents edit see section history

Definatly not a book for children. This was required reading for me in my masters of Ed program. Should be read by anyone seeking a degree in education.----I think that the book can be suitable for young adults. I, too, am a teacher and I read it to my students...minus the profanity. I'm having my 12 year old read it as well. My hope is to mold children that are more appreciative, empathetic, and sympathetic. ~~A. N. Fletcher, M. Ed.

Subjects edit see section history

• Books › Nonfiction › Social Sciences › Sociology › Abuse
• Books › Parenting & Families › Family Relationships › Dysfunctional Relationships
• Books › Parenting & Families › Family Relationships › Child Abuse
• Books › Biographies & Memoirs › Specific Groups › Special Needs
• Books › Biographies & Memoirs › Memoirs

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