Thursday, September 5, 2024

Object: A Memoir by Kristin Louise Duncombe -- BOOK BEGINNINGS


BOOK BEGINNINGS ON FRIDAYS

Object: A Memoir of Childhood Abuse and a Shocking Cover-Up at the Highest Ranks of Government by Kristin Louise Duncombe

Thank you for joining me for Book Beginnings on Fridays. Please share the opening sentence (or so) of the book you are reading this week. You can also share from a book that caught your fancy, even if you are not reading it right now.

MY BOOK BEGINNING
You are twelve years old; it is dusk on a weekday evening, and your parents are drinking gin and tonics in the living room.
-- from Object: A Memoir of Childhood Abuse and a Shocking Cover-Up at the Highest Ranks of Government by Kristin Louise Duncombe.

I like those kinds of openings that put you immediately into the scene. And don't worry, if you are like me an are not a fan of second-person narration, Duncome drops it after the short Prologue and switches to first-person narration for the rest of the book.  

Object is the difficult story of Duncome's sexual abuse as a preteen, the coverup that protected the perpetrator, and how she dealt with the trauma as she grew older. It's powerful stuff! 

I loved Duncome's two earlier memoir about moving to Africa and then France, Trailing and Five Flights Up. She is an excellent storyteller, even when sharing the most personal details. 


YOUR BOOK BEGINNINGS

Please add the link to your Book Beginnings post in the box below. If you share on social media, please use the #bookbeginnings hashtag.

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THE FRIDAY 56

The Friday 56 is a natural tie-in with Book Beginnings. The idea is to share a two-sentence teaser from page 56 of your featured book. If you are reading an ebook or audiobook, find your teaser from the 56% mark.

Freda at Freda's Voice started and hosted The Friday 56 for a long, long time. She is taking a break and Anne at My Head is Full of Books has taken on hosting duties in her absence. Please visit Anne's blog and link to your Friday 56 post.

MY FRIDAY 56

-- from Object:
Over time, I became terrified people could tell, just by looking at me, that I was hiding something. I became animated, funny, big, to distract them from the truth about me.
FROM THE PUBLISHER'S DESCRIPTION
Object is a coming-of-age story twice told: once when a little girl grows up too fast, and a second time, in middle age, when the woman she has become finally heals. This important book is a fierce indictment of the silencing of girls and women in the United States and abroad.