Product Description

Jadie never spoke. She never laughed, or cried, or uttered any sound. Despite efforts to reach her, Jadie remained locked in her own troubled world--until one remarkable teacher persuaded her to break her self-imposed silence. Nothing in all of Torey Hayden's experience could have prepared her for the shock of what Jadie told her--a story too horrendous for Torey's professional colleagues to acknowledge. Yet a little girl was living in a nightmare, and Torey Hayden responded in the only way she knew how--with courage, compassion, and dedication--demonstrating once again the tremendous power of love and the relilience of the human spirit.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #35479 in Books
• Published on: 1992-05-01
• Released on: 1992-05-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 320 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780380716814
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Publishers Weekly
Ultimately a testament to the powers of caring and commitment, this is the story of an traumatized eight-year-old who refused to speak due to sexual abuse and possible exposure to satanic rituals.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
YA-- Hayden's classroom of emotionally disturbed children consists of Reuben, a boy suffering from autism; Philip, born to an addict mother and now in foster care; Jeremiah, a foul-mouthed fighter; and Jadie, a girl who never speaks and walks with such hunched posture that she appears to be doubled over. Through patience and determination, Hayden gains Jadie's confidence and gets her to speak, but with her conversation come tales of sexual abuse and ritual acts too horrifying to believe. When Hayden goes to the authorities, the community is reluctant to accept the possibility that Jadie is telling the truth. There are three explanations for her macabre and graphic disclosures: she is either a psychotic child beyond help, a victim of satanic rituals, or she has been used, along with her sisters, to make pornographic films. The conclusion is frustrating because readers never learn which of the three speculations is the truth. Hayden does tell us that today Jadie is a happy and functioning adult and that is some comfort. --Katherine Fitch, Thomas Jefferson Sci-Tech, Fairfax County, VA
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From The Washington Post
"An amazing story!"

Customer Reviews

A SAFE PLACE WHERE THE GAG ORDER WAS LIFTED
Once again Torey Hayden has written an outstanding book about her work with children. This book is mainly about Jadie, who, at 8 is (s)electively mute, walks hunched over and expresses fears that initially seem bizarre.

At the opening of the book, Torey Hayden meets Jadie and her classmates after half term break. Within a short space of time during that first day together, Jadie broke her self imposed silence and spoke softly when asked a direct question. From that point on, Jadie's verbal progress is remarkable. A bright, expressive child, Jadie described a bizarre life outside of the classroom that certainly makes for a strong case for ritual abuse. Luckily Jadie was provided with a classroom environment in which she felt safe.

Jadie feared spiders because she believed they could hear her and "tell on her" if she divulged anything that could be construed as a breach of confidence. She explained her posture as a means of "keeping her insides from falling out;" she fears the number 6 and worries about her younger sister surviving her sixth birthday; she said adults she knew told her how at six one gains power and how people can hurt others with impunity; she describes drinking blood as "oily" and "slipping down." Ghosts and themes of death are trenchant; many of Jadie's early drawings are of ghosts and she said that she and her little sisters were ghosts at night. She also believed that a playmate who had allegedly died had become a ghost and that that child's ghost had gotten into her, Jadie.

Each fear she expressed can be traced to ritual abuse. In many cases, ritual abusers claim that spiders as well as insects spy on children and report anything the children might tell. Imbibing blood and other body fluids is often a cult activity and the number 6 has a long history of having dark magical properties attributed to it. Jadie's fear that her sister would not survive past that age appears to underscore this belief. Her strong aversion for Halloween is another good case in point as Halloween is considered a high holiday in cult circles. Jadie wanted no part of it.

Another point that leans towards ritual abuse was Jadie's sexual precocity and acting out. She described adult acts and even said how she and her sisters were so abused. Although Jadie had a good command of language from the telling, the question remains as to what really took place.

This is a very chilling book that will certainly leave indelible impressions upon the minds of all who read it. It is easy to make good cases for ritual abuse, but that is remains an open question. Jadie was a very brave and soldierly little girl who tried to protect her sisters and explain a part of her life that can at best be described as hazy and shadowy.

Dark, interesting, yet true
This is the first book I've read from author Torey Hayden. While I was reading, it reminded me of author Dave Pelzer's book, "A Child Called It." While the content may be similar in that children are affected by the actions of adults, Ghost Girl is clearly different. As Hayden went on to describe the dialogue and experiences Jadie had gone though, there were many times when I was forced to set the book down in order to contemplate what I was reading. The pictures I created in my mind made me sick to my stomach. I could not even fathom what Jadie had to endure. Yet Hayden had the compassion to do what was right, which was to just care. Hayden's caring is what saved Jadie and her sisters from continued abuse. Yet questions went unanswered: were Jadie's descriptions psychotic or from real experience dealing with the occult and Satanism? We may never know and I really don't think it is the main point of Hayden's book.

I think Torey Hayden's writing is complete and very intriguing. She has already become a favorite author for education and I look forward to reading her other books of children with special needs.

NOTE: While this book will keep the reader interested, it can be very dark, horrid, and at times, scary.

Great Story/Novel
Ghost girl by Torey Hayden shows how one person can change another person's life....forever. This is probably one of the most successful stories in showing a teacher's love and courage, Jadie would still be home getting abused. In this story Jadie is crying out to the world by being an "elective mute." While others ran away or gave up, this teacher, torey, got Jadie talking and communicating with her and opened her up to telling her the sick and horrifying life she was living in. Jadie was living in a pure, Satanist nightmare and Torey did the only thing she knew how to get this girl help and get her out of this nightmare; she fully succeeded in doing that. So Jadie wouldn't be abused anymore, she was placed in a foster home far away, and before she left, she gave Torey a piece of paper. "In my hand I still had the small piece of paper Jadie had given to me. Carefully pulling it open I found two words. Thank-you."