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Kristin Louise Duncombe

Goodreads Author

Born

in Washington,DC, The United States

Website

http://www.kristinduncombe.com

Genre

Memoir, Travel, Psychology

Member Since

November 2012

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/kristinlouiseduncombe

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Kristin Louise Duncombe is an American therapist, life coach, and writer who has lived in Europe since 2001. She has based her career on working with international and expatriate families following her own experience of growing up overseas as the child of a US diplomat, and having lived internationally most of her adult life.

Her first book Trailing: A Memoir, chronicles her experiences becoming a “trailing spouse” and following her Médecins Sans Frontières husband to the frontlines of disaster and disease in East Africa. Her second book, Five Flights Up: Sex, Love, and Family (from Paris to Lyon) provides a compelling glimpse into love, family, and sex in France, and a modern family grappling with the inevitable downs - and ups - of buildin ...more

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Kristin Louise Duncombe’s books

Average rating: 4.08 · 710 ratings · 121 reviews · 3 distinct works • Similar authors

	Trailing 3.93 avg rating — 525 ratings — published 2012 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Five Flights Up: Sex, Love, and Family, from Paris to Lyon 4.32 avg rating — 104 ratings — published 2016 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Object: A Memoir of Childhood Abuse and a Shocking Cover-Up at the Highest Ranks of Government 4.73 avg rating — 81 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

* Note: these are all the books on Goodreads for this author. To add more, click here.

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Published on April 12, 2016 04:24

Kristin is Currently Reading

Kristin Duncombe rated a book it was amazing

OBJECT: A Memoir of Childhood Abuse and a Shocking Cover-Up at the Highest Ranks of Government

by Kristin Louise Duncombe (Goodreads Author)

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Kristin Duncombe said: " FROM INDIE READER:

OBJECT: A Memoir of Childhood Abuse and a Shocking Cover-Up at the Highest Ranks of Government is about the sexual abuse of a young girl by a trusted member of a close-knit community of workers and families at the U.S. Embassy in th FROM INDIE READER:

OBJECT: A Memoir of Childhood Abuse and a Shocking Cover-Up at the Highest Ranks of Government is about the sexual abuse of a young girl by a trusted member of a close-knit community of workers and families at the U.S. Embassy in the 1980s. In this beautifully crafted and intimate memoir, Kristin Louise Duncombe reveals the effect the abuse had on her and how its repercussions profoundly impacted her adult relationships and self-esteem. Told in a split narrative that switches between a child’s perspective of her abuse and an adult’s attempt to come to terms with (and overcome) trauma, the book is both brutally frank and deeply touching. The devastating impact on Duncombe was compounded by a cover-up instigated by the State Department, which saw her abuser simply transferred back to the United States, unpunished and unprosecuted.

Duncombe’s family moved to the Ivory Coast in 1979, as her father had gotten a job at the U.S. Embassy. Though her surroundings initially felt like a culture shock, the young girl soon adapted to her new home—somewhat cocooned by the insularity of the Embassy and its provision of familiar home comforts. One day her world changed forever when what began as a normal afternoon of sport and relaxation took a horrific turn. Duncombe’s deft prose conveys the scene as she spent time at the pool with friends and familiar adults: “Mrs. Mulcahy swam lazy laps, her red flyaway hair pinned in a bun with bobby pins. Still, long tendrils escaped, sticking to her face like a beard. She craned her neck to keep her face from getting wet, and her bright red lipstick and pale skin made her look like an exotic sea animal.”
What happened next comes as a shock to both the reader and the young girl. By skillfully conjuring an initial picture of playfulness and tranquility, Duncombe’s recollection of her abuse is brutally efficient in revealing the callousness of her abuser. His opportunism, his brazenness.

Duncombe’s subsequent attempts to process what is being done to her and her inability to speak out are poignantly recalled: “It was like knowing the lyrics to a song, but only inside my head; when I tried to sing them out loud, they disappeared.” In fact, that notion of being unable to process and explain her situation extended well into her adult life—as is made clear in the parallel narrative set in the late 2000s, which also touches on the rise of the #metoo movement. With OBJECT, Duncombe is finally able to give a voice to her silenced childhood; it is both inspiring and empowering.

OBJECT: A Memoir of Childhood Abuse and a Shocking Cover-Up at the Highest Ranks of Government is a powerful memoir of childhood abuse and its aftermath. Kristin Louise Duncombe’s lyrical prose provides a compelling narrative, charting the shock and trauma of her experience before arriving at a place of liberation and optimism.

~Kent Lane for IndieReader ...more "

Oct 31, 2024 01:03AM · see review

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Kristin Duncombe rated a book it was amazing The Guilty Can't Say Goodbye: Three women. Three secrets. Three broken lives. by Mariam Navaid Ottimofiore (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
The author tells an interesting and multilayered story about the overlapping lives of three expat women. If you are an expat yourself you will find yourself in this book; if you are not an expat, you will enjoy the armchair travel and learning more a ...more
Mar 13, 2025 09:56AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Guilty Can't Say Goodbye by Mariam Navaid Ottimofiore. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Guilty Can't Say Goodbye by Mariam Navaid Ottimofiore <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Kristin Duncombe rated a book it was amazing In My Boots: A Memoir of Five Million Steps along the Appalachian Trail by Amanda K. Jaros (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
IN MY BOOTS is a poignant memoir about the author's "thru-hike" (meaning, completed, which not many manage) of the Appalachian Trail, when she was a young adult, trying to make sense of her life. I was offered an advance readers copy of this book and ...more
Jan 04, 2025 04:24AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of In My Boots by Amanda K. Jaros. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — In My Boots by Amanda K. Jaros <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Kristin Duncombe made a comment on Wagrobanite’s review of Object: A Memoir of Childhood Abuse and a Shocking Cover-Up at the Highest Ranks of Government " I’m sorry you didn’t care for the book; the fact that it’s all connected is exactly the point! "
Nov 22, 2024 02:14PM · see review
Kristin Duncombe rated a book it was amazing OBJECT: A Memoir of Childhood Abuse and a Shocking Cover-Up at the Highest Ranks of Government by Kristin Louise Duncombe (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
FROM INDIE READER: OBJECT: A Memoir of Childhood Abuse and a Shocking Cover-Up at the Highest Ranks of Government is about the sexual abuse of a young girl by a trusted member of a close-knit community of workers and families at the U.S. Embassy in th ...more
Oct 31, 2024 01:03AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of OBJECT by Kristin Louise Duncombe. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — OBJECT by Kristin Louise Duncombe <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Kristin Duncombe is currently reading OBJECT: A Memoir of Childhood Abuse and a Shocking Cover-Up at the Highest Ranks of Government by Kristin Louise Duncombe (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 06, 2024 11:43PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of OBJECT by Kristin Louise Duncombe. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — OBJECT by Kristin Louise Duncombe <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Kristin Duncombe has read Trailing by Kristin Louise Duncombe (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jul 06, 2024 08:02AM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Trailing by Kristin Louise Duncombe. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Trailing by Kristin Louise Duncombe <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Kristin Duncombe rated a book it was amazing The Lucky Widow by Samantha Verant (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I have read all of Samantha Verant's books, so I will start this review by saying bravo to the author; she has done it again! Though she has written across genres (memoir, to culinary fiction, to her latest, a psychological thriller), her books alway ...more
Jun 19, 2024 06:30AM · 1 like · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Lucky Widow by Samantha Verant. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Lucky Widow by Samantha Verant <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">

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