Paperdolls: A True Story of Childhood Sexual Abuse In Mormon Neighborhoods

by April Daniels, Carol Scott

Incest survivor April Daniels repressed the memory of her abuse by her father and neighbors for over twenty years. Reared in a devout Mormon home, she hadn't yet reached kindergarten before she was sexually molested by her father. The years that followed brought repeated incidents of rape and humiliation--many of them at the hands of her older brothers and their friends.

Psychologist Carol Scott, a grandmother, came face-to-face with the sexual molestation of her grandchildren by her son-in-law and his friends. The shocking revelation that April and Carol's grandchildren were abused by the same person is one of the real-life dramatic twists in Paperdolls.

Paperdolls blasts light into the dark corners of one of society's most pervasive and disturbing problems to uncover a powerful story of love, courage, and healing.

Genres: Nonfiction, Mormonism

231 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1992

About the author

April Daniels is the co-author of Paperdolls: Healing From Sexual Abuse in Mormon Neighborhoods (1992) and Paperdolls: A True Story of Childhood Sexual Abuse in Mormon Neighborhoods (1993).

Newly released: Paperdolls & Cowboy Boots.

Paperdolls & Cowboy Boots: Healing from Sexual Abuse in Mormon Neighborhood and the True Events of the Subsequent Decades.

Reviews

[Heidi Franke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Was in a therapy group with the author. Smart great women.

[Iamshadow · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book to read to show the insidiousness of generational and community-wide child abuse, of a culture and a social structure that allows abuse to not only grow and spread but to thrive. If there's one thing I wish, it's that this book laid in harder to the church itself, and how the permissiveness of the church at all levels allowed predators easy access to large numbers of children without any measures taken to prevent it. The silencing of victims and 'forgiveness' by church leaders (from the bishopric right up to general authorities including an apostle) of predators allowed child abuse to run rampant, unchecked. Victims were told not to tell 'lies', wives were told to 'trust' their abusive husbands, and above all, families were counseled against going to the police. The blood and loss of innocence of these children is on the church's heads.

The church aside, this is a book that's as much a snapshot of the 'CSA recovery' movement in the eighties and early nineties as much as anything. It has that feel about it, of that time, when there was a lot of momentum, a lot of proactive therapy and groups going on, and people talking about child abuse in a very dynamic way, before the 'false memory' scaremongering that came later.

It's a good book to read to show different complexities of multiplicity, too. April describes two of her other selves, but talks of many of the members of her support group having others, too. If you take the theory of structural dissociation as a guide, MPD/DID and DDNOS/OSDD are far from being the only forms, just the most complex. People who've been through trauma and have dissociative features can have other selves, even in simple PTSD. Though some of April's support group probably met the criteria for (then) MPD or DDNOS, I doubt all did. Many of them would have probably had simple or complex PTSD, with one or more EPs, or even had none, and just felt free to use 'inner child' work to connect with their younger selves. I think April herself may have fit the secondary structural dissociation bracket, since her other selves seemed to be fairly basic trauma holders/memory keepers, though there was one incident in her account that made me wonder if she actually fits more as a complex, tertiary system. At one point, when she's exploring her multiplicity, her car is broken into, and the journal she'd been documenting this in is stolen from under the seat. Why? It wasn't a purse, just a book, and the idea of someone out there, reading it, terrifies her. I wondered, reading her account of this incident, if perhaps a protector self had broken into the car and stolen the book to keep the information from being shared, an action of which April was amnesic. It just seemed too strange a thing to happen, otherwise, but if it was taken by a protective self, it makes sense. April was telling, April was writing things down, specifically about a self who took the worst of the abuse, April knew this self's name and had written it down. A protective self being triggered to remove the threat posed by the journal seems the most believable thing, rather than a random thief stealing a journal from under a seat which they would have no way of knowing was even there, concealed as it was.

So, it's a book that feels 'of its time', but there's still a lot of value in it, particularly for people looking for works that deal with generational abuse, works that deal with community, church or culture based abuse networks, works that focus on child abuse and child pornography rings, works that talk about processing recovered memories or repressed memories triggered in adulthood, and works that highlight complicity of church, culture, or community in abuse.

[Chelsea Oaks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heartbreaking, moving, and so thought-provoking. Not an easy read, but I love the story of hope at healing.

[Kcatie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intense. My heart hurt reading this book, but I hope other survivors can find healing and speak up to end this abuse.

[Angela Hobbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't really give this a star review. I wanted to give it 1 because it's disturbing to read and icky. Definetely a one time read. But it is a true story and heartbreaking and needs to be known. I am amazed this person can forgive her accusers. I can't imagine facing family members when memories of sexual abuse from them resurface. Much less, forgive! That deserves 5 stars in itself and I applaud her for it. As for the other anonymous voice, she speaks of a daughter who hosted touching parties with her husband and several children in the neighborhood came forward. This accused pervert is the daughter of the prophet in the lds church. President Nelson. It's strange and hard to believe. Why would her and her husband do such horrible things? Where did they learn it from? Are all these little children liars? The therapist was accused of putting false memories in their heads, which I feel is far fetched when there were so many and from different families. The therapist still practices. She has not lost her license over this. I looked her up. The case was thrown out because statute of limitations, or a cover up from the church? We will never know.

[Phyllis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think about this book on and off and wish I had kept my copy. I read it many years ago when it was first published. It’s the only book I’ve ever read from cover to cover in one sitting. The recent news about sexual abuse by Catholic priests in Baltimore prompted me to think of the book again. The repulsive behavior of Church members and leaders must be continually addressed and brought out into the open. The offenders need to be held accountable and imprisoned as appropriate for their horrifying acts. Bravo to April and her therapist and others who have had the courage to expose these heinous monsters.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

very graphic, not for the queasy, interesting.

[Shay · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's not that I had anything against this book it was just horrifying to me. However, I do think it's something people need to read about and I admire April for writing it.

[April Daniels · Rating 5 out of 5]

What can I say? I wrote it as a gift to other survivors. My message: If I can do it, anyone can. You can heal. You can live a meaningful life.

[Sid · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished this book. Although hard to read, it is a must for people who truly care about sexual abuse and the truth. I now know the real names of many of the people who were involved, some are now deceased, Carol in 2019 & Loraine in 2020, Hank in 1995 and his mother in 2016. However, I do not yet know who April is. I would like to know her real name. I applaud her courage, her ability to forgive and heal from such atrocities as family incest. God at times sends the strongest spirits to families to break the cycles of abuse. To me, April had the strength even when she didn't think she did.

As for the then apostle's daughter & son in law, Brenda & Richard Miles (current LDS prophet, Russell M Nelson family), it disgusts me that they got away with their alleged abuse and how law enforcement and the church dropped the ball on the matter. I do believe the children, their mother and grandmother. Kids do not make this kind of stuff up with those kinds of wounds contrary to what Brenda would like people to believe and snuff out to save her reputation. God knows the truth and it doesn't matter how much they get away with, they can't get away with it with God. This could've been repented of, cleaned up and taken care of over 30 years ago but remains still a festering wound left unhealed because the perpetrators refuse to take accountability. It makes one wonder why and what kind of people choose to lie to keep their false facade to the church & world. It's disappointing but as I said, until it is acknowledged, it will haunt them no matter the face they try to present. Truth will always come to the surface.

I heard there is another book, Paper Dolls & Cowboys concerning the decades that follow. Is that really coming out soon? Keep us posted April.

[Ellie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was written by two women whose lives were connected by surviving sexual abuse, including abuse by the same perpetrator. One author experienced the abuse firsthand, and the other author helped her grandchildren after they were abused. Though not easy to read due to my anger at what happened, it's a book that was nearly impossible to put down. It was inspiring learning how these women fought for justice, restored their self-respect and learned to empower themselves against oppression and abuse. What's more, they had to grapple with the issue of forgiveness and moving on with their lives, while doing the hard work to counter PTSD, depression and trust issues. Note to those who may be triggered by such stories: the authors put sensitive passages in separate paragraphs with italics so these sections are easy to skip. The firsthand abuse stories are told in a child's voice, both innocent and authentic.

[🕊 · Rating 5 out of 5]

tw: csa. a must-read.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like "Shattered Silence," this book is very difficult to get through. Very graphic descriptions of a horrific childhood where several families in her ward were involved in a sex ring - adults and teens would abuse children in a variety of abhorrent ways. This book is written via journal entries in a stream-of-consciousness style from the main author and also her trusted friend and confidant a generation older whose children were also involved in all the horror. These people have been through hell and I really admire the strength and courage it took "April" to share her stories, especially as I read her very personal accounts of how hellish the process of remembering and learning to work through the memories is. Luke 17:2 isn't strong enough.

[Rabbit {Paint me like one of your 19th century gothic heroines!} · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 4.5