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Saving Jessie
Nothing could prepare Imogen Clark for the shock of discovering that her daughter was a heroin addict.
"I discovered that my daughter was a heroin addict at 7.25 pm on Tuesday, February 13, 1996... I'm not very proud of the next couple of hours. I would like to be able to write that I gathered her in my arms, soothed her obvious misery, reassured her that I loved her... but I was enraged. How could she do this to me? What was wrong with her? My child was not supposed to be on heroin."
The youngest child in a tightly knit, loving family, Jessie was intelligent, beautiful and talented--she did not fit the stereotype of the unhappy child who turns to drugs to escape pain. This astonishingly candid, deeply moving and inspiring account of a mother's battle to find the strength to deal with her daughter's heroin addiction confronts the reality of every parent's nightmare.
It is the story of an ordinary family whose lives were changed forever by heroin addiction. It will offer comfort and hope to others facing the same battle-- and reassure them that they are not alone. Jassie and her family have won the battle--for now. But it is a story without an 'We will struggle day by day for a very long time before it might become part of our family history and someone will be able to mention almost in passing, "Do you remember when Jessie was using?" '
"I discovered that my daughter was a heroin addict at 7.25 pm on Tuesday, February 13, 1996... I'm not very proud of the next couple of hours. I would like to be able to write that I gathered her in my arms, soothed her obvious misery, reassured her that I loved her... but I was enraged. How could she do this to me? What was wrong with her? My child was not supposed to be on heroin."
The youngest child in a tightly knit, loving family, Jessie was intelligent, beautiful and talented--she did not fit the stereotype of the unhappy child who turns to drugs to escape pain. This astonishingly candid, deeply moving and inspiring account of a mother's battle to find the strength to deal with her daughter's heroin addiction confronts the reality of every parent's nightmare.
It is the story of an ordinary family whose lives were changed forever by heroin addiction. It will offer comfort and hope to others facing the same battle-- and reassure them that they are not alone. Jassie and her family have won the battle--for now. But it is a story without an 'We will struggle day by day for a very long time before it might become part of our family history and someone will be able to mention almost in passing, "Do you remember when Jessie was using?" '
259 pages
First published January 1, 1999
11 people are currently reading
80 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 18, 2019
Intersting, touching, and worth the read, although it felt like there was no real closure at the end and left me with the feeling it may have been to early to write a book about jessies recovery. I didnt get the feeling she would have been in recovery very much longer, or if she even actually was by the end of this book. I felt like the parents really didnt know when she was using or when she wasnt alot of the time and even when it was stated that she had been clean for 9 months it didnt really seem as if they knew for sure. I did read an earlier review that Jessie was spoiled and wilfully using, and that mum may have been cashing in on the family tragedy by writting this book, and while i dont agree with either of those statements i do feel the mum was submissive and jessie was taking advantage of the countless chances she was given. Even after their house being robbed and the brother being stolen from when trying to help her and the continual lies. mum still calling her "darling" and speaking gently to her over any issue that arose just seemed ovely submissive, leaning towards enabling.
Having said that, im sure no one on earth could handle this situation perfectly and we would all deal with it and cope with it in the best ways we could and while id like to think i would be able to go the tough love approach and cut her off when enough was enough, i can imagine how terrifying and devestating it would be to cut her loose completely.. Im left feeling that mum deserves a medal for her perserverence and i really hope that jessie is ok today and that there was a happy ending for this loving family.
Having said that, im sure no one on earth could handle this situation perfectly and we would all deal with it and cope with it in the best ways we could and while id like to think i would be able to go the tough love approach and cut her off when enough was enough, i can imagine how terrifying and devestating it would be to cut her loose completely.. Im left feeling that mum deserves a medal for her perserverence and i really hope that jessie is ok today and that there was a happy ending for this loving family.
May 15, 2017
I read this book for no other reason than that it was my local reading group’s book choice for the month. The book’s genre does not appeal to me in any way, however, I did set about reading it in the hope that I might gain something from it, maybe even break down my prejudice of such books.
Not to be I’m afraid, if anything it increased my prejudice. It was everything I feared, possibly worse. To my mind it had no literary merit, was poorly constructed and had no relation to the title. The author gave no real insight into the distressing nature of addiction and the road that Jessie had to travel to become a recovering addict, which was demonstrated in our reading group, when the majority expressed their response to Jessie on the lines of ‘she needed to pull herself together and not be so self-centred/selfish/spoilt’, all believing that Jessie was purely wilful in taking drugs. Rather, the author dealt with her feelings, her emotions and responses, which left me with the impression that she was either attempting to exonerate herself or seeking to profit from her family's tragedy.
Not to be I’m afraid, if anything it increased my prejudice. It was everything I feared, possibly worse. To my mind it had no literary merit, was poorly constructed and had no relation to the title. The author gave no real insight into the distressing nature of addiction and the road that Jessie had to travel to become a recovering addict, which was demonstrated in our reading group, when the majority expressed their response to Jessie on the lines of ‘she needed to pull herself together and not be so self-centred/selfish/spoilt’, all believing that Jessie was purely wilful in taking drugs. Rather, the author dealt with her feelings, her emotions and responses, which left me with the impression that she was either attempting to exonerate herself or seeking to profit from her family's tragedy.
July 27, 2025
Heartbreaking story of addiction 💔
August 7, 2011
it was a good book
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews