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The Convent
When a fancy car pulls up outside six-year-old Marie's home in 1959, her dad tells her she is going on holiday. But little does she know she will not see her home again for four long years. Her family cannot afford to keep her at home.
Marie tells the story of how she was taken away from a poor, but happy and loving home life, to live in a convent - away from everyone and everything she holds dear. Her hair is bluntly chopped, her clothes are taken away, and her name is changed. Then a horrific ritual of physical, sexual and mental abuse begins.
Even after the convent closes, Marie is unable to share details of her suffering with anyone. But when a police investigation is launched, Marie realises that the time has come to tell the truth...
Marie tells the story of how she was taken away from a poor, but happy and loving home life, to live in a convent - away from everyone and everything she holds dear. Her hair is bluntly chopped, her clothes are taken away, and her name is changed. Then a horrific ritual of physical, sexual and mental abuse begins.
Even after the convent closes, Marie is unable to share details of her suffering with anyone. But when a police investigation is launched, Marie realises that the time has come to tell the truth...
173 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 23, 2020
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September 16, 2021
At first the book appeared to be a tale of abuse in an orphanage which whilst undoubtably true was not well told and left out a lot of detail. Later, I thought that it was the author remembering it as experienced by a six year-old and not adding the details that an adult knows as is usual in memoirs.
The orphanage was a harsh environment but not a particularly bad place. The children were clothed, fed, sent to the local school, could have visits and presents if they had family to visit them, were taken on holidays to the seaside. What made it abusive was one particular nun (in the book, researching this online, she wasn't the only one, but perhaps the very worst), Sister Isabelle O'Brian. She was an all-round cruel woman who was a sexual sadist and encouraged bullying. Step out of line or just be one Sister Isabelle's chosen victims and she would set the 'older girls' (always called that) to beat up Marie so badly that her teachers would notice and remark on it, but do absolutely nothing about it. Was this the only way these 'older girls' could escape abuse themselves I thought?
The sexual abuse was horrendous. In addition to the beatings, Sister Isabelle would violate, rape, the little girl - and many others - with a wooden coat hanger. Another little girl, one of the older ones, would come to Marie's room at night and, without any violence and almost in a spirit of friendship, and perhaps as a form of comfort to the bigger girl, who might have been aged up to 14, we aren't told, would also sexually abuse her.
What made me think it was a bit shallow was that none of the other nuns were mentioned. Usually the head of a convent is the Abbess, Mother Superior and not addressed as Sister so I wondered why she wasn't mentioned. Why Marie had no friends except one little boy 'in another playground'. And if her elder brother, in the boys' section of the orphanage was also abused. It seems likely as boys who ran away were later found and tied to their beds. Did the nuns only abuse girls? But at 6 Marie didn't know, so she didn't later write it, and if her brother ever discussed it afterwards, she left it out of the book. I applaud her honesty in writing what she knew as a child, but it leaves many questions that are usually filled in when an adult writes a memoir their time as a child.
Marie has a warped idea of her family life that persists in the book. Cognitive dissonance. She was one of 10 children (I think 7 at the time she was sent away) of extremely poor parents who could only afford a single bed for them all to sleep in, yet rhey had a baby every year. She said her mother had an undiagnosed mental illness of depression. I wondered if it was clinical or just the correct response to her life? Her mother also failed to bond with her children, she said. It seemed to me that her mother bonded very well with some of her children.
Catholicism ruled the home. As Marie says, "Every child however unwanted and unbudgeted for, was a gift from God. And so when their families spilled over it was, of course, the church who stepped in and took the extra ones away." She was an extra one.
Marie worshipped her father and said she was her father's favourite. She wasn't. She had a continual rivalry with a younger sister who said she was the favourite and she was prettier too and who was not sent to the orphanage. By the end of the book this rivalry has become extremely bitter and the father shows his hand.
Marie is married with children and goes back to help look after the younger children still at home. Her cigarette lighter, a gift from her husband, is missing and she sees it on her father's mantlepiece. She says she has been looking for it everywhere. Her father says, "I think Christine took a fancy to it, why not let her have it?" Marie says, "I was furious. There she was again coveting what was mine. If she couldn't have my place in the family, she wanted my lighter." Marie will forever not see that Christine was the favourite she did have Marie's place in the family, the one her parents did bond with and did not send away, and that she, well, she wasn't loved quite so much.
I come from a home where my mother didn't love me. It took me until my 30s when my grandmother, and two years later my father, both said apropos of nothing I can remember that my mother didn't love me. My grandmother said 'we could never understand why she didn't love you'. Her exact words. Marie will never in her lifetime face that no matter how much she loved her mother, gave her the excuse of depression, whether it was overwork, grinding poverty and an adherence to a religion that kept her that way, that was the cause of the depression.
She died at 42, Marie saying only, 'whilst my mum had possibly struggled to bond with her children.' Sometimes it is impossible to face the truth even as it is being written down. Marie is emotionally damaged by the experience of being given up to the orphanage, the terrible abuse there, and never having been reclaimed. She and her brother were returned to their parents only when the orphanage closed down. I suppose that's all her mnd could bear.
I researched the story in the media afterwards. There were many children who suffered as Marie did. It must be of some comfort to them that Marie wrote a book to expose it to the world. It was of no comfort that by the time the police decided to investigate, Sister Isabelle was dead. This thread of people talking about the orphanage is heart-breaking
It's an awful story, I am so sorry for Marie. She has had a good life with children of her own and a second loving husband, but she is very scarred, as interviews in the papers show even more than her words in the book. I wish her well, I wish her peace, I wish her joy in the family she brought up.
____________________
Notes on reading Not my usual sort of book. There have been so many stories about the abuse of children in convents in Ireland. These children are either orphaned or from very poor homes, that I thought it might be interesting after reading Stolen: A Memoir of a girl from a very wealthy family in the US placed in a therapeutic school that she, and many others, accuse of very similar sorts of abuse.
The orphanage was a harsh environment but not a particularly bad place. The children were clothed, fed, sent to the local school, could have visits and presents if they had family to visit them, were taken on holidays to the seaside. What made it abusive was one particular nun (in the book, researching this online, she wasn't the only one, but perhaps the very worst), Sister Isabelle O'Brian. She was an all-round cruel woman who was a sexual sadist and encouraged bullying. Step out of line or just be one Sister Isabelle's chosen victims and she would set the 'older girls' (always called that) to beat up Marie so badly that her teachers would notice and remark on it, but do absolutely nothing about it. Was this the only way these 'older girls' could escape abuse themselves I thought?
The sexual abuse was horrendous. In addition to the beatings, Sister Isabelle would violate, rape, the little girl - and many others - with a wooden coat hanger. Another little girl, one of the older ones, would come to Marie's room at night and, without any violence and almost in a spirit of friendship, and perhaps as a form of comfort to the bigger girl, who might have been aged up to 14, we aren't told, would also sexually abuse her.
What made me think it was a bit shallow was that none of the other nuns were mentioned. Usually the head of a convent is the Abbess, Mother Superior and not addressed as Sister so I wondered why she wasn't mentioned. Why Marie had no friends except one little boy 'in another playground'. And if her elder brother, in the boys' section of the orphanage was also abused. It seems likely as boys who ran away were later found and tied to their beds. Did the nuns only abuse girls? But at 6 Marie didn't know, so she didn't later write it, and if her brother ever discussed it afterwards, she left it out of the book. I applaud her honesty in writing what she knew as a child, but it leaves many questions that are usually filled in when an adult writes a memoir their time as a child.
Marie has a warped idea of her family life that persists in the book. Cognitive dissonance. She was one of 10 children (I think 7 at the time she was sent away) of extremely poor parents who could only afford a single bed for them all to sleep in, yet rhey had a baby every year. She said her mother had an undiagnosed mental illness of depression. I wondered if it was clinical or just the correct response to her life? Her mother also failed to bond with her children, she said. It seemed to me that her mother bonded very well with some of her children.
Catholicism ruled the home. As Marie says, "Every child however unwanted and unbudgeted for, was a gift from God. And so when their families spilled over it was, of course, the church who stepped in and took the extra ones away." She was an extra one.
Marie worshipped her father and said she was her father's favourite. She wasn't. She had a continual rivalry with a younger sister who said she was the favourite and she was prettier too and who was not sent to the orphanage. By the end of the book this rivalry has become extremely bitter and the father shows his hand.
Marie is married with children and goes back to help look after the younger children still at home. Her cigarette lighter, a gift from her husband, is missing and she sees it on her father's mantlepiece. She says she has been looking for it everywhere. Her father says, "I think Christine took a fancy to it, why not let her have it?" Marie says, "I was furious. There she was again coveting what was mine. If she couldn't have my place in the family, she wanted my lighter." Marie will forever not see that Christine was the favourite she did have Marie's place in the family, the one her parents did bond with and did not send away, and that she, well, she wasn't loved quite so much.
I come from a home where my mother didn't love me. It took me until my 30s when my grandmother, and two years later my father, both said apropos of nothing I can remember that my mother didn't love me. My grandmother said 'we could never understand why she didn't love you'. Her exact words. Marie will never in her lifetime face that no matter how much she loved her mother, gave her the excuse of depression, whether it was overwork, grinding poverty and an adherence to a religion that kept her that way, that was the cause of the depression.
She died at 42, Marie saying only, 'whilst my mum had possibly struggled to bond with her children.' Sometimes it is impossible to face the truth even as it is being written down. Marie is emotionally damaged by the experience of being given up to the orphanage, the terrible abuse there, and never having been reclaimed. She and her brother were returned to their parents only when the orphanage closed down. I suppose that's all her mnd could bear.
I researched the story in the media afterwards. There were many children who suffered as Marie did. It must be of some comfort to them that Marie wrote a book to expose it to the world. It was of no comfort that by the time the police decided to investigate, Sister Isabelle was dead. This thread of people talking about the orphanage is heart-breaking
It's an awful story, I am so sorry for Marie. She has had a good life with children of her own and a second loving husband, but she is very scarred, as interviews in the papers show even more than her words in the book. I wish her well, I wish her peace, I wish her joy in the family she brought up.
____________________
Notes on reading Not my usual sort of book. There have been so many stories about the abuse of children in convents in Ireland. These children are either orphaned or from very poor homes, that I thought it might be interesting after reading Stolen: A Memoir of a girl from a very wealthy family in the US placed in a therapeutic school that she, and many others, accuse of very similar sorts of abuse.
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October 5, 2021I did not read this edition. This is a duplicate review My review for the print edition doesn't appear at all in Community reviews. I have written to ask Help why but got a copy-and-pasted-not relevant reply (so I've written again). I thought I would post the same review on the Kindle edition and see what happened. It took a few days after writing to Support to get the review to appear. So this review is mostly a copy of the one that did appear when I changed the media to Kindle. This isn't the only one of my reviews suppressed or put back...
At first the book appeared to be a tale of abuse in an orphanage which whilst undoubtably true was not well told and left out a lot of detail. Later, I thought that it was the author remembering it as experienced by a six year-old and not adding the details that an adult knows as is usual in memoirs.
The orphanage was a harsh environment but not a particularly bad place. The children were clothed, fed, sent to the local school, could have visits and presents if they had family to visit them, were taken on holidays to the seaside. What made it abusive was one particular nun (in the book, researching this online, she wasn't the only one, but perhaps the very worst), Sister Isabelle O'Brian. She was an all-round cruel woman who was a sexual sadist and encouraged bullying. Step out of line or just be one Sister Isabelle's chosen victims and she would set the 'older girls' (always called that) to beat up Marie so badly that her teachers would notice and remark on it, but do absolutely nothing about it. Was this the only way these 'older girls' could escape abuse themselves I thought?
The sexual abuse was horrendous. In addition to the beatings, Sister Isabelle would violate, rape, the little girl - and many others - with a wooden coat hanger. Another little girl, one of the older ones, would come to Marie's room at night and, without any violence and almost in a spirit of friendship, and perhaps as a form of comfort to the bigger girl, who might have been aged up to 14, we aren't told, would also sexually abuse her.
What made me think it was a bit shallow was that none of the other nuns were mentioned. Usually the head of a convent is the Abbess, Mother Superior and not addressed as Sister so I wondered why she was mentioned. Why Marie had no friends except one little boy 'in another playground'. And if her elder brother, in the boys' section of the orphanage was also abused. It seems likely as boys who ran away were later found and tied to their beds. Did the nuns only abuse girls? But at 6 Marie didn't know, so she didn't later write it, and if her brother ever discussed it afterwards, she left it out of the book.
Marie has a warped idea of her family life that persists in the book. Cognitive dissonance. She was one of 10 children (I think 7 at the time she was sent away) of extremely poor parents who could only afford a single bed for them all to sleep in, yet she had a baby every year. She said her mother had an undiagnosed mental illness of depression - I wondered if it was clinical or just the correct response to her life - but says that she had a happy home life - and failed to bond with her children. It seemed to me that her mother bonded very well with some of her children.
Catholicism ruled the home. As Marie says, "Every child however unwanted and unbudgeted for, was a gift from God. And so when their families spilled over it was, of course, the church who stepped in and took the extra ones away." She was an extra one.
Marie worshipped her father and said she was her father's favourite. She wasn't. She had a continual rivalry with a younger sister who said she was the favourite and she was prettier too and who was not sent to the orphanage. By the end of the book this rivalry has become extremely bitter and the father shows his hand.
Marie is married with children and goes back to help look after the children. Her cigarette lighter, a gift from her husband, is missing and she sees it on her father's mantlepiece. She says she has been looking for it everywhere. Her father says, "I think Christine took a fancy to it, why not let her have it?" Marie says, "I was furious. There she was again coveting what was mine. If she couldn't have my place in the family, she wanted my lighter." Marie will forever not see that Christine was the favourite she did have Marie's place in the family, the one her parents did bond with and that she, well, she wasn't loved quite so much.
I come from a home where my mother didn't love me. It took me until my 30s when my grandmother, and two years later, both said apropos of nothing I can remember that my mother didn't love me. My grandmother said 'we could never understand why she didn't love you'. Her exact words. Marie will never in her lifetime face that no matter how much she loved her mother, gave her the excuse of depression, when it was overwork, grinding poverty and an adherence to a religion that kept her that way that was the cause of the depression.
She died at 42, Marie saying only, 'whilst my mum had possibly struggled to bond with her children.' Sometimes it is impossible to face the truth even as it is being written down. Marie is emotionally damaged by the experience of being given up to the orphanage and never reclaimed -the orphanage closed down and the children were returned to their parents - and the abuse that happened there. I suppose that's all her mnd could bear.
I researched the story in the media afterwards. There were many children who suffered as Marie did. It must be of some comfort to them that Marie wrote a book to expose it to the world. It was of no comfort that by the time the police decided to investigate, Sister Isabelle was dead. This thread of people talking about the orphanage is heart-breaking
It's an awful story, I am so sorry for Marie. She has had a good life with children of her own and a second loving husband, but she is very scarred, as interviews in the papers show even more than her words in the book. I wish her well, I wish her peace, I wish her joy in the family she brought up.
____________________
Notes on reading Not my usual sort of book. There have been so many stories about the abuse of children in convents in Ireland. These children are either orphaned or from very poor homes, that I thought it might be interesting after reading Stolen: A Memoir of a girl from a very wealthy family in the US placed in a therapeutic school that she, and many others, accuse of very similar sorts of abuse.
At first the book appeared to be a tale of abuse in an orphanage which whilst undoubtably true was not well told and left out a lot of detail. Later, I thought that it was the author remembering it as experienced by a six year-old and not adding the details that an adult knows as is usual in memoirs.
The orphanage was a harsh environment but not a particularly bad place. The children were clothed, fed, sent to the local school, could have visits and presents if they had family to visit them, were taken on holidays to the seaside. What made it abusive was one particular nun (in the book, researching this online, she wasn't the only one, but perhaps the very worst), Sister Isabelle O'Brian. She was an all-round cruel woman who was a sexual sadist and encouraged bullying. Step out of line or just be one Sister Isabelle's chosen victims and she would set the 'older girls' (always called that) to beat up Marie so badly that her teachers would notice and remark on it, but do absolutely nothing about it. Was this the only way these 'older girls' could escape abuse themselves I thought?
The sexual abuse was horrendous. In addition to the beatings, Sister Isabelle would violate, rape, the little girl - and many others - with a wooden coat hanger. Another little girl, one of the older ones, would come to Marie's room at night and, without any violence and almost in a spirit of friendship, and perhaps as a form of comfort to the bigger girl, who might have been aged up to 14, we aren't told, would also sexually abuse her.
What made me think it was a bit shallow was that none of the other nuns were mentioned. Usually the head of a convent is the Abbess, Mother Superior and not addressed as Sister so I wondered why she was mentioned. Why Marie had no friends except one little boy 'in another playground'. And if her elder brother, in the boys' section of the orphanage was also abused. It seems likely as boys who ran away were later found and tied to their beds. Did the nuns only abuse girls? But at 6 Marie didn't know, so she didn't later write it, and if her brother ever discussed it afterwards, she left it out of the book.
Marie has a warped idea of her family life that persists in the book. Cognitive dissonance. She was one of 10 children (I think 7 at the time she was sent away) of extremely poor parents who could only afford a single bed for them all to sleep in, yet she had a baby every year. She said her mother had an undiagnosed mental illness of depression - I wondered if it was clinical or just the correct response to her life - but says that she had a happy home life - and failed to bond with her children. It seemed to me that her mother bonded very well with some of her children.
Catholicism ruled the home. As Marie says, "Every child however unwanted and unbudgeted for, was a gift from God. And so when their families spilled over it was, of course, the church who stepped in and took the extra ones away." She was an extra one.
Marie worshipped her father and said she was her father's favourite. She wasn't. She had a continual rivalry with a younger sister who said she was the favourite and she was prettier too and who was not sent to the orphanage. By the end of the book this rivalry has become extremely bitter and the father shows his hand.
Marie is married with children and goes back to help look after the children. Her cigarette lighter, a gift from her husband, is missing and she sees it on her father's mantlepiece. She says she has been looking for it everywhere. Her father says, "I think Christine took a fancy to it, why not let her have it?" Marie says, "I was furious. There she was again coveting what was mine. If she couldn't have my place in the family, she wanted my lighter." Marie will forever not see that Christine was the favourite she did have Marie's place in the family, the one her parents did bond with and that she, well, she wasn't loved quite so much.
I come from a home where my mother didn't love me. It took me until my 30s when my grandmother, and two years later, both said apropos of nothing I can remember that my mother didn't love me. My grandmother said 'we could never understand why she didn't love you'. Her exact words. Marie will never in her lifetime face that no matter how much she loved her mother, gave her the excuse of depression, when it was overwork, grinding poverty and an adherence to a religion that kept her that way that was the cause of the depression.
She died at 42, Marie saying only, 'whilst my mum had possibly struggled to bond with her children.' Sometimes it is impossible to face the truth even as it is being written down. Marie is emotionally damaged by the experience of being given up to the orphanage and never reclaimed -the orphanage closed down and the children were returned to their parents - and the abuse that happened there. I suppose that's all her mnd could bear.
I researched the story in the media afterwards. There were many children who suffered as Marie did. It must be of some comfort to them that Marie wrote a book to expose it to the world. It was of no comfort that by the time the police decided to investigate, Sister Isabelle was dead. This thread of people talking about the orphanage is heart-breaking
It's an awful story, I am so sorry for Marie. She has had a good life with children of her own and a second loving husband, but she is very scarred, as interviews in the papers show even more than her words in the book. I wish her well, I wish her peace, I wish her joy in the family she brought up.
____________________
Notes on reading Not my usual sort of book. There have been so many stories about the abuse of children in convents in Ireland. These children are either orphaned or from very poor homes, that I thought it might be interesting after reading Stolen: A Memoir of a girl from a very wealthy family in the US placed in a therapeutic school that she, and many others, accuse of very similar sorts of abuse.
June 26, 2020
There are quite a few books to be found about both girls and boys being sent into homes or orphanages run by nuns. brothers or priests for various reasons. I bought this book because I was educated at a Catholic Primary School run by nuns who used canes liberally, followed at age eleven by a Catholic Grammar School also run by nuns in the forties. Although there was no physical abuse in the Grammar School, the emotional abuse was dreadful and constant. The mental suffering has stayed with me through my whole life, but was nothing compared with what this child endured.
The book is about a child living in Oldham who at six years old is sent into an orphanage run by nuns for reasons of extreme family poverty. Mairin is one of the eldest of a very large family of children living in extremely poor conditions. She thinks she is being sent on holiday, but in reality her parents send her to a convent for both girls and boys though the boys are separated from the girls. Many of these children are orphans, unwanted or the parents are unable financially to keep them. It is a terrible shock for this little six year old girl who thought she was going on holiday to find herself faced by such terrible conditions. She isn't even allowed to keep her own name and the Convent is overseen by an utterly vicious and sadistic nun. (Sister Isobel) So Mairin begins a life where she is treated with dreadful cruelty. The nun uses much older girls to mete out shocking physical, mental and sexual abuse to this small child. I have read similar books before but none so full of suffering as this one. She is given the name of Kibby (a shortened version of her surname) which breaks her heart as she feels she has no identity whatever. She is severely beaten and even sexually abused day and night by the older girls at the command of Sister Isobel mainly by wooden coat hangers..
This true story is horrific and the descriptions "Kibby" gives of her daily life and the suffering she endures whilst living in the convent are almost unbelievable. The personality of the nun in charge is unrelenting. More of her family also enter the Convent. When she does finally return to her home she cannot speak of her experiences because her mind has been affected so badly. Her only comfort is her doll. This booked shocked me. It has just recently been published and a police investigation was launched.
The book is about a child living in Oldham who at six years old is sent into an orphanage run by nuns for reasons of extreme family poverty. Mairin is one of the eldest of a very large family of children living in extremely poor conditions. She thinks she is being sent on holiday, but in reality her parents send her to a convent for both girls and boys though the boys are separated from the girls. Many of these children are orphans, unwanted or the parents are unable financially to keep them. It is a terrible shock for this little six year old girl who thought she was going on holiday to find herself faced by such terrible conditions. She isn't even allowed to keep her own name and the Convent is overseen by an utterly vicious and sadistic nun. (Sister Isobel) So Mairin begins a life where she is treated with dreadful cruelty. The nun uses much older girls to mete out shocking physical, mental and sexual abuse to this small child. I have read similar books before but none so full of suffering as this one. She is given the name of Kibby (a shortened version of her surname) which breaks her heart as she feels she has no identity whatever. She is severely beaten and even sexually abused day and night by the older girls at the command of Sister Isobel mainly by wooden coat hangers..
This true story is horrific and the descriptions "Kibby" gives of her daily life and the suffering she endures whilst living in the convent are almost unbelievable. The personality of the nun in charge is unrelenting. More of her family also enter the Convent. When she does finally return to her home she cannot speak of her experiences because her mind has been affected so badly. Her only comfort is her doll. This booked shocked me. It has just recently been published and a police investigation was launched.
May 5, 2020
This is a true story.
In 1959 Marie was just six years old. They lived in Oldham in a threadbare house. Marie had six siblings. One day, her dad tells Marie and her brother that they are going on holiday. He's actually taking them to a convent where her hair is bluntly chopped off, her clothes are taken away and her name is changed. It's not long before she's being mentally and sexually abused.
No one should have to live under these circumstances. The abuse these children suffered in the hands of the nuns is shocking and heartbreaking. Marie could not ring herself to tell anyone what had happened to her, or even when the home closed down. Thankfully she found the courage when the police started their investigation. No child should have to suffer this.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Mirror Books and the author Marie Hargreaves for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.
In 1959 Marie was just six years old. They lived in Oldham in a threadbare house. Marie had six siblings. One day, her dad tells Marie and her brother that they are going on holiday. He's actually taking them to a convent where her hair is bluntly chopped off, her clothes are taken away and her name is changed. It's not long before she's being mentally and sexually abused.
No one should have to live under these circumstances. The abuse these children suffered in the hands of the nuns is shocking and heartbreaking. Marie could not ring herself to tell anyone what had happened to her, or even when the home closed down. Thankfully she found the courage when the police started their investigation. No child should have to suffer this.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Mirror Books and the author Marie Hargreaves for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.
August 22, 2025
This was a bit of a difficult read, still worth reading. It is a heart breaking story of how a little girl Marie, in August 1959 ends up in a Convent, I would say the Convent of horror. It is written with courage and bravery,
Marie is part of the Kibblewhite family her parents Fred and Kathleen and her siblings, in a small house and extremely poor. How a little girl had to take care of her younger siblings since her mother continued to have a new baby each year. Kathleen her mother wasn't really able to cope and this did reflect in most of Marie's story. Marie was in the middle of a severly disfunctional family where the more she did to help the more was expected of her. Still when you read her story she so wanted to be in her family even the day when she was taken away to the convent with her brother Freddie. Thinking they were going on a holiday because their father said that's where they were going that day of August 1959.
The telling and descriptions of how little Marie was treated, abused by older children in the convent and of course by one of the nuns. As the story unravels more and more it gets to a point where you don't imagine that it could get worse, it does. You couldn't even imagine and when you put it in to perspective you wonder what was wrong with the adults? In my meaning they didn't act as responsible adults! How an abused girl suffers terribly as if she was hated, unwanted and treated worse than an animal. Marie tells how she felt so lonely without a single friend in the world and as soon as she talked or asked a question she was systematically abused, battered etc. She only wanted to go home even if she knew it would be to a home where the lack of essentials and of space for a large family would be the grim reality.
During the years away from home and being in the convent were a nightmare for Marie, she hardly ever heard from her parents and she kind of accepted that and, with the eyes of a child what else could she do?
Her parents didn't protect her and they didn't do what was necessary so that their children were placed in the convent. Marie was fighting hard even for her right to her name because she wasn't a Kibbie.
In the convent it was hard work for a little girl to me it would have been more like some kind of military camp. Here it was in a convent, a place of prayer not where someone is treated as badly as Marie.
It is also the story of how Marie when she's released back to her family home some three years later, still the same hardships at home. Her mother is incapable of seeing to the needs of her children and Marie is kind of a stand-in mother to her siblings. She continues school and still with as much work to help out at home.
Marie had to make a lot of sacrifices concerning her well being, so it was very sad. Marie carried on with her life working, getting a family of her own, even if she hesitated because of what she had endured. The years passed and Marie met the man of her dreams the one that would even "go find her all the way to Africa". The book ends in a way where Marie would get some kind of justice for the horrible convent years, as she wasn't the only child that had been put through similar things as her. All the traumatic memories and wanting to be a part of a family for who she was and be loved. I do understand that back then it was almost impossible to breach such horrible experiences, somewhat taboo and also it was felt a lot like shame.
I believe that Marie also wants to help others in similar sitations to prevent other children from getting as hurt as she was. I do admire the author that she decided to share her heartbreaking story.
Marie is part of the Kibblewhite family her parents Fred and Kathleen and her siblings, in a small house and extremely poor. How a little girl had to take care of her younger siblings since her mother continued to have a new baby each year. Kathleen her mother wasn't really able to cope and this did reflect in most of Marie's story. Marie was in the middle of a severly disfunctional family where the more she did to help the more was expected of her. Still when you read her story she so wanted to be in her family even the day when she was taken away to the convent with her brother Freddie. Thinking they were going on a holiday because their father said that's where they were going that day of August 1959.
The telling and descriptions of how little Marie was treated, abused by older children in the convent and of course by one of the nuns. As the story unravels more and more it gets to a point where you don't imagine that it could get worse, it does. You couldn't even imagine and when you put it in to perspective you wonder what was wrong with the adults? In my meaning they didn't act as responsible adults! How an abused girl suffers terribly as if she was hated, unwanted and treated worse than an animal. Marie tells how she felt so lonely without a single friend in the world and as soon as she talked or asked a question she was systematically abused, battered etc. She only wanted to go home even if she knew it would be to a home where the lack of essentials and of space for a large family would be the grim reality.
During the years away from home and being in the convent were a nightmare for Marie, she hardly ever heard from her parents and she kind of accepted that and, with the eyes of a child what else could she do?
Her parents didn't protect her and they didn't do what was necessary so that their children were placed in the convent. Marie was fighting hard even for her right to her name because she wasn't a Kibbie.
In the convent it was hard work for a little girl to me it would have been more like some kind of military camp. Here it was in a convent, a place of prayer not where someone is treated as badly as Marie.
It is also the story of how Marie when she's released back to her family home some three years later, still the same hardships at home. Her mother is incapable of seeing to the needs of her children and Marie is kind of a stand-in mother to her siblings. She continues school and still with as much work to help out at home.
Marie had to make a lot of sacrifices concerning her well being, so it was very sad. Marie carried on with her life working, getting a family of her own, even if she hesitated because of what she had endured. The years passed and Marie met the man of her dreams the one that would even "go find her all the way to Africa". The book ends in a way where Marie would get some kind of justice for the horrible convent years, as she wasn't the only child that had been put through similar things as her. All the traumatic memories and wanting to be a part of a family for who she was and be loved. I do understand that back then it was almost impossible to breach such horrible experiences, somewhat taboo and also it was felt a lot like shame.
I believe that Marie also wants to help others in similar sitations to prevent other children from getting as hurt as she was. I do admire the author that she decided to share her heartbreaking story.
May 5, 2020
This is a true story.
In 1959 Marie was six years old. They lived in Oldham in a threadbare house. Marie had six siblings. One day, her dad tells Marie and her brother that they are going on holiday. He's actually taking them to a convent where her hair is bluntly chopped off, her clothes are taken away from her and her name is changed. Its not long before she's being mentally and sexually abused.
No one should have to live under these circumstances. The abuse these children suffered in the hands of the nuns is shocking and heartbreaking. Marie could ot bring herself to tell anyone what had happened to her, or even when the home closed down. Thankfully she found the courage when the police started their investigation. No child should have to suffer this.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Mirror Books and the author Marie Hargreaves for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.
In 1959 Marie was six years old. They lived in Oldham in a threadbare house. Marie had six siblings. One day, her dad tells Marie and her brother that they are going on holiday. He's actually taking them to a convent where her hair is bluntly chopped off, her clothes are taken away from her and her name is changed. Its not long before she's being mentally and sexually abused.
No one should have to live under these circumstances. The abuse these children suffered in the hands of the nuns is shocking and heartbreaking. Marie could ot bring herself to tell anyone what had happened to her, or even when the home closed down. Thankfully she found the courage when the police started their investigation. No child should have to suffer this.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Mirror Books and the author Marie Hargreaves for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.
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June 18, 2024I think it is obvious that this is not a happy tale, but I do not shy away from anything if it is true.
I thought I had heard the worst of things, but was not prepared for what happened to this small child.
I am not Catholic myself, but always treated nuns and priests with deference and respect from when I was a child, believing that they must be wonderful people without faults.
I really do not know what to write. Am I glad that I listened to this audiobook? I am honestly not sure, therefore I cannot give it a rating at this moment.
I thought I had heard the worst of things, but was not prepared for what happened to this small child.
I am not Catholic myself, but always treated nuns and priests with deference and respect from when I was a child, believing that they must be wonderful people without faults.
I really do not know what to write. Am I glad that I listened to this audiobook? I am honestly not sure, therefore I cannot give it a rating at this moment.
March 21, 2024
What a heartbreaking story. This is a true story from 1959 when a six year old was taken to live in a convent. The abuse the children suffered is shocking and the harsh environment was abysmal. It is a horrific story with a lot of suffering. The book was well written but hard to process. Very heartbreaking and disturbing. A 4 star rating from me.
November 16, 2020
What a horrific life for a little girl. A family who can't cope with their huge brood of children yet continue to pop them out every year, despite being in poverty. As a result of this, Marie and her brother are shipped off to a convent to be looked after. But the people in charge are inhumane and cruel to her. Well written, I read this in one sitting.
October 28, 2025
Heel mooi maar heel erg heftig boek. Ik mag echt in mijn handen knijpen voor de fijne jeugd die ik gehad heb. 🩷
July 30, 2020
"This is a true story of surviving an evil nun's care home from hell"
This book is well written and easy to read. I've read it very quickly. However, it was hard to process everything. It is all so disturbing and heart-breaking. I felt uneasy and so sad reading this story. She also covers her life after the convent, which had left her traumatized. Marie is so brave to come out with her horrific experiences at the convent and also to talk about her life. The fact that she has forgiven the nun makes her such a strong person. Marie has proven the nun wrong and found happiness, but most importantly she always had a family and was never an orphan! This book has left me in tears 💔😔
If you enjoy Non-Fiction then I definitely recommend this book. If you want to read more on this story, I will include a few links articles where not only Marie spoke out but also other women that suffered the abuse.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/ar...
https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/...
This book is well written and easy to read. I've read it very quickly. However, it was hard to process everything. It is all so disturbing and heart-breaking. I felt uneasy and so sad reading this story. She also covers her life after the convent, which had left her traumatized. Marie is so brave to come out with her horrific experiences at the convent and also to talk about her life. The fact that she has forgiven the nun makes her such a strong person. Marie has proven the nun wrong and found happiness, but most importantly she always had a family and was never an orphan! This book has left me in tears 💔😔
If you enjoy Non-Fiction then I definitely recommend this book. If you want to read more on this story, I will include a few links articles where not only Marie spoke out but also other women that suffered the abuse.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/ar...
https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/...
April 29, 2020
This book was well written and overall I thought it was enjoyable. However, at times I found this book was hard to get through because of the sheer monotony and audacity of the situations that Marie went through. This book is definitely not a light read, with heavy scenes of emotional, physical and sexual abuse. In the end, the author depicts her life with honesty and her final revelations were both truthful and direct.
Thank you to Netgalley and Mirror books for a copy of this arc in exchange of an honest review.
Thank you to Netgalley and Mirror books for a copy of this arc in exchange of an honest review.
June 9, 2022
This book is so heartbreaking, the experiences that Marie endured are things that no human should ever have to endure, she tells the tale of not only the horrific years she spent at the convent at the hands of the nuns but also the impact it had on her when she left, and going into later life. My heart truly goes out to her and all the other children who were in the same position.
November 5, 2022
⚠️ TW: mental illness, domestic violence, bullying, violence, child abuse, sexual abuse, paedophilia, child death, misogyny ⚠️ If you are looking for a heartbreaking tale of trauma and bravery then this one is for you. This book follows the story of Marie and her life in Oldham growing up in poverty in the 1950's before being taken into a Roman Catholic Convent that was overseen by a cruel and sadistic nun. During her time in the Convent a ritual of physical, sexual and mental abuse took place that shaped her life forever. And years later when a police investigation was launched she realises that the time has finally come to tell the truth. This book broke my heart from the very beginning and just kept hitting to the point I had to take breaks while reading which is rare for me because it was just too much in some parts and anyone that has read this book will understand. It is incredibly hard to review but I think it is a vital story of things that once went on in some children's homes and while sickening and vile it is told so well. Overall, I highly recommend this read but please check the TW's because it really hit me hard.
January 2, 2022
A pretty hallowing and sad memoir of sexual abuse faced whilst being placed into a convent orphanage in the UK in the ‘50s.
Marie was taken from her family despite having parents , and placed into this Catholic nun-led orphanage for over 3 years. It’s possible that she was taken due to the family’s extreme poverty, or because of her mother’s struggles with depression and having ten children.
Marie writes this memoir in recent years, reflecting on her experiences at the hands of Sister Isabel O’Brian only now she can feel like she can talk about it, and since others have come forward as part of a police investigation into the abuse many children faced at this orphanage.
The experiences described are truly awful and saddening, left an impression, and yet the book reads quickly, I finished it in 2 nights.
Reminds me very much of another book I’ve read recently called ‘The Hospital’ about Aston Hall and the abuse faced there. Readers who enjoyed this may also enjoy reading that.
Marie was taken from her family despite having parents , and placed into this Catholic nun-led orphanage for over 3 years. It’s possible that she was taken due to the family’s extreme poverty, or because of her mother’s struggles with depression and having ten children.
Marie writes this memoir in recent years, reflecting on her experiences at the hands of Sister Isabel O’Brian only now she can feel like she can talk about it, and since others have come forward as part of a police investigation into the abuse many children faced at this orphanage.
The experiences described are truly awful and saddening, left an impression, and yet the book reads quickly, I finished it in 2 nights.
Reminds me very much of another book I’ve read recently called ‘The Hospital’ about Aston Hall and the abuse faced there. Readers who enjoyed this may also enjoy reading that.
August 7, 2022
Hemsk bok om ett fattigt litet barns uppväxt. Hur hennes familj väljer att skicka iväg henne och hennes bror, säkert i tron på ett bättre liv, men blev nog precis tvärtom.
Hur den katolska kyrkan igen och igen framträder som en plats där barn inte räknas annat än för de vuxnas vinning.
Hur den katolska kyrkan igen och igen framträder som en plats där barn inte räknas annat än för de vuxnas vinning.
February 13, 2024
I'm struggling to put my thoughts into words after this one.
On one hand, it's a harrowing true tale about Marie's experience with childhood religious abuse. I don't want to take anything away from how brave it is to share a story such as this one. She uses her voice to shine a light on the atrocities she and many others sadly lived.
On the other hand, I didn't think the book was particularly well written. Their are plot points that are dropped seemingly without an ending, moments which we read to a halfway point. The narrative regularly jumps about in a way that's jarring to read.
A little longer on the editors desk would have helped, in my opinion.
On one hand, it's a harrowing true tale about Marie's experience with childhood religious abuse. I don't want to take anything away from how brave it is to share a story such as this one. She uses her voice to shine a light on the atrocities she and many others sadly lived.
On the other hand, I didn't think the book was particularly well written. Their are plot points that are dropped seemingly without an ending, moments which we read to a halfway point. The narrative regularly jumps about in a way that's jarring to read.
A little longer on the editors desk would have helped, in my opinion.
February 7, 2021
The content is extremely harrowing, what an awful ordeal. Unfortunately the writing was so poor and there was so much repetition, I became fed up with the book.
April 2, 2025
Book review of the covent
With Marie Hargreaves, Ann and Joe Cusack
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Review may contain spoilers ⛔️
I would have loved to finish The Convent sooner, but due to complex hand disabilities, it took me far longer than I had intended. Despite the delay, I couldn’t wait to share my thoughts on this incredible book.
It’s difficult to say I “enjoyed” books like this because of the raw and heavy subject matter, but I’m always drawn to how open and emotionally honest these stories are. The Convent is no exception. It is a powerful and heartbreaking true account that lingers long after you turn the last page.
Published as a Sunday Times Bestseller, The Convent tells the story of six-year-old Marie, who, in 1959, is taken away from her loving, though poor, home under the guise of a “holiday.” Her father tells her she’ll return soon, but in reality, she will not see her family again for four long years. Marie is sent to a convent where she experiences unimaginable horrors. Her hair is chopped, her clothes are taken, and her name is changed. The brutality that follows is not just physical but sexual and mental, leaving Marie with deep, lasting scars.
Even after the convent is closed, Marie can’t share the depths of her suffering with anyone. But when a police investigation is launched years later, she finds the courage to finally tell the truth about her painful experiences.
Though The Convent was published in April 2020, the importance of these true accounts stands the test of time. Stories like Marie’s are invaluable, as they reveal the hidden traumas of our world. I give it 5 stars without hesitation. This book never loses its emotional depth or its impact.
There is one question that lingers for me: Why was it only Marie, her eldest brother Freddie, and her baby brother Johnny who were sent to the convent, while the rest of the family, struggling with poverty, remained at home? It’s something I’ll never fully understand. Maybe it was purely down to their ages that the older two could understand better than the younger ones?
While I don’t think Marie will ever achieve full closure, her ability to forgive is a powerful aspect of her journey. In a sense, her forgiveness offers a kind of peace, even if complete closure remains elusive.
If you enjoy powerful memoirs like this one, join us in the Fostering, Memoirs, and Fiction Book Club on Facebook, where over 2,000 members share their love of books and discuss them in a supportive, positive community! 📚
With Marie Hargreaves, Ann and Joe Cusack
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Review may contain spoilers ⛔️
I would have loved to finish The Convent sooner, but due to complex hand disabilities, it took me far longer than I had intended. Despite the delay, I couldn’t wait to share my thoughts on this incredible book.
It’s difficult to say I “enjoyed” books like this because of the raw and heavy subject matter, but I’m always drawn to how open and emotionally honest these stories are. The Convent is no exception. It is a powerful and heartbreaking true account that lingers long after you turn the last page.
Published as a Sunday Times Bestseller, The Convent tells the story of six-year-old Marie, who, in 1959, is taken away from her loving, though poor, home under the guise of a “holiday.” Her father tells her she’ll return soon, but in reality, she will not see her family again for four long years. Marie is sent to a convent where she experiences unimaginable horrors. Her hair is chopped, her clothes are taken, and her name is changed. The brutality that follows is not just physical but sexual and mental, leaving Marie with deep, lasting scars.
Even after the convent is closed, Marie can’t share the depths of her suffering with anyone. But when a police investigation is launched years later, she finds the courage to finally tell the truth about her painful experiences.
Though The Convent was published in April 2020, the importance of these true accounts stands the test of time. Stories like Marie’s are invaluable, as they reveal the hidden traumas of our world. I give it 5 stars without hesitation. This book never loses its emotional depth or its impact.
There is one question that lingers for me: Why was it only Marie, her eldest brother Freddie, and her baby brother Johnny who were sent to the convent, while the rest of the family, struggling with poverty, remained at home? It’s something I’ll never fully understand. Maybe it was purely down to their ages that the older two could understand better than the younger ones?
While I don’t think Marie will ever achieve full closure, her ability to forgive is a powerful aspect of her journey. In a sense, her forgiveness offers a kind of peace, even if complete closure remains elusive.
If you enjoy powerful memoirs like this one, join us in the Fostering, Memoirs, and Fiction Book Club on Facebook, where over 2,000 members share their love of books and discuss them in a supportive, positive community! 📚
August 27, 2020
Review can be found on my blog here: https://booksonthebookshelf.wordpress...
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Thank you to the publisher for the eARC of this title via NetGalley.
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A gripping, bone-chilling, harrowing, heart-breaking true story of the cruel and sad abuse and treatment of a young girl named Marie. The story follows Marie as she is brought to a convent by her family, as they can no longer afford to keep her at home, and tells about the way she is treated while in the convent. Many shocking and heart-breaking revelations and stories are told in this book, and you will find yourself mad, sad, and will most likely cry as you read along.
I loved reading this story and reading about Marie’s experiences and what she had to endure over the years. I literally could not put this book down once I began reading, and was on the edge of my seat the entire way through as I flipped through the pages to see what happened next. I cannot imagine what poor Marie went through and I felt so sad for her and the children in the convent. It pulled at my heart strings to read the horrific, unthinkable things that little Marie and many more children in this convent went through and how they were treated.
My words cannot do justice for how amazing this book truly is. All the stars in the world for this amazing novel!!
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Thank you to the publisher for the eARC of this title via NetGalley.
....
A gripping, bone-chilling, harrowing, heart-breaking true story of the cruel and sad abuse and treatment of a young girl named Marie. The story follows Marie as she is brought to a convent by her family, as they can no longer afford to keep her at home, and tells about the way she is treated while in the convent. Many shocking and heart-breaking revelations and stories are told in this book, and you will find yourself mad, sad, and will most likely cry as you read along.
I loved reading this story and reading about Marie’s experiences and what she had to endure over the years. I literally could not put this book down once I began reading, and was on the edge of my seat the entire way through as I flipped through the pages to see what happened next. I cannot imagine what poor Marie went through and I felt so sad for her and the children in the convent. It pulled at my heart strings to read the horrific, unthinkable things that little Marie and many more children in this convent went through and how they were treated.
My words cannot do justice for how amazing this book truly is. All the stars in the world for this amazing novel!!
April 21, 2020
Heart-breaking tale.
This was a quick page turner-but by no means an easy read. Unthinkable how even the hardest circumstances could lead to a family deciding this was the best for their children.
It's 1959, and Marie is just six years old, and at primary school. The family lived in a small rented house in Oldham. They had no carpets, hardly any furniture, it was all very basic, bad conditions, a lack of everything. Times were very hard-and the family kept on growing. Pregnancy after pregnancy, mum having had seven children in as many years. So sad that the rows and chucking stuff about were frequent, so the kids thought it was just as normal, they were used to it.
Imagine the excitement when young Marie is told she and her brother are going on a holiday. So sad that they're lapping up the journey, having never been in a car before, or on holiday. They have no idea what really awaits them. How terrible when they find out they are being discarded and sent to a convent, at the mercy of the nuns who are supposed to be taking care of them, but they do anything but. Treatment is terrible, abuse is all they get. So sad and heart-breaking. Gripping reading as you wonder how much longer her family will leave her here, will they come back for her, will things get better? A powerful story, and circumstances which no one should have to go through.
This was a quick page turner-but by no means an easy read. Unthinkable how even the hardest circumstances could lead to a family deciding this was the best for their children.
It's 1959, and Marie is just six years old, and at primary school. The family lived in a small rented house in Oldham. They had no carpets, hardly any furniture, it was all very basic, bad conditions, a lack of everything. Times were very hard-and the family kept on growing. Pregnancy after pregnancy, mum having had seven children in as many years. So sad that the rows and chucking stuff about were frequent, so the kids thought it was just as normal, they were used to it.
Imagine the excitement when young Marie is told she and her brother are going on a holiday. So sad that they're lapping up the journey, having never been in a car before, or on holiday. They have no idea what really awaits them. How terrible when they find out they are being discarded and sent to a convent, at the mercy of the nuns who are supposed to be taking care of them, but they do anything but. Treatment is terrible, abuse is all they get. So sad and heart-breaking. Gripping reading as you wonder how much longer her family will leave her here, will they come back for her, will things get better? A powerful story, and circumstances which no one should have to go through.
May 5, 2020
It feels odd to say whether I enjoyed this book or not, given that it's about something so shocking. (I did enjoy it for the record!)
This book was fantastically written. Marie Hargreaves writes it as a story rather than just a constant stream of information.
This book is an extremely harrowing read and is at times incredibly difficult to read. Hargreaves doesn't go into too much detail about certain things in this book but she gives enough to highlight the terrible and grim ordeal the children at the convent had to go through.
This book had me in tears and even though I knew from the description of the book what to expect, the story was still very emotional and hard hitting. I think this book will definitely need some trigger warnings at the beginning.
Overall this book was a gritty and emotional portrayal of a woman's real life experience. I enjoyed this read despite it being about such a harrowing subject.
I would like to thank Mirror Books, Netgalley and the author Marie Hargreaves, the bravest woman I've ever read for allowing me to read it early.
This book was fantastically written. Marie Hargreaves writes it as a story rather than just a constant stream of information.
This book is an extremely harrowing read and is at times incredibly difficult to read. Hargreaves doesn't go into too much detail about certain things in this book but she gives enough to highlight the terrible and grim ordeal the children at the convent had to go through.
This book had me in tears and even though I knew from the description of the book what to expect, the story was still very emotional and hard hitting. I think this book will definitely need some trigger warnings at the beginning.
Overall this book was a gritty and emotional portrayal of a woman's real life experience. I enjoyed this read despite it being about such a harrowing subject.
I would like to thank Mirror Books, Netgalley and the author Marie Hargreaves, the bravest woman I've ever read for allowing me to read it early.
February 7, 2025
To most mother's giving one let alone multiple of your children away because you can't afford to care for them seems unbelievable. But, that is the situation that Marie and her little brother find themselves in when they are sent off on their 'holidays' by their mother and father. They find themselves at a convent ran by Catholic nuns and are submitted to unimaginable horrors. All Marie, (renamed Kimby by the nuns), wants is for her mother to come and take her home. She waits and waits, to no avail. Both her parents visit her and walk away again leaving her there, time after time.
What she goes through at the nuns hands leaves her with emotional scars that she has to live with for the rest of her life and they impact her in the most horrific ways, leaving her unable to bond with her own children, despite her loving them deeply. I won't spoil the book but I was willing her to find happiness and peace. This is not a story, it is real life and that makes it even more heartbreaking.
What she goes through at the nuns hands leaves her with emotional scars that she has to live with for the rest of her life and they impact her in the most horrific ways, leaving her unable to bond with her own children, despite her loving them deeply. I won't spoil the book but I was willing her to find happiness and peace. This is not a story, it is real life and that makes it even more heartbreaking.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 21, 2022
My heart goes to Marie. As young as six years old, she and her brothers were sent to a convent as a result of poverty.
Marie grew up in a family with a disadvantageous socioeconomic background. Her mum suffered from mental health issues during and after pregnancy, and both of these factors often led to parental conflicts from time to time.
Life in the convent was not easy. Marie was brutally beaten by the elderly girls for simple reasons such as asking questions and stating that her name was not Kibby. All these abuses were not only permitted but also instructed by Sister Isobel,the nun who was supposed to protect and take care of the children. Apart from being abused , the children were made to work like slaves and also were sexually molested.
As a mother myself, it is hard for me to read this book. It is heartbreaking to imagine the sufferings that these children had to endure.
A big five 🌟for Marie for exposing the abused to the world.
Marie grew up in a family with a disadvantageous socioeconomic background. Her mum suffered from mental health issues during and after pregnancy, and both of these factors often led to parental conflicts from time to time.
Life in the convent was not easy. Marie was brutally beaten by the elderly girls for simple reasons such as asking questions and stating that her name was not Kibby. All these abuses were not only permitted but also instructed by Sister Isobel,the nun who was supposed to protect and take care of the children. Apart from being abused , the children were made to work like slaves and also were sexually molested.
As a mother myself, it is hard for me to read this book. It is heartbreaking to imagine the sufferings that these children had to endure.
A big five 🌟for Marie for exposing the abused to the world.
February 19, 2023
The story was interesting. This just isn’t my type of book. I found myself frustrated that she never accepted that her parents behavior was also abusive. Her continued excuse making for the hellish life she lived because of them made it difficult for me. But the way the book was written and the story telling kept me engaged, which says a lot! The actual time in the orphanage is not as much of the story as you would expect. That part I find kind of vague. There is no explanation for why the nun had such an extreme hatred directed at this one girl, seemingly from the minute she walked in. There was no real explanation about why she was sent to the orphanage, and definitely no conversation that was ever had with her parents. If she was sent due to poverty and the 8 other children in the home, then why would she get sent home with no change in the financial status but not there are 10 other children? All in all an interesting read, just with some questions and frustrations.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 12, 2020
An absolutely heartbreaking memoir of Marie Hargreaves’ traumatic childhood and how she came to cope with this in later life. This book takes us through Marie’s life of poverty and being sent away to live in a convent for three years of her childhood, the scars of this time never leaving her. The true strength of Hargreaves as well as many other children like her shines through the words of this book. A truly mind blowing read!
February 16, 2022
I read this in 2 days, could not put it down. I needed to find out what happened next and so desperately wanted Marian to find peace and happiness. Very well written book.
October 19, 2024
The shame was never yours Marie.
September 14, 2025
Heel disturbing verhaal. Helaas waargebeurd.
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December 8, 2025This is so devastatingly sad I was distraught reading this
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