Price: $28.95 - $26.06
(as of Oct 31, 2024 01:22:13 UTC – Details)
No one believed it could happen in their town. But it did.
Valarie Clark Miller seemed to have it all. Smart and beautiful with a wealthy, successful husband and growing family, Valarie appeared to be the picture-perfect Mormon wife. But it was all a façade. Inside, she was crumbling from the pressures of long-repressed memories of a childhood filled with sexual and physical abuse.
In Hometown Betrayal, author Emily Benedek brings you behind the closed doors of the remote Mormon community of Clarkston, Utah. With the help of hundreds of individual stories, she pieces together not only what happened to Valarie, but also the conditions and culture that allowed it. Hometown Betrayal culminates in an account of the Miller family’s fight to hold accountable the men—including the local cop– who abused Valarie and controlled the systems designed to look the other way.
<br><br> ASIN : B0D4KS4S4H <br> Publisher : Greenleaf Book Group (October 15, 2024) <br> Language : English <br> Hardcover : 314 pages <br> ISBN-13 : 979-8886452488 <br> Item Weight : 1.3 pounds <br> Dimensions : 1 x 6 x 9 inches <br>
Customers say
Customers find the book incredibly tough, amazing, and gut-wrenching. They also describe the story as heartbreaking and poignant.
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S.C. –
Everyone Should Read This Book
This was a gripping and riveting true story of a familyâs journey towards justice. Hope they all have found healing over the years. Very accurate portrayal of rural Utah in my opinion.
Quivers –
A tiny light in a dark epidemic
This book is essential, as it exposes the often-overlooked consequences of child sexual abuse and violence on child welfare, public health, and human rights. It is a crucial resource for colleges and universities that educate future leaders in social work, child protection, and human rights, offering a narrative that is rarely shared.The book gives voice to the countless untold stories of victims throughout history. It chronicles the devastating trauma experienced by a remarkable individualâa high-achieving student, athlete, wife, and mother.Statistically, most victims lack the financial resources to bring their stories to light. Valarie, however, had this opportunity, albeit tragically after her premature passing.Typically, victims do not have the means to make their stories heard, to engage highly respected attorneys, legal scholars, and seasoned FBI agents, or to undertake a comprehensive investigation involving thousands of hours of research, interviews, and writing by a renowned American journalist and author.This book serves as a beacon of hope, advocating for changes aimed at eradicating child sexual violence from our society.
John A Freeze –
Child Sexual Abuse Can Be Stopped
The courage it took for this family to honor Valarie many years after her death is remarkable. It did not take long for people from his community to already cast doubt and disbelief on Valarie all these years later, which is an indication that some things in that scary little community may never change. As Elizabeth Smart says in her written forward of the book, Valarie needed to be believed. The Latter Day Saints church sure needs to do a much better job of vetting their temple workers and missionaries if monsters like this were allowed to serve in the temple and go on missions. When more stories like this are brought out into the light, the darkness of child sexual abuse can be stopped if children can find a trusting adult and be believed. Tragically, Valarie could not find a trusted adult in her teen years, even in her own parents and church leaders. What a sickening shame. The author did a great job of covering the facts.
Troy Miller –
Heartbreakingly Beautiful. Justice â¤ï¸
This is an honest and heartbreaking memoir. Valarie is a hero. Her children are heroâs. Amazing read.
Nicole Maddock –
People not involved
What I want to know is why she used specific people’s names just because they lived in Clarkston. My family was mentioned and they did not give permission. They also had no impact on the story line. I don’t think you realize how putting someone’s name in a book connects them to the whole situation, which they had absolutely no connection to
Kate Madge –
Powerful, Disturbing and Gut-Wrenching
This is a very powerful and gut wrenching read. As a former Mormon familiar with Cache Valley and as an abuse survivor this book really resonates with my experience and those of other women in my family. The author approached this account with brutal honesty and sensitivity for the survivors.I hope this honest approach to generational trauma, to addressing the devaluing of girls/women in patriarchal culture and exposing how heinous silence to evil will resonate throughout generations.This book may be triggering for some readers. Approach this book with the understanding that is a factual account of evil and violence.Thank you to the author for her honesty and bravery in the telling. It is my sincere hope that the Millers find closure and peace with telling.
Amazon Customer –
Bringing to Light a Very Dark History of Abuse
This book breaks all of the barriers that have been set up to make woman fearful of bringing their sexual abuse to light. Highly recommended if you want to feel empowered to make a change. An incredibly tough read, given the hardships that Valarie had to endure at such a young age. Truly heartbreaking, yet inspiring to unmask and bringing to light the aftermath of childhood sexual abuse.
Jennifer Hansen –
A must read!
This is a poignant, beautifully written, devastating account of a young girlâs horrendous abuse, the trauma that followed, as well as the subsequent coverup by people in a position of power making the choice to lie and to protect the monsters that perpetrated such terrible crimes while in a position of power. Although itâs a tough read, itâs a must read. The conversation needs to be had and things still need to change. Start believing victims, and stop protecting abusers.