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| Scott Heim Author of Mysterious Skin |
NEIL: What happened that summer took a huge part of me. No one ever made me feel that way before or since. I was special.
Unidentified Woman: Neil, you were eight years old.
NEIL: Yeah, but he really loved me. I mean, there were other kids sometimes, but I was his prize.
To many, this type of confession from an abuse survivor is counter-intuitive and even scary. Who doesn't want to feel like a "prize?" But, as all thereapists who deal with abused children will testify, this is a very common sentiment that victims must face and work through.
Mysterious Skin (by Scott Heim) was first published in 1995 and is somewhat autobiograhpical. It chronicles the lives of two teenage boys who are dealing in very differing ways with the abuse that they both suffered at the hands of their little league baseball coach. After being adapted into a play, it was made into a film by the same title and directed by Gregg Araki in 2005.
In this compelling interview NPR, both Heim and Araki share how complex the issue of child abuse can be; especially when the child takes on the guilt and self-loathing that often plagues them as a result of the violence they have experienced.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW
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