On 10 June 1991, eleven-year-old Jaycee Dugard was abducted from a school bus stop within sight of her home in Tahoe, California. It was the last her family and friends saw of her for over eighteen years. On 26 August 2009, Dugard, her daughters, and Phillip Craig Garrido appeared in the office of her kidnapper’s parole officer in California. Their unusual behaviour sparked an investigation that led to the positive identification of Jaycee Lee Dugard, living in a tent behind Garrido’s home. During her time in captivity, at the age of fourteen and seventeen, she gave birth to two daughters, both fathered by Garrido.
Dugard’s memoir is written by the 30-year-old herself and covers the period from the time of her abduction in 1991 up until the present. In her stark, utterly honest and unflinching narrative, Jaycee opens up about what she experienced, including how she feels now, a year after being found. Garrido and his wife Nancy have since pleaded guilty to their crimes.
Review by Twinsie Angie
I purchased this audio book.
Woof. This book. I hate to “rate” a book when it is about someone’s life experiences because how can I say oh that is only worth 3 stars or 5 stars. I have to say the way Jaycee laid herself out bare for this novel was something I didn’t think I expected her to do so fully.
I saw reviews where people criticized the way the book is written/told. I have to say I can understand but at the same time I see her reasoning. I loved her “Reflections” in the chapters to give us current thoughts and feelings about some of the trauma she endured at the hands of Phillips and Nancy.
This book I think I was somewhat prepared for but at the same time I wasn’t. I liked how she seemed to compartmentalize and tell us significant moments in her captivity. The first half of the book when she is telling about her SA, was difficult. Please know that it is not graphic, but she doesn’t shy away from the things that happened to her either.
The scene where she is finally able to say her name and she can’t for fear had me in tears for her. After 18 years she was able to be HER and not Snoopy or Alissa. It was emotional for sure.
I really hope she and her girls are in great places now as this book is 10 years old.
The kidnapping of Jaycee Lee Dugard occurred on June 10, 1991, when she was 11 years old. Dugard was abducted from a school bus stop within sight of her home in South Lake Tahoe, California. Searches began immediately after the kidnapping, but no reliable leads were generated. She remained missing for more than 18 years.
On August 25, 2009, convicted sex offender Phillip Craig Garrido visited the campus of UC Berkeley accompanied by two young girls. Their unusual behavior there sparked an investigation that led to his bringing the two girls to a parole office on August 26, accompanied by a woman who was then identified as Dugard.
Garrido, 58, and his wife Nancy Garrido, 54, of Antioch, California, were arrested for kidnapping and other charges; they pleaded guilty on April 28, 2011 to Dugard’s kidnapping and sexual assault. Law enforcement officers believe Dugard was kept in a concealed area behind Garrido’s house in Antioch for 18 years. During this time Dugard bore two daughters who were aged 11 and 15 at the time of her reappearance.
On June 2, 2011, Philip Garrido was sentenced to 431 years’ imprisonment; his wife received 36 years to life.
