Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Review: "What Could Be Said About Pedris Road" by Ru Freeman

Ru Freeman's look into the mind and actions of a child dealing with sexual abuse in "What Could be Said About Pedris Road" is remarkable in the way it weaves into and out of the subconscious mind of a little girl who, from the outset, appears to be speaking to a counselor. The narration is rich in detail and the dialogue used to convey the voice of the main character is very well done.

My reaction to this piece was to want to spend more time talking to my children.  This story leaves the reader worried about all of the things children don't say...what the not saying of those things means for us all.  If you haven't read Ru Freeman, do...sentences like this one make it worth the time:

"The neighbor had once screamed her way into their bathroom with a gagging daughter and her mother had placed her mouth of the child's nose and mouth and sucked out wads of phlegm that she spat on the floor, large gelatinous yellow pods of mucous, and brought her back to life.  She had a birthday party when she was five and won a blue watering can in a school race when she came second and she had to yell the correct pronunciation of her name into the microphone next to the nuns."




For more, a link to the story online is here:

http://www.writecorner.com/EditorsChoices2007.asp


1 comment:

Malinda Words said...

I had forgotten this punishment-episode or rather had no reason to visit those momentarily traumatic moments of that time. Now I vaguely remember spending some time in that tiny space and playing with my sister. I do remember the phlegm-sucking incident. That little girl, suffering from cerebral palsy, passed away a few years ago I learned randomly a few days ago when randomly her father emailed me not knowing I was his neighbor and his children were our playmates. I don't remember the blue watering can but remember my sister's name being butchered by the nuns. She has remembered well and made me remember a lot of things. This story filled gaps in my childhood story I didn't even know existed. And, like you, it made me want to talk to my children more often.