Don’t Make Me Go Back, Mommy: a child’s book about satanic ritual abuse
Sanford & Evans
1990
Ok, ok, you begged for more pictures from this book, so I’ll give you a few more. Yes, I believe this is the most commented post for those of you keeping score.
Ick.
Holly
If you need to read the first part again for context click here for part 1.
So the circle… its a bit like Vegas
WOW. This is wrong on so many levels, yet I also feel like I want to keep reading (but not to a child of course)!
What the…..?!!!!!
Geez, the illustrator did no research, did they? A right side up Pentagram is Pagan and Wiccian symbols. For Satanism it’s to be inverted/upside down.
If you’re going to do a book on Satanism at least get the symbols right!
It’s so disjointed, poorly illustrated and written, while being simultaneously horrifying, that I am completely repulsed.
Well, with Doctor Abe Lincoln helping out, these evildoers will be quickly taken care of!
“A right side up Pentagram is Pagan and Wiccian symbols. For Satanism it’s to be inverted/upside down. ”
To the people who wrote this book, they’re the same thing. I almost expect Jack Chick to be involved.
Wow. These pages had me trying to remember if I’ve ever seen picture book in the horror genre. Anything I can come up with is either more silly than scary or would be better called a chapter book. I grew up on some pretty freaky children’s books (my mom is German, so my childhood horrors included “Max und Moritz” and “Der Struwwelpeter”), but I think this might be more horrific than any of those.
Wait, wait, wait. This book is about third parties, like daycare centers, forcing kids into satanic rituals?! I thought they meant it was the parents doing it! Has this EVER happened? I could see parents getting sucked into a cult and taking their kids along for the ride, but a stranger’s kids?
Yup, see the McMarten Preschool Trial. It was part of the whole Satanic panic of the 80’s and early 90’s.
There’s also the case of the West Memphis Three. There was a grisly murder in a small town and three teenagers were unjustly convicted of the crime based on the evidence that they were “Satanists.”
Go look up the McMartin Preschool Trial. I firmly believe that’s where this book draws it’s inspiration from. Satanic rituals were suppose to be part of Bucky’s rape of the kids.
Even so, it seems a rather disturbing topic for a children’s book. My mom always read me picture books before bed – I’m not sure I’d have been able to sleep in my own bed after being read this story.
I don’t think it’s meant for children in the long run. I think this is a book for parents so they can recognize their child’s signs of being sexually abused.
It *has* happened that groups such as daycare centres have been accused of Satanic ritual abuse. (See MoxieHart’s example, above, and also the article at CrimeLibrary.com: http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/criminal_mind/psychology/mcmartin_daycare/1.html) There was a great deal of hysteria regarding this in the late 80’s – early 90’s, but no real proof, just memories that were manufactured under stress.
So the real answer to your question, Jake, despite the provided links, is NO. NO, third parties, like daycare centers, have NEVER forced kids into satanic rituals. Thus the book needn’t been written, needn’t been written to whoever it’s target audience was, and needn’t exist on any library’s shelf.
Abuse did occur in preschools, many of them.
Check out Sexual Abuse in Day Care: A National Study
http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2sql/content_storage_01/0000019b/80/1c/82/61.pdf
Oh. My. God. I am having repressed memories surfacing. I have seen this book …. I think as a child … not even joking either (but also not traumatized).
This is absolutely horrifying.
I can’t believe that this got published!
This book was actually in a library?
From the updated version of this book: “Doctor, she has terrible nightmares about the righteous Fred Phelps, she won’t eat any food that isn’t organic, and she becomes upset when I ask her to wear a dress. SOMETHING IS WRONG! She even replaced the dog with a cat this week. Look at her now, pretending to be a man in that suit! I think something bad happened to her at that community co-op play group.”
– “Hurts of Childhood/Parental Fears: Liberalism Strikes!”
Hahahahahaha! That is a good one.
Some research learned that the book comes from the “Hurts of Childhood series”. Other promising titles are: For Your Own Good: A Child’s Book about Living in a Foster Home, It Won’t Last Forever: Living with a Depressed Parent. I wonder whether this last book ends with the parent being cured or with a suicide…
Don’t forget ‘It Must Hurt a Lot: A Book about Death and Learning and Growing’, and ‘David Has AIDS’.
Really though, these books are clearly meant to only be given to/read by children who are already dealing with the real life situation. My parents gave us a picture book about divorce after they announced their own, not before.
About the pentagram, the publishers probably didn’t want to run the risk of calling upon the Prince of Darkness by accident.
“the movie star room”
Gawd awfulness.
Again, I’m totally baffled as to the target audience for this book. I’m guessing it was sort of a “preaching to the choir” book, aimed at people who were already predisposed to believe that daycares were rife with satanism.
Uh, in that first picture, are they about to string up one of those kids?!?
There was this little accident in daycare…
i can’t wait for the upcoming book that helps kids deal with this book: “Don’t Make Me Read It Again Mommy – A Child’s Book About Inappropriate Early Childhood Books.”
Thanks for bringing this gem to my attention. And, how about that, my metro system has it! I just reserved it. Someone must’ve slipped some “magic juice” into my coffee. I’ll give my best to Old Scratch from the ALB crew.
I just checked and am appalled to see that our library system has this book. Thankfully it’s at the local community college though – I’m assuming (hoping) they don’t have as many small children reading books there.
Ack, a library in our local consortium has this book! It’s in their picture book section – awful cataloging, anyone?
I’m really tempted to have it ILL’ed over here; but I’m the children’s librarian, and I don’t want the parents to see me with it and get the wrong idea about what goes down at story time.
She even bit the dog! Horrors!
Thanks for sharing this book. It’s amazing.
Don’t Make Me Go Back, Mommy: a child’s book about satanic ritual abuse
Sanford & Evans
1990
Sorry, This is the one that seems to be based on McMartin case. I’d like to see the whole book to see for sure. Daniel Ryder and Maury Terry both did extensive research on their books. I remember Terry being rather appalled at the publisher’s choice for a cover. The author does NOT design the cover…
Sorry-but they are all based on REAL events.
I just checked this book: Don’t Make Me Go Back, Mommy: a child’s book about satanic ritual abuse
Sanford & Evans
1990
online and they want from $40-$100 for it, used.
Funny I never heard about it…I’d sure like to see it.
McMartin was our case and though the medaia went crazy with made up stories, sadistic sexual abuse did take place at the preschool. Oh, and I am the parent who spearheaded the search for tunnels-which were found under the foundation of the building.
I am sick of defending this. People would rather believe the pedophiles-so good luck with that.
The earth is FLAT I tell ya! Why oh WHY won’t they listen?
No one can deny that daycare providers have been guilty of organized systems of child abuse. A book about the potential for daycare abuse, including the facts about the McMartin case (minus hysteria), would be helpful to parents. I would want to recognize signs of abuse in my child. Libraries should have “Good touch-bad touch” books in the children’s collection, but these should contain “teachable” information at the child’s level. This book is not written at the two- or three-year-old reading/understanding level. It’s too text-heavy for a read-aloud at that age group. Parents and therapists or victims would have a need for this book. A library might keep it in the 362’s to support this need.
Absolutely hilarious. But Satanism and Wicca are still stupid.
Ah yes, JM. It’s all true. Too bad it is a documented fact that several investigations over a number of years never turned up any of your supposed “found” tunnels. Trolling on the internet, much?
IIRC, nobody at the daycare was found at fault for anything, and the child whose stories started the panic was being sexually molested at home. His mother, who was a diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic, was the one who hurled the accusations at the pre school.
There was more mental abuse hurled upon these children by psychologists and their panicked parents than the McMartins ever did. I feel sorry for the kids, and wonder if they grew up to be functioning adults.
Definitely not a book for kids – but there is a subject need. I have a close friend who was subjected to this kind of abuse as a child, and is still working to overcome it even now that her abuser is dead.
Oh my god, this book is CREEPY!!!!!! Why was this made for kids???
Just ordered this through ILL. Its coming from an elementary school library! Looking forward to reading the whole thing.
silverrod, it’s a safe wager that there are far more people laboring under the delusion that they were ritually abused, than there are victims of actual “satanic abuse.” Books like this one only plant the seed of such paranoid fantasies.
I hope your friend is receiving qualified help, not merely dealing with those who would reinforce such notions.
Books like this are written to help children to open up to what they have lived. No, it’s not for the healthy child, growing up in healthy family environment who has never been abused. Adults need to be educated. There are some ‘not so pretty’things that are going on in our world. If you’ve lived it, you don’t need the book. For children, it helps them to talk about things that other people don”t talk about, gives them a place from where they can begin to tell their horrific stories.
OMG! I’m horrified even more!
My mouth is literally hanging open reading the pages from this book.
Okay everyone, I can’t keep up with comments on Satan stuff and my spam account has about flipped out. I think the satan subject for ALB is done now. Let’s move all move on with another topic. As a final comment, let me reiterate that my comments and Holly’s reflect our personal view and should not be taken as standard for every library. I would also add that the job of a librarian is to select material for the library that reflect the community’s wants and needs, with in the parameters of a selection policy and budget. This website and forum is for an intellegent discussion of that idea. ‘Nuff said. Go on about your business now!
Mary
I saw this book while browsing the children’s section of Borders in the early 90’s. My mouth dropped open and I laughed out loud, then looked around for someone to share this with. It was certainly written for a very specific target audience which was, hopefully, minuscule.
i remember this book when i worked at a library! (only time i ever made a fuss about something on the shelves, got it moved to the adult section)
you didn’t post the creepiest parts, where the kid says they “put a monster in me”, and this scary-ass picture on the wall that the witches can keep an eye on them with.
“Look at her now, pretending to be dead!”
Hey, Doc, wanna check her pulse, maybe?