A sad story about a girl who was abused by her disabled mother who she cared for. It's amazing she was able to live her life and write this book.

I was unable to review this book due to downloading the book, but the loan on it expired before I could read it.
It sounds like a very interesting memoir.
I wish it had been available in the kindle app since that’s what I use.

Being a blind mother with two daughters I was very interested in Beverly story, but after reading it I see there is no comparison. What Beverly went through was terrible and something no child should go through. From being woken up in the middle of the night scared of communist to the physical abuse and abandonment of her paternal family. The worst thing of all it’s even when she got away from her abusive mother her self abuse has started suffering from anorexia. In the end her story is really inspirational about a little girl who was made to feel guilty for her fathers abandonment, her mothers mental disorder and she made it despite all of it. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and kudos to Beverly and Sharon and good luck to their little brothers especially the one addicted to drugs that made me very sad. I highly recommend it if you love memoirs you’ll love this book I certainly did. I received this book from NetGalley and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Please forgive any grammar or punctuation errors as I am blind and dictate my review but all opinions are definitely my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.
This was unlike any memoir I've ever read. This book is very well written and definitely engaging. The family dynamic is interesting to me as I am visually impaired and have seen about corneal transplants. It's heartbreaking to read that the author's mom's corneal transplants didn't last longer than they did. The abuse the kids had to endure, the fact that Beverly, as the eldest child, was pretty much a caretaker for her mother at a young age, it's no wonder she struggled to pull away from her needy mother. I really hope writing this book has helped her family heal.

This story is a memoir written by a woman who was the eldest child of a mentally ill, blind woman. Beverly's mother was an aspiring artist who received corneal transplants to improve her vision twice, but with the fluctuation in her vision also came the fluctuation in her mental health and as a result, the family's precarious situation. Facing significant abuse, poverty, neglect and her own mental health challenges, Beverly found ways to survive and support her younger siblings as best as she could.

I found this memoir almost impossible to put down. Any glimmer of hope that made its way into the story was followed by a series of terrible, gut wrenching events such as her mother's improved vision leading to what seemed like endless opportunities, but actually resulting in homelessness, food scarcity, and squalid conditions. The title, Seeing Eye Girl, aptly describes the caregiver role Beverly was forced to assume from a very young age, often seen by outsiders as a moral responsibility, while actually being way too much responsibility for a child. As a result of her traumatic past, it is remarkable how successfully Beverly was able to handle the challenging situations thrown at her and her family and find her way to the light at the end of the tunnel.

I would recommend this book for anyone interested in memoirs of childhood trauma, disabilities and US events/history for the 1940-1970 time period. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this phenomenal memoir which took me on a rollercoaster ride of emotions!

Such a heartbreaking book. I am impressed by the author, willing to share her story so openly, having to revisit all the horrible events of her past. It must have taken immense courage to do so; looking at pictures, talking with relatives and opening a box of memories. Strong Beverly truly showed her ability to control what little she could; Finding peace at school, away from abuse.

Abuse leaves scars, and it’s just so sad that Beverly had to go through being beaten, bitten and being showered with hurtful words. It was also chilling to read about how her mother pretended they were the perfect family when interviewed, when it really wasn’t so.

I hope stories like these can encourage others to be aware of what’s going on behind closed doors. We can’t deny the trauma so many love through, we have to be aware of it happening.

This is also a hopeful story; that it’s possible to find a better life.

Thanks for NetGalley and she writes press for this memoir.