Introduction
A modern person experiences extremely high psychological and informational burdens associated with the adverse effects of the environment, the ever-increasing rate of production, and the avalanche-like increase in the volume of information. In the spiritual world of many people, there are severe social contradictions that can be resolved through the non-standard use of books. At the same time, it is known that reading helps to overcome discomfort and stress. All these factors have predetermined the need for readers to perform a new function – bibliotherapeutic. It is libraries that should provide everyone with “medicine for the soul.” The main emphasis of the given bibliotherapeutic assessment will be put on Dave Pelzer’s books The Lost Boy: A Foster Child’s Search for the Love of a Family, where the author reveals the underlying experiences among foster children and the emotional challenges associated with parentless life. The book can be used as a powerful instrument for bibliotherapy for foster children in order to equip foster children with both short-term and long-term coping mechanisms, provide knowledge on the use of social institutions as resource of help, and deliver insight into potential pitfalls of adulthood after foster childhood.
How Do the Books Help: Dave Pelzer’s Book
Pelzer’s book The Lost Boy: A Foster Child’s Search for the Love of a Family is an outstanding autobiographic piece, which illuminates the intricate difficulties of foster children and the role of external influences in the replacement of parents. It should be noted that such a book contributes both to the projection of actual human problems on the characters of the works and allow the reader to find solutions to various issues. As several library studies in recent years show, readers are increasingly turning to books to solve their psychological problems, looking for support and help from librarians (Brewster and McNicol 81). It should be noted that works of literature, such as The Lost Boy: A Foster Child’s Search for the Love of a Family, have a powerful influence on an individual’s spiritual world and physical state (Brewster and McNicol 81). The word that is read can arouse all kinds of emotions: sorrow and grief, happiness and joy (Hynes 50). Watching persons reading, by their facial expressions, readers can almost unmistakably determine what they are reading: happy, cheerful, or sad books.
Dave Pelzer’s Book as Bibliotherapy
Dave Pelzer’s book can be used in a bibliotherapeutic framework of children’s therapy since the theme and topic of the writing is specifically tailored for foster children, which indicates that it can be used in bibliotherapy for specific group of vulnerable individuals. It should be noted that bibliotherapy is currently attracting more attention from scientists and practitioners seeking to maximize the “therapeutic” possibilities of the book. In this regard, it seems appropriate to assess Dave Pelzer’s book as a plausible bibliotherapeutic reading, and its application today, and further prospects (Brewster and McNicol 81). Reorientation to the bibliotherapeutic direction of Dave Pelzer’s book that meets readers’ needs will enhance the prestige of the library as a social institution capable of helping people correct the adverse effects of social and personal changes (Hynes 50). Today, it is appropriate to talk about bibliotherapy as a treatment by all library means of the individual and society as a whole. Bibliotherapy as an independent line of work emerged at the junction of psychiatry, psychology, and library science.
The phenomenon of children without families is characteristic of modern society, which is a psychological problem for foster adolescents. In addition to the fact that an abandoned child is the source of many problems and complexes for children, even finding a new family does not relieve them from ridicule and abuse. An adopted child usually has three issues relating to understanding and accepting the family, socialization, and self-identity (Ziomek-Daigle 33). If these issues (and it is essential to realize that there can be others) are ignored, it can lead to severe psychological consequences for that child (Farrell et al. 57). Dave, the author of the works in question, is now considered a foster child as he has been moved to five different homes (Pelzer 17).
Books by this author can be considered in several bibliotherapeutic contexts at once. To begin with, the projection of the reader onto the hero of the work. The book is unique in that it mentions and deciphers almost all of the experiences that any foster child could potentially encounter. The feelings and actions of the hero are explained in detail, and the child reading this work begins to feel included, not alone or somehow cursed. In addition, the character also changes smoothly, which is evident by the fact that by the end of the book, he is not considered a rat as he was at the beginning of the book (Ziomek-Daigle 33). It is essential that if the child began to develop contempt or negative feelings about himself, he subconsciously began to understand that he was wrong. Bibliotherapy is effective in this case because such a child has a strong distrust of the outside world, and the orphanage topic is susceptible (Ziomek-Daigle, 33). It is difficult for children to perceive criticism from the outside, so advice from adults usually does not help, especially if it relates to an orphanage where the concept of parental authority is broken (Aerila 313). But this does not mean that they are incapable of comprehending their actions and making decisions internally, which the analysis of the book facilitates.
Why Use Dave Pelzer’s Book
The main reason why Dave Pelzer’s book can be an effective form of bibliotherapy is due to its implications in the areas of self-image, identity crisis, anxiety, depression, and loneliness. The given category of mental challenges can be a major source of barriers for foster children, and these subjects are well-explored in Dave Pelzer’s book. For example, Dave became a foster child due to his abusive mother and alcoholic mother, both of whom forced Child Protective Services to become legal guardians of the author, and the event was one of the most stressful events of his life (Pelzer 32). In such situations, a child is highly vulnerable due to the lack of effective coping mechanisms and mental resilience. Utilizing Dave Pelzer’s book under a bibliotherapeutic setting can equip young foster children with coping mechanisms, which will prevent risky behaviors in the future as well as preserve their mental health and well-being.
Future Implications of Dave Pelzer’s Book
In addition to Dave Pelzer’s immediate solutions for foster children, the book also can reduce the possibility of risky behaviors in the future. Dave Pelzer is a highly accomplished author and public figure, but the presence of major stressors in his early childhood made him vulnerable to adulthood problems, such as addiction, mental health, and other harmful behaviors (Pelzer 212). The author was able to overcome these paths of self-destruction through the use of intricate and strict measures of self-discipline, which can be integrated as a part of the therapeutic process, and thus, equipping children not only with immediate coping methods but also long-term ones.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Dave Pelzer’s book can be used as an instrument for bibliotherapy for foster children in order to equip them with both short-term and long-term coping mechanisms, provide knowledge on the use of social institutions as resource of help, and deliver insight into potential pitfalls of adulthood after foster childhood. It should be noted that bibliotherapy, or the use of books in the context in another way, is primarily therapeutic and preventive. By analyzing this effect on patients in general, the solution of internal problems and complexes with the help of reading certain selected books is prominent. Changes can be observed in mood and more profound issues in the form of self-esteem and self-discovery. What about foster children, then, analysis of the above books allows the reader to conclude that specific literature in the proper context will enable readers to solve internal problems and eliminate negative attitudes about themselves and others.
Works Cited
Aerila, Juli-Anna. (2019). Story in Children’s Lives: Contributions of the Narrative Mode to Early Childhood Development, Literacy, and Learning. Springer International Publishing.
This book seeks to analyze help and support in all areas of children’s lives, including the psychological. Particular attention is given to the use of books and stories in a context that promotes personal growth and the development of the child’s identity. Each chapter explores the contemporary use of literature as a means of dealing with a child’s psychological and medical problems and complexes. The author is Juli-Anna Aerila, Associate Professor of Literature Education and Reading, who specializes in the influence of different types of literature on the condition and vector of personal development.
Brewster, Liz, McNicol, Sarah. (Ed.). (2018). Bibliotherapy. American Library Association.
This book explores the therapeutic role of librarians in human life. Through a study of international practices and patterns derived over the past ten years, the authors analyze how literature offered by a librarian can affect the psycho-emotional state of an individual. In addition, the practical application of bibliotherapy is examined and its direct impact on various user groups is described. A key theme is the collaboration of artists and health professionals to overcome the barriers that appear in patients’ lives. Authors Dr. Liz Brewster of Lancaster University, a lecturer in medical education, and Sarah McNicol, a practicing psychologist, have worked together to identify the benefits of bibliotherapy for both adults and children.
Hynes, Arleen McCarty. (2019). Bibliotherapy. The interactive Process A Handbook. Taylor & Francis.
This work deduces the thesis that bibliotherapy is an ancient way of dealing with psychological problems, analyzing the development of this method to the present day. The authors specify that only recently this type of treatment has become a professional tool for dealing with complexes and disorders. This manual is aimed at training future professionals in the field of psychotherapy, where types of literature and how they should be applied in practice are subdivided. The combination of this knowledge makes it possible to use books as medication as effectively and at the same time casually as possible so as not to arouse aversion or aversion in the patients to the process. The authors insist that each vulnerable group needs an individual approach, noting that no book is universal.
Pelzer, Dave. (2010a). A Child Called ‘It’. Orion.
A story about one of the most egregious cases of child abuse in California history. A mentally unstable alcoholic mother spent years beating and starving little Dave Pelzer. She abused him severely, as a result of which the boy repeatedly found himself on the brink of death. Dave slept on an old cot in a cold garage and wore dirty, tattered clothes. When his mother decided food was an unaffordable luxury for him, he made do with scraps that even the dogs were squeamish about. The world outside the walls of his parents’ home knew nothing of the boy’s nightmarish life. He had no one to turn to for help.
Pelzer, Dave. (2010b). The Lost Boy. Orion.
The book is a direct sequel to the story of the boy who was treated like a thing A Child Called ‘It’ by the same author. This book reveals the boy’s emotions and hopes, his thoughts of family and love, and his active search for people who can give him peace and everything he has longed for but never got.
Farrell, Lara J., Muris Peter, Ollendick, Thomas H. (Ed.). (2019). Innovations in CBT for Childhood Anxiety, OCD, and PTSD. Imroving Access and Outcomes. Cambridge University Press.
The book analyzes children’s psychological problems, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, and their treatment. The authors conclude that bibilotherapy is an excellent way to abstract the child’s mind from psychosocial interference. According to the authors, reading certain types of books, depending on the situation, contributes not only to the relief of symptoms, but also direct treatment. This is explained by the fact that with the right choice of works, the child can consider himself and his behavior, as well as to recreate certain idols among the characters, which will help to change the child’s psychology for new purposes.
Ziomek-Daigle, Jolie (Ed.). (2017). Counseling Children and Adolescents. Working in School and Clinical Mental Health Settings. Taylor & Francis.
The book specializes in child psychology and its counseling and treatment. Particular attention is given to foster children, whose current problems and barriers are unique. The writers analyze the psychological health of adolescents in orphanages and find out what kind of bibliotherapy can be effective and safe. The researchers emphasize that the approach to such problems must be specific and detached, since the topic is intimate and traumatic for most patients. In addition, there is an emphasis on the closeness and mistrust of such children, which requires an individualized approach to each, which should exclude pressure.