Cry Silent Tears: The heartbreaking survival story of a small mute boy who overcame unbearable suffering and found his voice again

Cry Silent Tears: The heartbreaking survival story of a small mute boy who overcame unbearable suffering and found his voice again
Joe Peters

Joe knew his mother was cruel and violent, but he trusted his beloved father to protect him from her. When a freak accident saw his father burn to death in front of him, Joe was left at the mercy of his mother. Without the love of his friend and brother, he wouldn't have survived. With them, he went on to spend his life fighting child abuse.Joe was just five years old and the horrific scene literally struck him dumb. He didn't speak for four and a half years, which meant he was unable to ask anyone for help as his life turned into a living hell.His schizophrenic mother and two of his older brothers spent the following years beating him, raping him and locking him in the cellar at the family home. Fed on scraps that he was forced to lick from the floor, he was sometimes left naked in the dark for three days without human contact.Unable to read or write, all Joe could do to communicate his suffering was draw pictures.The violence and sexual abuse grew in severity as more people, including his stepfather, were invited to use him in any way they chose.The only thing that saved Joe was the kindness of his elder brother and his only school friend, both of whom showed him that love was possible even in the darkest of situations.At fourteen he finally found the courage to run away, hiding in a hut by a railway line, fed on scraps by some local children who found him.Joe's is the ultimate insider's story, casting light into the darkest of hidden worlds, and a truly inspirational account of how one small boy found the strength to overcome almost impossible odds and become a remarkable man. Now that he has found his voice again, Joe speaks out against child abuse and helps support and protect other children whose lives have been blighted by it.

Cry Silent Tears

The heartbreaking survival story

of a small mute boy who

overcame unbearable

suffering and found

his voice again

JOE PETERS

with Andrew Crofts

Copyright (#ulink_a66ef568-2b53-52dd-8ba6-5308e4ebf3b6)

This book is based on the author’s experiences. In order to protect privacy, some names, identifying characteristics, dialogue and details have been changed or reconstructed.

HarperElement

An Imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 1 London Bridge Street, London SE1 9GF

www.harpercollins.co.uk (http://www.harpercollins.co.uk)

HarperElement is a trademark of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd

First published by HarperElement 2008

© Joe Peters 2008

Joe Peters asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work

A catalogue record of this book is available from the British Library

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this ebook on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins ebooks

HarperCollinsPublishers has made every reasonable effort to ensure that any picture content and written content in this ebook has been included or removed in accordance with the contractual and technological constraints in operation at the time of publication

Source ISBN: 9780007274048

Ebook Edition © JANUARY 2009 ISBN: 9780007283828

Version: 2018-08-14

Contents

Title Page (#uf146f401-c5b3-560d-ba29-78034d6e5a79)

Copyright (#ulink_bc67878c-619c-551d-a808-eb9a8d465c07)

Dedication (#ulink_33b9d717-58d4-519e-8853-91c8391066cd)

Chapter One: Tug Of War (#ulink_58fcf3ab-0803-514e-8625-d3ae5693782b)

Chapter Two: A Bitter Battleground (#ulink_109fc879-3a47-5f21-9894-c030eea5e058)

Chapter Three: Inferno (#ulink_67dc3622-ab44-5bb8-9696-b4e94eeb293b)

Chapter Four: ‘Turn Him Off!’ (#ulink_9c7240bc-818f-5d7e-8b94-030ebbcde9d6)

Chapter Five: Smelly Woof (#ulink_91a87bf8-bde5-591e-b68a-49687a6cb006)

Chapter Six: Incarceration (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Seven: Mum’s New Boyfriend (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eight: Rescued From The Cellar (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Nine: Starting School (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Ten: Being Groomed (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eleven: The Movie Business (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twelve: Learning To Speak Again (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Thirteen: A Bid For Freedom (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Fourteen: Betrayal And Capture (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Fifteen: In And Out Of Care (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Sixteen: Thieving For Mum (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Seventeen: Moving On (#litres_trial_promo)

Epilogue (#litres_trial_promo)

Acknowledgements (#litres_trial_promo)

About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)

Dedication (#ulink_6825971b-a937-52b0-82b0-35cf8a023189)