childhood trauma

Traumatic Childhoods — and the Adults Who Survived Them

Some childhoods leave marks that never fully fade — fractures that run quietly beneath the surface of adult lives. The memoirs in this list bear witness to early years shaped by neglect, instability, poverty and other forms of harm, each story offering a different lens on what it means to…

BookTribApril 9, 2026

Better Self Nonfiction

The People Who Shape Us: Finding Meaning, Healing and Connection in Other People

What if the story of your life isn’t really about you? In Other People: A Memoir and Reflections on Trauma, Connection, Meaning, and the Neuroscience of Healing, Michael S. Piraino makes a quiet but persistent case that who we become is shaped, piece by piece, by those around us. It’s…

BookTribMarch 31, 2026

Listicles Nonfiction

7 Books About Finding Belonging in the Aftermath of Family Trauma

Trauma is a word on the tips of our tongues more and more these days. In this time of newfound knowledge of the condition, we’re at a new place of widespread understanding in society. But that doesn’t mean the conversation is over; far from it. Trauma is a tangled knot…

Cameron KimballAugust 7, 2024

Nonfiction Nonfiction - Featured

Dr. Shelley Kolton’s Memoir Uncovers All The Sides of Dissociative Identity Disorder

Successful doctor Shelley Kolton, MD, seems like she has it all — a thriving OB/GYN practice, three young daughters, an active love life. But there are dark sides to Kolton that she hides from the world. Dark sides that hide themselves even from her. Brain Storm: A Life in Pieces (FLR…

Nicole MaherAugust 13, 2021

Better Self Better Self - Featured Miscellany

One Woman’s Journey from Trauma to Self-Love Offers Much Wisdom for Growth

"Bloom where you're planted," goes a common saying. For poet and writer Tyesha Mack, that sentiment seems to miss the center of the target. “Grow and remain rooted in who you are," she writes. "That’s what flowers do.” See the difference? It is only one of many moments of profound…

Cynthia ConradFebruary 18, 2022

Listicles Listicles - Featured Nonfiction Pop Culture

7 Memoirs from Stars Who Overcame Childhood Hardships

We all love reading about our favorite celebrities — consuming tabloids, social media posts and interviews that feature them. But every person in the spotlight has their own story to tell that isn’t shaped by their public image. These seven stars lived through the unimaginable in their climb to fame…

Megan BeauregardOctober 27, 2022

Author Spotlight Author Spotlight - Featured

Dr. Shelley Kolton on Life With, and Recovery From, Dissociative Identity Disorder

This is a story of a sad 7-year-old girl, a volatile and aggressive 14-year-old boy, a petrified 3-year-old child, and a cult leader. Spoiler alert: they’re all in one head. Another spoiler alert: this is a true story. These and 30 other parts of the author’s mind make for an…

Judy MorenoAugust 23, 2021