[.ca] Help Yourself (ISBN 0452282764)

From Amazon.com:
Dave Pelzer survived one of the worst child abuse cases ever recorded in the state of California. His mother, a mentally disturbed alcoholic, tortured and abused him throughout his childhood--smashing his face into a mirror, forcing him to swallow ammonia, and making him sit on a burning stove, among other heinous cruelties. In his bestselling memoirs, A Child Called It and The Lost Boy, Pelzer recounts his horrific childhood, demonstrating how inner resilience helped him survive and even become a highly caring and accomplished adult. (He was eventually selected as one of Ten Outstanding Young Americans.) Although Pelzer has a graduate degree in the school of hard knocks, he never got a chip on his shoulder. In this self-help book, Pelzer sticks with his warm and plainspoken narrative style (think Chicken Soup for the Soul) to offer advice on how to help yourself overcome adversity and let go of the past. Wisely, Pelzer often deflects attention away from his overpowering story. Instead, he offers anecdotes that pertain to more common, everyday scenarios: you feel taken advantage of at work but are afraid to quit; you have unresolved issues with your spouse. His guidance is familiar, such as never go to bed upset and tackle problems as they arise--don't let them fester. It may sound simplistic, but sometimes that's just what we need--a trustworthy ally who can dole out "been there" advice in a straightforward style. --Gail Hudson

Helping Yourself Without Blaming Others:
Hello All. I read the trilogy of Dave Pelzer's amazing, horrifying, yet triumphant life and when I learned about "Help Yourself" I had to read it. It's a great book! In fact I want to read it again and highlight it. This book is definitely a keeper, and will be read many more times thru the years (as well as referred to other people). Dave's life as a child was so terrible, it's amazing he survived. Yet through all this, he learned about love, forgiveness (even when undeserved) and compassion, without blaming others (his parents in particular). He has a strong faith/belief without being preachy or smooshy, so even those who are "unbelievers" should have no problem reading the book. HIGHLY recommended!!!

Help yourself:
Most of us have perfect lovely childhood memories.Dave Pelzer is one man who unfortunetaly doesn't! He was raised by a Mother who hated him,beaten him,stabbed him,starved him - a mother which introduced all the unimaginable horrors to her child,to her own blood and who can be more innocent than a baby or a kiddo - not even the biggest prominent humanitarians. Dave in his books didn't weep or sob saying "I've had to use drugs, or become an alchoholic to get over my unpleasant childhood memories"...nor did he kill or been bad to someone.In contrary, Dave loved people and his country,joined the Army when he was 18, and today he counts numerous awards for his accomplishments. He is a great father/husband to his family and he still helps people to get back on their feet again - as who better than someone like Dave can understand their pain. Anyways,'Help Yourself' seemed to be like a nice self-help book. It has new theories we have never heard of before and that can be useful and very helpful if applied in our daily lives. Every line makes sense and it doesn't take long to read. It is important for you to know that this is not another book about his mother.This book is about YOU and how you can make a better life. The bottom line : With his writings he creates a garbage bin and he shows us how to identify the garbage inside ourselves and he even goes the extra mile to show us the way to make them end up in that garbage bin. One more thing I'd like to add is : I hope he wont allow to put out Journals for this self-help book as people like me may missunderstand them as if Dave was focusing more on making money then helping people. Some self-help authors have already revealed their true intentions and the last thing I would do is to reveal their names too.

Help Yourself:
Any book by this incredible man is worth the read, make sure your heart is ready to be forever changed. Being a severly abused child myself, David struck a cord, then played out a bunch of notes into a beautiful melody. His inspiration of hope and courage is for some eye opening, for me... a lifeline. Thank You David for saying what we all need to hear! RECOMMEND! A++++

a reviewers suggestion:
Melinda White, A reviewer, February 4, 2004, a reviewers suggestion I read a reviewers suggestion regarding 'Help Yourself' as well as reviews for 'Finding Dave' and 'Nightmares Echo by Katlyn Stewart'. I am very happy to say I am glad I did. These books serve as a wake up call to what is going on around us on a daily basis. I am feeling so much pride for Mr. Pelzer to have the courage to write this book. As soon as I am done with this review I plan on getting His first two books and reading the whole series again. I also will then read Nightmares Echo again.

This is such a well written book...:
Help Yourself gave me the chance to do what I am doing right now; fixing computers. In this book, Dave talks about the pains of his childhood, but that didn't stop him from being alive. Just because you are in a negative environment does not mean that you will succeed. In this book, he helps you that only you can make a chance, and nothing is impossible if you put your mind to it. He also credits people like Colin Powell from coming up from poverty to become the Secretary Of State (but he did not put the Secretary Of State, just the Joint Chief's of Staff because this book is kind of old). He also gives you the courage to live out your dreams, and to make yourself a better person. He writes in the book that if you can get rid of the negative crap out of your life, and try to look at the positive things, then you will be a much more happier person. The pain that he describes is real and very painful. No matter how hard he tried in school, his drunken mother always told him that he was stupid and she hated him and wished that he was dead. He survived and proved his mother wrong. The thing is that he does not hate his mother, or his father from turning a blind eye to the abuse. Dave wrote that no one should hate anybody no matter what they put you through. This is a very good book, and a real life saver.