Immaterial Children: A Book Review

I was given a book by my sister to review from a friend of hers.  I finished it in just a few days; I couldn't put it down!

The book is called Immaterial Children, and it is written by Beau Gumm.  It is a personal memoir of his difficult childhood and struggles that followed him into adulthood.

From the back of the book:

Bad luck seemed to dog Beau from the very beginning.  He was an accident, and his parents never pretended to want him.  With barely any support from them, he and his brothers were forced to take care of themselves.
His childhood left him with a fervent need to belong--and he found this need fulfilled when he joined the military.  But two tours of duty in Iraq left him traumatized and unable to process what he had seen.  In the following years, Beau's PTSD and other self-destructive issues began taking a toll on both his career and home life.
Not until he reached rock bottom did he realize what he must do to climb back up--and emerge triumphant.
Beau has been working on his memoir, Immaterial Children, for eight years.  Join in his journey from unhappy childhood to his current state of sobriety and self-reflection.

I found this book to be particularly moving regarding his childhood and everything he faced on his own at such a young age.  One part in particular moved me to tears, especially thinking of my own two boys, ages 5 and 8.

Themes include child abuse and neglect, alcoholism, domestic violence, and wartime trauma and recovery.  In case you thought that was all too dark for your tastes, there are also themes of faith, friendship, brotherhood, survival, and love.  The combination of these ideas makes for a moving and emotional read that I hope will shed some light on these serious issues and encourage others to persevere.

My favorite excerpt from the novel comes out of one of the author's darkest hours, in which he discovered faith and a reason to keep on living...

My emotions were out of control, but I was doing good to maintain.  I decided that perhaps this was my life now; perhaps I was cut out for incarceration over freedom.
I was sad but content.  I tried to sleep.
People came and went over the next few hours; nobody that I knew...I was in jail mode again.  Thirty-four years old, and I've been to jail 15 times...My life felt worthless.
"Lord, It's now or never.  I need you."
This was the only prayer I could muster.
I was moved to a pod around lights out, 10 P.M.,the same pod my brother and I were in a few months before.  The pods were too full, so I had a mat on the floor.  I needed sleep but couldn't get there.  I lay awake thinking of my options.
In a fleeting moment of clarity/desperation, I reached for the little Bible they gave me when I came in.  I opened and read...
...More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame...
I knew at once someone was speaking to me.  The next step for me was to build on my hope, my new-found faith.  I needed that to move forward.
I slept for the next 12 hours like I hadn't slept in months.  I felt delivered.

Romans 5:3-5 is the scripture referenced, and I can't help but wonder if that was a Gideon Bible that the author picked up on that fateful night.  The Gideons have an amazing prison ministry.

Beau wanted to give back, not only by sharing his story, but by donating half of the proceeds of his book sales to a worthy cause, Trauma & Resiliency Resources.  Find out more by watching the video below.

If you would like to purchase a copy of Beau Gumm's Immaterial Children, click on the book cover below.