A harrowing and heartbreaking yet ultimately hopeful book about one of our society’s deepest shames, from Shannon Molloy, the author of the critically acclaimed memoir Fourteen.
Part memoir, part investigation into the taboo topic of male child sexual abuse, You Made Me This Way is a very personal book, driven by Shannon revealing his own experience of having been sexually abused as a young child, and his grappling to understand how this has shaped him.
The majority of men sexually abused as children never speak about their past and hide their shame and trauma away, forever carrying an enormous burden on their own, often with terrible consequences.
Shannon interviews survivors, learning about their hard-won insights, as well as experts, researchers, and therapists, making this book a vitally important step in encouraging conversation about what we must do to better support these men and the systematic changes needed in order to better protect children in the future.
Raw, honest, deeply important and inspiring in its courage, this book shines a light on this darkness in our society – and the challenge to all of us is not to look away.
Shannon Molloy is an award-winning journalist and author with more than fifteen years’ experience working for major media outlets spanning print, digital and publishing.
He began his career at Fairfax in Brisbane as an award-winning news reporter and has since covered property, business, entertainment and human interest.
He spent seven years working for News Corp as an entertainment reporter and feature writer, then as News Editor of news.com.au. He is currently the News Editor at realestate.com.au.
Shannon was the 2020 recipient of Journalist of the Year at the Mumbrella Publish Awards. His debut book, Fourteen, a memoir about growing up gay in regional Queensland, is a critically acclaimed bestseller that was turned into a sell-out hit stage production and is now being adapted for the screen.
Shannon also contributes to various charity organisations, and founded the annual Clare Atkinson Memorial Scholarship for journalism at The University of Queensland.
You Made Me This Way is published by HarperCollins Publishers (4th Estate AU) and available from all leading book retailers including QBD Books.
Image: You Made Me This Way – courtesy of HarperCollins Publishers