That Bird Has My Wings

Masters describes his journey from abused and neglected child to criminal to prisoner and from a child seeking connection to a young adult unable to relate to others to a practicing Buddhist working for peace among San Quentin inmates.
The first half of the book is about his childhood with his mom, good and bad foster families, and good and bad institutions. This section is most relevant for CASAs, as he describes how much he needed someone to believe him and believe in him as well as the rationale behind his seemingly self-destructive behavior.
In the second half of the book, he recounts his life as a criminal and as a prisoner, including his conversion to Buddhism and how that changed his life. He takes full responsibility for his crimes and bad decisions, although he is innocent of the crime for which he is sentenced to die.
While some of Masters’ experiences have been grim, it is not a depressing book to read. On the contrary, I found it very uplifting.

Review by D.

Three Little Words

"I strongly recommend this book to all CASAs and teenage CASA children as well, especially teenage girls.

This is a memoir written by a young woman who spent nine years in fourteen different foster homes.

Ashley writes about being juggled between caseworkers and shuffled from school to school. Towards the end of the book she lists the number of different people

in her life

while in foster care.

This list includes 73 child welfare administrators, 44 social workers, 19 foster parents, 23 attorneys, and the list goes on and on until at the end of the list Ashley cites one Guardian ad Litem (CASA). Ashley is the adopted daughter of Gay Courter, author of I Speak for this Child."

Barbara, CASA Volunteer

This book is available in CASA library.

Hope's Boy

A Memoir by Andrew Bridge

This novel is an insightful look at the experience of growing up as a foster child in LA County in the 70s. Fortunately some of the direst conditions described in the novel no longer exist, at least not in Contra Costa County. However, some of the problems and issues are still current and some may be systemic to the problem of protecting children. Andy recalls lying to social workers about how well things are going out of fear of reprisal and some fear of the unknown if he were to leave his current foster home. Visits from social workers are infrequent and often by a new worker each time. Insufficient trust ever develops for Andy to tell the truth

about his dictatorial unbalanced

foster mother.
Andy's mother was mentally unbalanced and unable to support him but loved him. Andy longs for this mother who loved him. Visits are extremely limited and at some point end altogether. Andy doesn't know

until he reaches adulthood how hard his mother fought to get him back and how close she came. The social worker who informs Andy doesn't know how sustaining this information might have been had Andy known while he was growing up. One cannot help but wonder how much difference a CASA could have made in this case.

More about the book:

www.hopesboy.com

Movie recommendation

for CASA volunteers;

not recommended for children

An American Crime

(Ellen Page and Catherine Keener)
It is a fact based movie on the child abuse and murder of Sylvia Likens. Here's the plot summary from imdb.com:

"Based on a true story that shocked the nation in 1965, the film recounts one of the most shocking crimes ever committed against a single victim. Sylvia and Jennie Fae Likens, the two daughters of traveling carnival workers are left for an extended stay at the Indianapolis (3850 E. New York St. is hardly suburban, nor was it in 1965, by any stretch of the imagination.) home of single mother Gertrude Baniszewski and her seven children. Times are tough, and Gertrude's financial needs cause her to make this arrangement before realizing how the burden will push her unstable nature to a breaking point. What transpires in the next three months is both riveting and horrific, leaving one child dead and the rest scarred for life."