Beautiful Child by Torey Hayden was an amazing memoir. The setting for the majority of the book was a classroom, as the narrator (Torey Hayden) is a special education teacher. There were five students in her classroom: an aggressive, loud nine-year-old named Billy, an eight year old named Jesse dealing with Tourette's Syndrome, six year old twins who had suffered FAS (Fetal Alcohol Syndrome) and had various behavioral problems, and then there was seven-year-old Venus Fox. Venus was the hardest o [...]

This is my first Tory Hayden book and I plan on reading more. This book is a story of her struggles with a classroom of children with special needs. You come to love each of the children and ache for the trials they face. But the amazing experience of the one girl in this story going from no response (no eye movement, nothing!) to actually talking is astounding. My heart broke for the children like her that face so many difficultssweet innocent children

I struggled with this for quite some time. The first 200 pages or so seemed to be like 'Groundhog Day' - day after day of never-changing school routine. In the second half of the book things moved in leaps and bounds. I couldn't seem to warm to either Torey or Julie for different reasons. However, the incredible work by both - but especially Torey - has to be commended. My main aim throughout the book was to learn how Venus came to be mute and that kept my interest. I'm looking forward to hearin [...]

The story of this child is horrific and deeply sad, but told incredibly well. However, I wanted to hear more about her than the special education teacher who, though she's definitely an important person in this book, clouds over everything with her presence. I would rather hear more about the future for this little girl and what progress has been made rather than the ranting from the teacher.

This is one of the most wonderful books I have ever read. Torey's work with children is astonishing. As a teacher of children with special needs, she exemplifies patience, endurance and compassion beyond measure. What I love about her writing most, though, is her honesty. She talks about her negative feelings as well as the positive things she feels. She conveys her frustrations with the education system, child services, and her boss and co-workers. Her books are fantastic.

Another story about her life as a special needs teacher and the children she helped. Although there are a number of children featured in the book, the main focus is on Venus, a girl who doesn't talk and is locked in her own world. Torey manages to break through and bring the girl out the other side extremely slowly. Not many people would have the patience for this. It is horrifying when you finally get to hear why she locked herself into her own world and like Torey you feel as if the system ser [...]

This is really a 3.5! I hadn't heard of Torey Hayden before reading this book and now want to read more of her work. Venus was a child in Torey's behavioral challenge class who simply hid within herself. While the focus of the book was on Venus and her slow emerging, I loved watching how Torey fostered a sense of group and belonging for all of the kids. This was the blossoming of a slow miracle and why I got into education in the first place.

This is the story of a child who won't speak, won't talk and really won't do anything at all! Torey Hayden displays amazing patience, insight and honesty as she recounts how she creatively approaches teaching Venus and some other unruly and mentally challenged children. An inspiring book.

Mendidik Anak dengan Cinta(sumber: Surabaya Post, Minggu 15 Januari 2005)Judul buku : Venus: Duka Lara Si Anak CantikPenulis : Torey HaydenPenerbit : Qanita, BandungTerbit : Pertama, Juni 2004Tebal buku : 612 halamanTAK pernah terbayangkan sebelumnya kalau pengalaman serta perjuangan yang penuh dengan duka lara selama mendidik anak-anak berpendidikan khusus sejak 1979, pada akhirnya membawa Torey Hayden, pakar psikologi pendidikan yang lahir di Montana, Amerika Serikat, terdorong untuk menerbitk [...]

Ho letto questo libro della Hayden-primo per me- perchè incoraggiata ed invogliata da recensioni lette qua e là, tutte più che positive e non me ne sono pentita!Il libro ti cattura subito, pur non essendo scorrevole e anzi, avendo di norma un ritmo molto lento e ripetitivo, ma questo dà modo al lettore di riuscire a comprendere il lavoro di un insegnante alle prese con una classe di cinque bambini con problemi di disabilità, la fatica e l'impegno quotidiano, le sconfitte e le piccole vittor [...]

Review: Beautiful Child by Torey Hayden. An emotional but wonderful true story for us all to read.Torey is a trained specialty teacher who cares and provides many different skills to her beautiful gifted students. This year her class consisted of five all day unstable young children and other children who came off and on throughout the day. All her students are equally cared for but sometimes she has a student that needs more understanding and care then another. Without taking time away from the [...]

.2 stars.Not that good.The author was likei did that for special children. Now i am doing it. before i do it. and and RANTING The tone of the teacher made the story boring.My first book of this author and i am not going to read more of her.I do not like the characters.Only Billy is one with some humor and his character is well written. Jesse: Dunno what was his problem. Or Jane's or Shane's.And the new girl. She was funny.I was thinking that there would be more about children and their problems [...]

"Beautiful Child" written by Torey Hayden was well written and very informative. The story speaks to all who love children and want to reach out to the little ones who are trapped in silence, who cannot tell of the vicious acts that has happened to them to cause them to retreat into silence and into lashing out against any who try to get close enough to try to help them."Beautiful Child" is a awesome story told by Torey Hayden, and the steps she used to get close to Venus. Venus is a seven year [...]

Torey Hayden - Beautiful Child Victoria Lynn Hayden, known as Torey L. Hayden, is a child psychologist, special education teacher, university lecturer and writer of non-fiction books based on her real-life experiences with teaching and counseling children with special needsI Seven-year-old Venus Fox's unresponsiveness was so complete that Torey Hayden initially believed the child was deaf.Venus never spoke, never listened, never even acknowledged the presence of another human being in the room [...]

Opět hodně silný příběh od Torey Hayden.Sedmiletá Venus, která nemluví a nechává se pouze postrkovat z místa na místo, je pro zkušenou pedagožku velkou záhadou. Agresivní panické záchvaty dostává pouze, když jí někdo naruší osobní prostor, jinak se chová netečně a je velmi těžké ji z tohoto stvau vytrhnout. Navíc do školy nechodí nijak pravidelně, takže Torey, která se potýká nejen se čtveřicí neukázněných chlapců a nepříliš ochotnou asistentkou [...]

Buku ini bercerita tentang pengalaman Torey mengajar di salah satu kelas anak-anak berkebutuhan khusus. kelas tersebut berisi 5 anak, 4 anak laki-laki Billy, Jesse, dan si kembar Shane dan Zane yang selalu ribut dan tak pernah akur dan satu anak perempuan, Venus. Yang seringkali duduk di tembok dan duduk diam di kelas tanpa merespon sama sekali keadaan di sekelilingnya.Buku ini menceritakan tentang usaha Torey membuat akur 4 anak lelaki tersebut, dan membuat Venus "bangun" dari kebisuaannya. Buk [...]

I originally read this book in the '90s because I loved her writing. I had read some of her earlier books and enjoyed (though most are heartbreaking) what she had to say about teaching children who had many psychological, behavioral, and educational issues. This book was no different. She wrote about her special education class and the students who she worked with during one school year. She wrote about how hard the beginning of the year was in trying to help her students cope and learn routines [...]

Well, I'm glad that I have finished this! A relatively quick read, but I found it a bit depressing. I have never read anything like it before, so was interested to read about schooling for children with serious learning difficulties. However, it all became rather frustrating with limited resources, funds and the added red tape that restricts everything in life these days!On the positive side I did love each of the children. I really felt as though their characters shone through all the negative [...]

This story is a sad and all too true depiction of a typical Special Ed classroom. I have worked with special needs children for over 11 years and can relate to each and everyone of the children in this story. I have encountered children with similar disabilities and needs, and was amazed how I could put a "name and face" (from my own experience) to each and everyone in this story.I was also surprised that the school let Venus sit up on "her wall", and left her unsupervised on the playground for [...]

Beautiful Child was a book that brought so many mixed emotions to me, between tears and frustration. The author surely does take you to a whole different world as your reading the book. Torey Hayden has the most patience and honestly with a student, she's what you call a walking miracle. She never gave up on Venus, a 7 year old girl, and brought out her pain. Venus was a 7 year old girl, trapped in silence as your reading it you then realize its because of what happens to her be hide closed door [...]

This book is a summary of the author's - a Special Education teacher - academic year with a particularly diverse and challenging class. I read this in hopes of learning more about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Two of the children in the author's class had it, but the book focused overwhelmingly on "Beautiful Child" - who was mute. From the outset, the book was a disappointment in that regard because it didn't teach me anything I didn't already know about FAS by virtue of spending so little time on tha [...]

When I started this book I had no clue what I was getting into, and come to find out this was a great book I could sit and read it again and again. Venus the young girl Torey is trying to teach she won't talk but towards the middle of the book you see where she try's to jesuture to Torey what she wants but she doesn't do it very often. I read this book as a senior in high school for my Intro to Ed class to see what it's like to be a teacher and have to teach all these different kids,and from the [...]

This story was interesting. I liked One Child better. This book is not bad, but there are some inconsistencies in the story. I felt like she told this story from memory - and not a good memory at that. Part of the time She-ra said, "For the Honor of Grayscull," and once, "By the Power of Grayscull." The second is the correct line. At one point she had Venus coming to school on a Saturday, but that wasn't correct either. I felt like she was an unreliable narrator in this book. I also question if [...]

This book was very eye opening for me. I was shocked seeing how some of these children's homes were like. I couldn't imagine having a home life like some of these kids. I found the book super frustrating because of the fact that Torrey couldn't get a reaction out of Venus at first. I would find myself having to put the book down and step away for a few minutes to process the information. When I finally read the section where Veunus was walking and dancing it triggered emotions that I didn't expe [...]

So, I didn't actually read this one, I read One Child, but it isn't anywhere on GR that I could find, so I'm just going to mark this one as read. I wasn't a particular fan of her writing or storytelling. Her writing felt incredibly self-absorbed and she came across as very judgemental, imo, and I had a hard time believing that a lot of the book was real, like we're supposed too, and there were more than a few things that I (as a social worker) find to be worrisome and upsetting about her handlin [...]

I absolutely LOVED this book! I identified so strongly with Torey Hayden. Reading about her interactions in the classroomher reaction to the children's behavioral struggles were the exact things I would have done myself. The story itself snagged me from the first page, and I was captivated with the mystery and solution for Venus' silence.The only thing that could have made this book better was the language. One of the secondary characters had an extremely foul mouth as part of his behavioral iss [...]

There's always a deep mystery with one child in each Special Education classroom in Torey Hayden's books. And I feel compelled to find out if the child can be helped as well as why the child exhibits the particular behavior--almost always self-imposed mutism. So the books read like compelling mysteries, but the fact that each story is true is actually emotionally wrenching. I appreciate so much the stories Torey Hayden tells, but even more I appreciate the courage and persistence she displayed w [...]

I couldn't put this book down. The compassion Torey gives the children in her care is inspiring. In this book Venus is nearly catatonic. Yet Torey looked deeply at this child and knew she needed her desperately. I needed to know that Venus was going to be ok. There were other kids in her class that demanded attention too. Most with severe anger issues and learning deficits as well. Somehow she manages them all. Not without struggle but always from her heart. Also I love that on her website she h [...]

I read this book even though I knew it would make me depressed after I was done. I mean it has a HAPPY ending but I just couldn't believe what happened to poor Venus throughout this book. This book is mainly about Venus who is abused and doesn't "talk" much at all. Her teacher couldn't get to talk for months but made progress and Venus is able to talk after all. I liked this book, well worth the read.

I think I have read every book by Torey Hayden. She was a special education teacher for a number of years and her way of telling the stories of some of her students just really appeals to me. I like her blend of idealism as a seasoned teacher that is also tempered by a lot of reality. This particular story was about Venus, a young girl who was selectively mute and the four boys with behavior disorders who were also in her class.