Book Recommendations
(See below for a list of books for children.)
(Click here to navigate to the Board of Rabbis Beyond Silence website.)
Books for adults about abuse and trauma
Bass, Ellen, and Laura Davis. The Courage to Heal: A Guide for Women Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse, 20th Anniversary Edition. William Morrow Paperbacks: 2008. (Recommended by Rabbis Paula Marcus and Pam Frydman)
Dorff, Rabbi Elliott. Family Violence by Elliot Dorff, Part I, “The Legal Status of Abuse” approved by the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards of the Rabbinical Assembly of Conservative Judaism. Page 775 et seq.
Dratch, Rabbi Marc. “The Physical, Sexual and Emotional Abuse of Children”. Rabbi Dratch is Executive Vice President of the Rabbinical Council of America (RCA). This article was originally published by the RCA Roundtable (Nissan 5752). It also appears in the Domestic Violence Handbook of the Jewish Family Services of Los Angeles and in the Rabbinic Guide for Domestic Violence of Jewish Women International.
Gannon, J. Patrick Ph.D. Soul Survivors: A New Beginning for Adults Abused as Children. Prentice Hall Trade: 1987. (Recommended by Kathy Baxter)
Herman, Judith Lewis, M.D. Trauma and Recovery. Basic Books: 1993. (Recommended by Hank Berman, MFT)
Herman, Judith L. M.D. Trauma and Recovery: The Aftermath of Violence–From Domestic Abuse to Political Terror, 1st Edition. Basic Books: 1997. (Recommended by Tom Mitchell)
Levine, Peter and Ann Frederick. Walking the Tiger, Healing Trauma by, North Atlantic Books 1997. (Recommended by Hank Berman, MFT)
Lew, Mike. Victims No Longer: The Classic Guide for Men Recovering from Sexual Child Abuse. Harper Perennial: 2004. (Recommended by Tom Mitchell)
Steinsaltz, Rabbi Adin. “Mishpatim – Judaism Abhors Child Abuse.” This Torah teaching was published in The Jewish Week on February 1, 2016. Rabbi Steinsaltz was hailed by Time Magazine as a "once-in-a-millennium scholar" and he has devoted his life to making the Talmud accessible to all Jews.
Books for adults on related topics
Furrow, James L., Susan M. Johnson and Brent A. Bradley (Editors). The Emotionally Focused Therapist Training Set: The Emotionally Focused Casebook. 1st Edition. Routledge, 2011. (Recommended by Tom Mitchell)
Kabat-Zinn, Jon. Wherever You Go There You Are. Hachette Books: 2005. (Recommended by Tom Mitchell)
Obegi, Joseph H., Psy.D., and Ety Berant, Ph.D. (Editors). Attachment Theory and Research in Clinical Work with Adults. The Guilford Press: 2010. (Recommended by Tom Mitchell)
Books for Adults & Children
Click here for the Enough Abuse campaign’s list of children’s books and books for adults.
Books for Children
Talking about puberty and health for children ages 3 to 7:
Who Has What? By Robbie H Harris- Book all about girls and boys bodies
Talking about boundaries and safe vs. unsafe touch for children ages 3 to 8:
My Body Belongs to Me: A book about body safety by Jill Starishevsky
I said NO! A kid-to-kid guide to keeping private parts private by Jennifer Moore-Mallinos
Your Body Belongs to You by Cornelia Spelman
No means No! Teaching children about personal boundaries, respect and consent; empowering kids by respecting their choices and their right to say no! by Jayneen Sanders and Cherie Zamazing
Talking about how to stay safe for children ages 4 to 8
Double Dip Feelings: Stories to help children understand emotions by Barbara S. Cain
A Terrible Thing Happened by Margaret Holmes
Talking about puberty and health for children ages 4 to 8
It’s Not the Stork!: A Book About Girls, Boys, Babies, Bodies, Families and Friends by Robie H. Harris
Talking about boundaries and safe vs. unsafe touch for children ages 4 to 11:
Bobby and Mandee’s Good Touch/Bad Touch: Children’s Safety Book by Robert Kahn
Child Safety Coloring Book by coloringbook.com
Do you have a secret? By Jayneen Sanders
Talking about puberty and health for children ages 7 to 10
It’s So Amazing!: A Book about Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies, and Families by Robie H. Harris
Talking about how to stay safe for children ages 7 to 12
Something Is Wrong at My House: A Book About Parent’s Fighting by Diane Davis
Child Safety Online- Protect Your Child from online predators (app)
The Buzz About Social Media: A Cyber Safety Workbook and Discussion Guide for Pre-Teens by Shawn Marie Edgington
Books for preteens and teens
Talking about puberty and health for children ages 10 and older
It’s Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, and Sexual Health by Robie H. Harris
(See above for a list of books for adults.)
(Click here to navigate to the Board of Rabbis Beyond Silence website.)