A Stolen Life - Jaycee's New Book

[twinkiesmom]

Maybe she's not that naieve. Maybe she has her own suspicions, or even knowledge, but does not want to write something so private about her children in HER book. I wouldn't reveal something so harrowing and private about my child. I'd get her the help she would obviously need and allow her to choose. I don't think her story needs to go there - her story stands on it's own horror and lessons. JMHO.

By the way, Amazon has the hardcover for $11.99 - half the original price.

I would agree with you, but her interview seems to belie that..She's not as naive as you would expect, but she did seem to believe her abduction had protected other children....I think she has unraveled some of Garrido's manipulations at this point but that seems to be a sticking point.

The girls may not have been sexually abused, but they certainly were mentally and physically abused by Garrido. He forced affection on them on his terms. They lived out his religious and other delusions. They were forced to live in secret, in tents, without indoor plumbing or running water, no doctor or dentist visits, no peers or formal education. In the book, Jaycee mentions the girls were not surprised by the truth...They perceived their situation to be abnormal.

If there was nothing wrong with the girls, the college police wouldn't have intervened.

 

[CarlK90245]

I got tired of waiting for my pre-ordered copy and ordered the Kindle version. Even if you don't have a Kindle, you can download the Kindle version and read it from your desktop computer screen.

I was amazed by a few aspects of her story. Most of all, I was amazed that she is very well-spoken and clear-thinking. I had previously had an incorrect impression that she was simple minded and ignorant to the world around her. On the contrary, she made great efforts to educate herself and her daughters, and had a firm grasp of current events (e.g., 9-11), world geography, literature.

She even writes that on one occasion, she saw herself on TV, when the media was speculating that she was a victim of Richard Allen Davis (killer of Polly Klaas).

I had mentioned on another thread that I was hoping to get more details of the telephone call to her mother and the reunion. Unfortunately, she was nearly as brief in the book as she and her mother were in the Diane Sawyer interview.

With regard to the telephone call, she says that her mind was racing so fast during those moments that she has forgotten most of the details. She was relying somewhat on the recollections of her mother, but it seems that Terry doesn't have a detailed recollection either. I suppose the detectives are the only ones who might have a detailed memory of what was said, but I seriously doubt that the public will ever hear from them.

Regarding the reunion, at least she did touch on that somewhat, unlike the TV special where they didn't mention it at all. But I was still wanting more. Ever since the story broke two years ago, I've imagined to myself how wonderful and miraculous that must have been. It's as close as anyone will ever come to having a loved one come back from the dead. In a sense, Jaycee did come back from the dead, because even though Terry had always held on to hope, she had to have serious doubts after 18-years that Jaycee was alive.

I feel badly that Jaycee still holds a grudge against C Probyn. I got the impression that he was just a strict disciplinarian and liked to maintain order in the household. That is a tough line to toe for someone who must assume the father role to a young girl who has never had a father figure in her life.

 

[CarlK90245]

One other thing that I forgot to mention was that contrary to the Parole Agents' claims of credit for solving the case, they even bungled it on the day that they received the call from Allison Jacobs.

Following that call, the Parole agent went to the home, arrested P Garrido, and took him into the office. But the two of them returned to his house a few hours later. With Jaycee and the two girls (to whom she refers throughout the book as "A" and "D") sitting right there, he told Garrido to report to his office the following morning, and then turned around and left without saying a word to Jaycee or the girls.

The decision to bring Nancy, Jaycee, A, and D was entirely P Garrido's. The Parole Officer was apparently surprised that they were even there, and had to send them into a separate waiting room because children were not allowed in the main waiting room in the presence of other parolees.

In the brief initial interview of Jaycee and Nancy, Jaycee followed the script. She acknowledged that she was the mother of the children, and he let them leave to sit out in the car.

If P Garrido had not decided to bring the the four women to the meeting, and if he had not strayed from the script by claiming that Jaycee, A, and D were his nieces, we would probably not be having this conversation. Apparently, it was only that inconsistency that led them to come out to the car and re-interview Jaycee.

It's disgusting that they are now patting themselves on the back for a job allegedly well done, when in fact, they dropped the ball again - twice.

 

[LinasK]

One other thing that I forgot to mention was that contrary to the Parole Agents' claims of credit for solving the case, they even bungled it on the day that they received the call from Allison Jacobs.

Following that call, the Parole agent went to the home, arrested P Garrido, and took him into the office. But the two of them returned to his house a few hours later. With Jaycee and the two girls (to whom she refers throughout the book as "A" and "D") sitting right there, he told Garrido to report to his office the following morning, and then turned around and left without saying a word to Jaycee or the girls.

The decision to bring Nancy, Jaycee, A, and D was entirely P Garrido's. The Parole Officer was apparently surprised that they were even there, and had to send them into a separate waiting room because children were not allowed in the main waiting room in the presence of other parolees.

In the brief initial interview of Jaycee and Nancy, Jaycee followed the script. She acknowledged that she was the mother of the children, and he let them leave to sit out in the car.

If P Garrido had not decided to bring the the four women to the meeting, and if he had not strayed from the script by claiming that Jaycee, A, and D were his nieces, we would probably not be having this conversation. Apparently, it was only that inconsistency that led them to come out to the car and re-interview Jaycee.

It's disgusting that they are now patting themselves on the back for a job allegedly well done, when in fact, they dropped the ball again - twice.

God, that makes me so mad, that these idiots were part of a good old boys club mentality that didn't question a convicted felon. Criminals lie!!! They even talked to Jaycee in the house and didn't question her!:doh::banghead::banghead::banghead:
Thank God for women's intuition! Otherwise Jaycee would never be free, because she was mentally chained to him, even when he was so daring as to take her in public, like the Brentwood Corn Festival. Elizabeth Smart was also seen in public during her captivity, not recognized, and also didn't feel free enough to flee. That's what fear and brainwashing will do to you!:furious:
Jaycee deserves every penny of the $20 million the state of Calif. had to pay out because of the incompetency of their parole agents. The local newspaper came out with the details of the inspector general's report of their violations- they visited Garrido 60 times!!!
(Just to clarify, I haven't gotten my copy of the book yet, this is all information I've previously gathered...)

 

[shadowraiths]

From the book, it doesn't sound like Jaycee and the girls had run of the main house until his mom was quite disabled with Parkinsons and dementia. It wasn't clear what she would have known when they were confined.

Okay, I found the thread about the mom.

[ame="http://websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=88287"]Patricia Garrido - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community[/ame]


Imho, she absolutely knew.

 

[BlOnDe_GuRrL]

just bought it on kindle (for pc) and read it tonight.
it sucks that i can't copy it on my memory card to put on my ereader... considering I paid $11.99 for it.

 

[twinkiesmom]

Okay, I found the thread about the mom.

Patricia Garrido - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community


Imho, she absolutely knew.

Did she know Jaycee was underage and kidnapped? I don't know that from what Jaycee wrote in her book.

Should she have known? I would say yes, add her to the list of those who should have known, including the officers visiting the house.

Patricia will have to answer to her maker soon for what she knew/didn't know/refused to believe.

 

[shadowraiths]

Should she have known? I would say yes, add her to the list of those who should have known, including the officers visiting the house.

True that. I guess that, considering PG moved in shortly after he was released from prison, I would have expected her to a) know why he was in prison, b) know that he was not allowed around kids, c) recognized Jaycee from all the media coverage, or at the very least, refused to let PG keep the girl there. After all, she not only owned the house but *lived* there as well. But yes, she could have been in *extreme* denial.

 

[twinkiesmom]

True that. I guess that, considering PG moved in shortly after he was released from prison, I would have expected her to a) know why he was in prison, b) know that he was not allowed around kids, c) recognized Jaycee from all the media coverage, or at the very least, refused to let PG keep the girl there. After all, she not only owned the house but *lived* there as well. But yes, she could have been in *extreme* denial.

According to the book, it doesn't sound like Jaycee was allowed into the house until after both kids were born. At that point, she wouldn't have looked like her missing photo (e.g., considerably heavier and brunette).

 

[*~Aimee~*]

I got tired of waiting for my pre-ordered copy and ordered the Kindle version. Even if you don't have a Kindle, you can download the Kindle version and read it from your desktop computer screen.

cool - I did not know this - Thanks for pointing it out :woohoo:

 

[vlpate]

I would agree with you, but her interview seems to belie that..She's not as naive as you would expect, but she did seem to believe her abduction had protected other children....I think she has unraveled some of Garrido's manipulations at this point but that seems to be a sticking point.

The girls may not have been sexually abused, but they certainly were mentally and physically abused by Garrido. He forced affection on them on his terms. They lived out his religious and other delusions. They were forced to live in secret, in tents, without indoor plumbing or running water, no doctor or dentist visits, no peers or formal education. In the book, Jaycee mentions the girls were not surprised by the truth...They perceived their situation to be abnormal.

If there was nothing wrong with the girls, the college police wouldn't have intervened.

Twinkiesmom- I thought about you driving in from Houston today. I had not read or listened to the book yet - but I listened to it on the way home - you are right. I got the creepiest feeling that as they got a bit older, Nancy would take her on outtings (nails, thrift shops, etc.), while PG stayed with the girls. I got the sickest feeling in the pit of my stomach. Is that why he stopped touching her completely?? I still think she may have left any of that out in regard to their privacy - but I also have to admit I want to know. Would she feel guilty? What a horrible mess.

 

[twinkiesmom]

Twinkiesmom- I thought about you driving in from Houston today. I had not read or listened to the book yet - but I listened to it on the way home - you are right. I got the creepiest feeling that as they got a bit older, Nancy would take her on outtings (nails, thrift shops, etc.), while PG stayed with the girls. I got the sickest feeling in the pit of my stomach. Is that why he stopped touching her completely?? I still think she may have left any of that out in regard to their privacy - but I also have to admit I want to know. Would she feel guilty? What a horrible mess.

There was an article on the web yesterday that someone now claims the Garridos stalked their 2-year-old at two different stores, the latter of which they tried to use Jaycee as bait.

This story can't be confirmed, but it really makes you wonder if they ever stopped looking for new victims...and it really makes me wonder if it was Nancy Garrido at that craft fair who spotted Jaycee and selected her for abduction later.

If you believe this story (below), they did stalk their victims and follow them from one location to another...This would explain the likely nonrandomness of Jaycee's abduction.

http://www.news10.net/news/article/145598/29/Local-says-Garrido-used-Jaycee-as-bait

 

[LinasK]

I "pre-ordered" today from Barnes & Noble. They ordered 75 copies, it won't be in until Thurs...

I finally got my copy today after bugging the jerky manager last night. He told me after being non-committal that I was still 30-40 down the reservations list!!!:banghead::banghead::banghead: Apparently, they only got a dozen copies from Simon & Schuster last week!:banghead:
P.S., for those who haven't gotten it yet, it's $20 for the hardback vs. $12 for the Nook/Kindle/Amazon download types... (List price is $24.99)

 

[Leila]

Has anyone bought this yet? I decided to buy the Ebook 1AM this morning after someone in the ABC Special thread said we should all buy her thread. I was a little hesitant at first but decided to get it to support Jaycee. I am about 50 pages in and OMG this poor girl. Some of it is a bit hard to read just because of all what she went through. Just to kind of warn you that it does give a bit of detail (I'm not saying extensive detail or anything like that but mentions things) of what he did to her. I can't believe what she has endured. I am 53 pages into it so far. It doesn't look to be that big of a book only 198 pages in it.

I bought the book at Costco on Saturday and have only read 8 pages so far. I'd love to sit down and read it, but my adult daughter's birthday was today and the last few days I had to prepare for a birthday dinner, and our grandson is here this week and keeps me busy.

Just in reading the first 8 pages, Jaycee's dislike for Carl comes across.

 

[Leila]

I finally got my copy today after bugging the jerky manager last night. He told me after being non-committal that I was still 30-40 down the reservations list!!!:banghead::banghead::banghead: Apparently, they only got a dozen copies from Simon & Schuster last week!:banghead:
P.S., for those who haven't gotten it yet, it's $20 for the hardback vs. $12 for the Nook/Kindle/Amazon download types... (List price is $24.99)

Costco's price is $14.49 for the hardback copy. I got mine on Satuirday, but haven't read beyond the first 8 pages.

 

[LinasK]

Costco's price is $14.49 for the hardback copy. I got mine on Satuirday, but haven't read beyond the first 8 pages.

Warning, it gets graphic very quickly. I used to think I'd want to know the details, but once she gets into them, I was sick.:sick: I stayed up to 3 a.m. last night to read the whole thing cover-cover. The latter half the book is more about the mental/emotional abuse than the physical. I can't say enough for her bravery.
I'm sorry Jaycee is so bitter towards Carl, he didn't deserve the false allegations at the time that he took her. He tried to go after them, but they were in a car, and he only had a mountain bike. I think Jaycee and Carl's tension may have been typical step-father, step-daughter relations, but maybe Terry and Carl's relationship wouldn't had survived. I do think she should give him the chance to see her again. Seems in some ways like her anger towards Philip is misdirected at Carl, and her biofather Ken.
It greatly bothers me that she claims she doesn't hate Philip and has forgiven him. After 18 years of being a sex slave with no life and dominated, she should go through the process of anger and not be so quick to forgive him. (I also have to wonder if he did anything towards the girls once they got older and he left Jaycee alone... he was letting them sleep in the house.) I think he had the potential to become a killer- at the end of the book it was revealed he was torturing animals- the cats he would give her then take away in particular.
I'm glad she has gotten her driver's license. I hope she is serious about pursuing her GED and her education beyond that. Although she claims she has no work skills- she does have the skills to be a graphic designer. She does have the money to have a good lifestyle now, live where she wants, and help other people. I hope that someday she is able to go back to her old neighborhood in Tahoe without being traumatized, and reconnect with more of her old friends. I hope she doesn't need to live the rest of her life in anonymity- she isn't a criminal. I also hope she realizes her dreams of travel. I'd befriend her if I ever got the chance to meet her...

 

[twinkiesmom]

Seems in some ways like her anger towards Philip is misdirected at Carl, and her biofather Ken.
It greatly bothers me that she claims she doesn't hate Philip and has forgiven him. After 18 years of being a sex slave with no life and dominated, she should go through the process of anger and not be so quick to forgive him. (I also have to wonder if he did anything towards the girls once they got older and he left Jaycee alone... he was letting them sleep in the house.) I think he had the potential to become a killer- at the end of the book it was revealed he was torturing animals- the cats he would give her then take away in particular.
..

YES...your first point....that was my same take exactly.

And as to the anger point...There is nothing in the book about her real feelings regarding Nancy usurping her role as mother for the first decade plus of her daughters' lives. The anger involved should be primal but just doesn't seem to be there (or at least it's not expressed in the book as such).

 

[*~Aimee~*]

So I am on page 154. One thing I like is how Jaycee is writing it like it is happening but then towards the end of most (not all*) chapters she does a "reflection" of how she feels about that stage now.

I am so amazed at how easy reading meaning (I am a slow reader). But there are parts I have to put the book down it gets so hard emotionally to read. Jaycee is a very stong woman and whatever she decides to do in life she will be so sucessful! She is a awesome mommy to her girls. And such a wonderful daughter.

 

[margaret_diane]

I ordered it from amazon.ca and it arrived yesterday - I read it through entirely, and here are my thoughts on it:

-> I found her affect throughout the book to be rather flat!! That is to say that the tone of the book seemed, almost... emotionless in most parts! I suppose though, that considering the content, and what she survived this is most appropriate. I don't know that I'd expect her tone (even in writing) to be any different!!

-> She included excerpts from a journal she kept as a child while imprisoned. Though monotonous to read - this part illuminated her true desire to go home, how she missed her mom and family and friends, and how she felt so torn, and unable to help herself!!

-> I too was left wondering about how her children experienced their prison. If they weren't surprised to hear all their mother had lived through, I had hoped to find out why not? Perhaps Philip told them such while Jaycee was on an outting with Nancy? I too was deeply concerned that he may well have sexually abused one or both children as well. My fears were heightened when I read about how Nancy and he would drive around near parks and schools, and Nancy would get the girls to do the splits etc... so Philip could take pictures / video secretly from another viewpoint. This was happening while Jaycee was incarcerated, so I don't think I can believe that he ever really changed his ways -- two small girls (by the way, Jaycee says in her book that Philip said he "needed" a girl.....that he hoped her baby would be a girl etc.... two small girls don't seem to have stood a chance with him. If they did, perhaps it might have been only b/c they were his children? Some pedophiles cannot get excited about their own children / family... only others (its less personal that way?).

-> Jaycee doesn't explain a lot about her current relationship with her mother or family. She thanks them in the end of the book, and indicates that her distance from them should not be considered a reflection of her feelings towards them (? loosely paraphrased as book is not presently in hand). I assume then that she doesn't live with them and doesn't identify very strongly with them.

-> she forgot her mother's face. She found thinking of her mother so painful, that she blocked those thoughts most of the time. I was surprised (deeply!!) to learn that a child abducted at 11 could, and did indeed forget her mother's face!! I never realized this was a possibility even, though now I see it so clearly!! It makes me wonder how many other older abductees might be out there (Jacob Wetterling et al, perhaps)... who are too frozen with fright, and numb to step up and announce themselves!! How many can't recall home life in great detail prior to their abductions? I think this book really opened my eyes to the potential for the human mind to build walls to protect itself as best it can!!

-> I was surprised that she never used her children's real names, only their initials. I know she wants to protect their privacy -- I get that -- but I would have liked to know the names, as then I'd have better understood how they GOT their names which she touches on in the book.

-> I would like to have known more about her ongoing relationship with her kids. How are they coping? Have they changed their names to protect their privacy (Jaycee doesn't like to risk them being exposed, so has issues going to school functions with them etc).... how does she cope with the issues they have from being captive??

I couldn't put the book down, and I thank her for writing it, and sharing as much as she did! I hope one day, her children (one or both) write their own book regarding their own experiences as prisoners in that environment!!

 

[margaret_diane]

wondering now if police ever located and searched the trailer and surrounding property where the three stayed the night before her first child was born?????