Six-year-old Sheila was abondoned by her mother on a highway when she was four. But that was a small part of the book, and as usual the majority of this book reminded me that there are people out there who care about these children.Hayden recounts her battle to uncover the keen intelligence and touch the emotions of a troubled, sexually molested six-year-old girl who abused a younger child and was placed in her class for retarded preadolescents while awaiting space in a state institution It's hard to swallow, knowing someone could actually do that to a child. I literally threw the book across the room, and had to force myself to pick it up again. That was the case here, as well, when I read what Sheila's Uncle did to her. Her stubbornness, her clingyness, everything about her made me want to hug her and hold her.The subject matter of Hayden's books often leave me in tears, clutching the book and vowing never to read another one like it. Throughout this book, no matter how frustrating the battle got, no matter how many obstacles were in the way, Sheila gives off this wonderfully charming character. How can you not admire her? How can anyone *not* see her as some kind of amazing saint, after all the children she has helped?From things that she said, in this book and others, I have a feeling Sheila was a very special child to Torey, maybe her favorite. I've said it before, but I have to say it again. This is the remarkable story of their journey together – an odyssey of hope, courage, and inspiring devotion that opened the heart and mind of one lost child to a new world of discovery and joy. With patience, skill, and abiding love, she fought long and hard to release a haunted little girl from her secret nightmare – and nurture the spark of genius she recognised trapped within Sheila's silence. Everyone thought Sheila was beyond salvation – except her teacher, Torey Hayden. A survivor of horrific abuse, she never spoke, never cried, and was placed in a class for severely retarded children after committing an atrocious act of violence against another child. Six-year-old Sheila was abandoned by her mother on a highway when she was four. This beautiful and deeply moving tale recounts educational psychologist Torey Hayden's battle to unlock the emotions of a troubled and sexually abused child who, with the help of Hayden, was finally able to overcome her dark past and realise her full potential.

One Child by Torey L. Hayden