Book Review: Caged Eyes An Air Force Cadet's Story of Rape & Resilence By Lynn K. Hall

Caged Eyes An Air Force Cadet's Story of Rape & Resilience by Lynn K. Hall is one of those rare memoirs whose story stays with you long after reading. It was the book that poked my sleeping writing muse awake and had me vomiting (as they say and how it felt) more of my own memoir back out.

A lot can be said about Lynn K. Hall's new book. I find it hard to summarize without giving too much of it away. It's a brave, honest, open, unforgettable, evocative memoir that will have you feeling a roller coaster of emotions from anger, empathy, understanding, hopefulness, disbelief, determination, and awe.

I'm in awe of the way Lynn K. Hall was able to open up and reveal so much of her personal journey and traumas.

As a writer, I'm well aware that when you publish a memoir, you can inadvertently put yourself out there to be scrutinized and judged. Caged Eyes is a foremost example of fearless writing.

I had been reading a series of how-to books on screen writing, coding, and graphic design, but when I heard an interview with the author on Rising Up With Sonali on 90.7 FM KPFK, I was intrigued and wanted to learn more about Hall's story.

It's a well written book. I would only lend to the most responsible of friends since I'd want it back as a reference to study and examine how it was crafted. I have since started writing more of my memoir pieces again, if only for my most trusted of friends and myself. I also started reading more memoirs and added some novels back to my reading list.

Lynn K. Hall's Caged Eyes An Air Force Cadet's Story of Rape & Resilience gets five stars in my book. It meets my five star requirement: a good book will take you on a journey but a great one, takes you on a journey and brings you back to yourself.

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