These are the types of personal stories that I'm drawn to. I admire the bravery it takes to put your story into the world for all to read and judge. Leeb's book is hauntingly superb. The writing is excellent, making you feel like you're right there with her during her struggles. It will make you think and stay with you after you've finished it. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

An utterly gripping and emotionally devastating memoir—I couldn’t tear myself away. Andrea’s story unfolds through a thousand quiet traumas inflicted by family, peers, therapists, and romantic partners. As her support group poignantly reflected, if reading her journey is this difficult, living it must have been unimaginable.

Wow this memoir was intense but I'm glad she got to share her story. I loved how honest she was and that the stories were told in a matter of fact way. I liked how it was organized linearly instead of jumping around it time so it was easy to follow.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A fantastic and important book on a subject that makes most readers uncomfortable, and rightly so. Everyone acknowledges that SA at any age is wrong, but it particularly comes with its own baggage when it involves minor children, and even more so when it's against one's own child.
Author Andrea Leeb writes about her childhood trauma, her experience with SA and the violence that so often accompanies it. She handles a very tough subject with a light hand, recognizing that the subject alone is a heavy one.
Highly recommended as she shows that there is hope for victims and that it is never their fault

I don't typically reach for memoirs, but I was drawn in by the cover and the title. By the time I finished reading the synopsis, I was hooked. I ended up reading this in one day because I just couldn't put it down.

Andrea Leeb is an economical writer and seems to know just how much detail to share and what to leave unsaid. Many of the descriptions of the intensely traumatizing and painful experiences she went through felt devoid of emotion, presented with almost clinical detachment. That was initially something I saw as a flaw in the book, but I came to see it as an evocative portrayal of one of Andrea's coping mechanisms. I felt her dissociation, how she distracted herself and numbed her pain to get through life and simply survive.

Sprinkled throughout the story are moments of lighthearted fun and even joy shared with her parents, highlighting the complexity of growing up in an abusive household. Andrea also shares her hesitations around seeking help to find healing from her trauma, and some of the negative experiences she had when she did seek help. These parts of her story are so important for fellow victims/survivors to read, to maybe see their own experiences reflected in others, to know they are not alone.

The book ends on a more uplifting, hopeful note, though refrains from painting the journey toward healing with an overly sunny brush. Overall, Such a Pretty Picture is a well-written, highly readable, and strikingly balanced examination of a heavy, disturbing topic.