Malignant Memory

Malignant Memory is a novel that tells the tale of two friends, one a survivor of a residential school and one who grew up in an orphanage. Both have experienced horrific trauma as children, but they find strength and serenity in the love and forgiveness they receive from each other and from those close to them.

 Malignant Memory follows Elizabeth, a young girl from a family of ten children who has left her home to live with her grandmother, Andy, who she barely knows. Everyone in the community adores Andy. But Elizabeth soon learns there is far more to her grandmother than most people realize – an abusive dark side brought on by flashes of her traumatic past. Elizabeth is left to wrestle with the impact of her grandmother’s troubled childhood and secrets. Andy’s friend, a Cree woman who is a survivor of a residential school, provides the pathway to healing for Andy and Elizabeth.

 Malignant Memory paints a portrait of how to put one foot in front of the other in the face of unimaginable trauma. It shows there is power in bringing dark secrets into the light, particularly in the face of acceptance and forgiveness and how bad times can become an opportunity to gain strength.

 The stories of abuse, trauma and grief in the book are based on actual accounts Dr. Paterson received in her work as a nurse and a researcher; they are real-life narratives of survivors of residential schools, adults who experienced profound childhood trauma and people facing life-threatening illness.