Reviews
“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisble to the eyes.” This is a quote from the book “THE LITTLE PRINCE.” Dan beautifully writes about a topic of interest to all of society. He openly spills his heart out to his readers about hurting and mending. Suffering is such a horrible thing, yet we can grow and become stronger. Dan’s shares his experiences,wanting to make the world a better place for those who have been abused. Dan illustrates how conquering ones fears is a very liberating and healthy thing to do. The many metaphors the author uses paints a clear picture of the intense feelings that were significatnt in his life. As a former teacher, I have dealt with issues of abuse. Only if more professionals like Dan would step up to the plate and become involved. I would like to encourage all educators to read Dan’s book. Knowledge is power and Dan has much to share that any professional could use.
RW
Six times, “Who is Who Among American Teachers.”
Rockford Golden Apple Academy
I give one of my poems to honor Dan’s books. If you read the book, you will know what how each verse applies to Dan’s life. God bless, peace, and harmony.
Your Dreams
Keep in touch with your dreams
For they are yours alone
Glittering stars within your mind and soul
Put wings on your dreams and soar to new heights
For in life’s clouds, your dreams will appear
Cup your hands and do not fear
Those glittering stars will brighlty appear
Only if you believe in your dreams
Leave a Comment
{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
Courageous, uplifting, amazing book. Not just giving hope to victims of abuse but anyone experiencing life trauma. A must read, I was lucky enough to obtain a galley edition. Thank you Dan.
Dan is a very compassionate individual and Dr. I am looking forward to reading and purchasing his works. To rise above ones circumstances in life takes courage. As an ADDHD adult, I have faced many challenges and reached my goals. I am sure Dan’s book and sharing of his experiences will help others to an enlightened path of discover….self.
Dr. Williams treated me for anxiety and stress. I have never had a more compassionate, caring doctor. I cannot wait for his book, thank you so much dr. williams. My life is better, YEAH I DID IT, thanks to you. I only expect your book to be good. My son also likes seeing you.
Very moving story! I purchased this book, along with other books on sexual abuse, to get a better understanding of what victims experience and how they can help themselves to move past their trauma. This was the most helpful book, by far. It was not only beneficial in helping me to understand victims of abuse and the healing process; it has also helped me on my own path to happiness and better self-esteem. The author paints an excellent picture of the silver linings shining through the dark clouds in life. Very inspirational! I highly recommend this book to everyone.
A true account of sexual abuse, and it’s emotional impact on relationships, and the emotional survival and healing. At the end of each chapter Dr. Williams offers metaphors, suggestions and advice to proceed through the pain, and proceed on a path of recovery. Riveting, emotional and brutally honest. Hope, does exist for all victims of abuse, sexual, and emotional. Much more than a life story, a reckoning and resolution of demons that haunt us all.
I found this book to be about much more than abuse. I could relate to the rural setting as well as the author’s city experience. The metaphors at the end of each chapter were inspiring, I only hope I could implement some of the teachings. The book starts out with an intense father son bond that continues, you can actually feel the strength as the author ages through the book. Very intense at times and sad, however it ends with hope and an uplifting experience that stays with you after you put the book down. This is a book I need to go back and read more than once.
Rarely does a book touch both the heart and soul. From the very beginning “ABOVE THE SHOULDERS” draws you into the young boy’s pain and his inability to cope with feelings he doesn’t understand. You will not want to put it down. I want to thank Dan for being brave enough to share his story of pain, for being the voice of those crippled by the shame of their abuse. Most of all I would like to thank him for letting us know there is hope, healing, and life to be enjoyed after surviving abuse.
This book was a surprise, a friend bought it for me. It was very inspiring.What the author went through will give you chills. His ability to pull out of his physical and sexual abuse is very encouraging to say the least.
I still have a hard time believing he disclosed all of his hardships. Very BRAVE and still giving hope.
His love of baseball and the outdoors pulls him through his traumas. We all should rely on our strengths and Williams does this through out the book. I will forgive him since I am a Cub fan and he is an avid St. Louis Cardinal fan. He describes some awesome moments when the Cardinals were at their peak in the sixties.
The message is clear! Never give up, learn from your mistakes as well as your hardships. All traumas in life teach us something. We just have to look for it.
Negative– Too short, would love to of read more to find out how he is doing now.
Was an amazing read, the boy’s journey takes you on a path of his inner self destruction and his feelings of betrayal. He feels alone, unworthy of his parents love or anyone’s love. His other traumas are amazing. I could not believe what he endured. This is a haunting story of how a boy experiences sexual abuse, and life. The abuse is not that graphic, however is written in a way that one can understand the horrors and it’s impact. I could feel his pain, and the author adds humor and metaphors that stay with you for days.
There is hope, that was the message that was riddled through the book. It was uplifting and actually caused me to ponder my own life and how I see people, my loved one’s and life in general. I highlighted areas,and wrote in the margin so I can go back to some of my favorite passages.
Williams makes it an easy read and it was difficult to put down. I read this in two nights and it has still,with me. Would recomend this book 100%, be prepared for an emotional roller coaster. You will close the book smiling, realizing that hope can be accomplished for anyone who has experienced abuse.
I also loved the Nietzsche quote, “That which does not kill me , makes me stronger” How true , how true.
Just finished the book and must comment that it was very well written. It took courage and strength to write this book! Very impressive.
Thank you Dan. It was a great read and I look forward to your next book!
We all have our demons and Dan Williams certainly had his. The story of how he dealt with his demons is remarkable and sad, uplifting and challenging. I am not a mental health professional. From a purely fellow-human-being, life-experience perspective, I found “Above His Shoulders” to be an engaging, engrossing and thought provoking book to read.
Dan Williams has revealed his battle with the consequences of childhood sexual abuse, and done it in a way that helps me understand it better, and to connect more with those who have suffered in this way. I am thankful for the insights that he has shared that help me be a better friend and helper to those in my life who have suffered similarly.
Some people think that suffering people can only be helped from a position of strength, power, control and “having it all together.” We so often hide our pain and deep hurts from one another, even in families, marriages and in other close human relationships.
In contrast, Dan’s journey reveals that positive healing can be found when we become vulnerable, transparent and seek help. He shows how it is possible, even preferable, to connect with others who are hurting from a position of brokenness, weakness, and humility. I think this book can be a help to many hurting people from a man who through life experience has become a “wounded healer.”
The premise of the book may be centered on a courageous man’s account of childhood abuse, but the messages of hope and tools for personal growth are applicable to every reader. If you have ever known anybody, including yourself, who has struggled with the never-ending challenges of life, from relationships to careers, self-doubt to false-pride, the pain of tragedy, or the joys and fear of parenting, you must read this book.
Mr. Williams imparts decades of wisdom, through his own vast experiences, both as a person as well as a practitioner, to give the reader hope and awaken the strength of faith within us to heal our souls and build our spirit to fully appreciate the gift of everyday. He empowers us to embrace even the trials of life as spirit-building experiences that cultivate increased fulfillment today, contentment despite uncontrollable circumstances, assets of humility and generosity, and passion for the future.
Above His Shoulders is the story of a man’s journey from youth through adulthood, and of the trauma that help shape its course. In his first book, author Dan Williams crafts an immersive and peripatetic narrative that weaves between such disparate locales as rural and decidedly Southern hamlet of Du Quoin, IL and the deeply impoverished and shocking environs of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. Williams details in vivid prose the traumas of his childhood, and how they led inextricably to the tragedies of his later years. But the work ends on a positive note, with the author finding peace in the deserts of the Southwest, and with it a mission to help other like himself avoid similar pitfalls.
The characters of Williams’ story are rich with detail, from his stoic yet devoted father to his Grandpa Pete, a chronic jokester who owned a sleepy bar in the author’s birthplace. We meet the nun who covered for Williams in a pinch, and the New York physician who introduced him to medicine as warfare. He manages to convey happiness at falling in love just as easily as the pain of its departure, and his descriptions of parenthood and the joys of being a father are deeply moving.
It’s remarkable that just pages after a tender description of hunting rabbits with his father, Williams can open up and reveal his deepest wound, the repeated abuse he endured at the hands of his cousin, the antagonist in this tale. He shows us how these early injuries reverberated forward in time, helping to sow the seeds of failure in relationship after relationship, and frequently crippling his ability to lead a normal life. We also bear witness to his cathartic confrontation with his tormentor, and later his redemption, when he finds a direction with the help of a short Jewish psychiatrist and spiritual healer in the Arizona desert.
Whether you have had similar experiences and are looking for guidance, or are just interested in a good and powerful read, you should pick up a copy of Above His Shoulders and give it a try. There truly is something here for every reader.
We all have a story. Dan Williams’ story is not just another sad tale of childhood trauma and sexual abuse. Nor is it the usual version of triumph of good over evil. His story is our story, yours and mine. He shows us that from speaking the truth comes the birth of Self and the rising of Spirit.
Dr. Williams touches the elements of gender and power, sexuality and nurturance, safety and identity, freedom and love, fate and identity, God and nature…as if they are notes of a song that we have all heard before.
This book is about real life for real people with real pain, who do have new beginnings and happy endings.
Kathryn Brown, Ed.D.
Courageous, honest and triumphant
by Anonymous
Reader Rating:
See Detailed Ratings
March 11, 2009: Above His Shoulders is a poignantly written, personal account of childhood sexual abuse. As we travel with the author from childhood, through adolescence and on to adulthood, we witness the searing impact of sexual abuse on the soul and the devastating impact on both personal and professional relationships.
The book is also about courage. Courage is something we all admire, and when asked to define the word, most likely conjures up images of physical bravery and protecting others from physical harm. The essence of courage is harder to define, but becomes clearer as we see instances identifying same, instances of holding onto one’s moral center, casting off adversity and “doing the right thing” regardless of the consequences. Consider how the author is finally able to share his history of abuse with those closest to him, and the courage shown when confronting his perpetrator.
The author stands tall and blows the whistle on sexual perpetrators, on behalf of us all. His journey is courageous, honest, and triumphant.
Courage by Anne Sexton
It is in the small things we see it.
The child’s first step,
as awesome as an earthquake.
The first time you rode a bike,
wallowing up the sidewalk.
The first spanking when your heart
went on a journey all alone.
When they called you crybaby
or poor or fatty or crazy
and made you into an alien,
you drank their acid
and concealed it.
Later,
if you faced the death of bombs and bullets
you did not do it with a banner,
you did it with only a hat to
comver your heart.
You did not fondle the weakness inside you
though it was there.
Your courage was a small coal
that you kept swallowing.
If your buddy saved you
and died himself in so doing,
then his courage was not courage,
it was love; love as simple as shaving soap.
Later,
if you have endured a great despair,
then you did it alone,
getting a transfusion from the fire,
picking the scabs off your heart,
then wringing it out like a sock.
Next, my kinsman, you powdered your sorrow,
you gave it a back rub
and then you covered it with a blanket
and after it had slept a while
it woke to the wings of the roses
and was transformed.
Later,
when you face old age and its natural conclusion
your courage will still be shown in the little ways,
each spring will be a sword you’ll sharpen,
those you love will live in a fever of love,
and you’ll bargain with the calendar
and at the last moment
when death opens the back door
you’ll put on your carpet slippers
and stride out.
Dear Dan,
Thank you so much for coming to Boylan to speak. I just wanted to thank you for being honest about everything and about your life, i wish i could do the same sometimes. I am truly hoping to buy this book on Friday. Hopefully I can talk to you more later on.
Thank you again for coming to speak!
Carrie Stenerson
I had a very hard time putting this book down. It has a remarkable story and I highly recommend it.
I cannot imagine how hard it was for Dan to write this book where he shares his private life of abuse, pain, and tormnent. I know Dan…his heart is as big as it gets and I know that he needed to write this book for himself and for others. It tells of his secret life of pain and torment….secret pain that so so many people have but are not able to share…or find healing.
I hope that anyone who has been abused will read this book and find the courage that Dan had to confront his past and the bondage it had him in. It tells a story that so effectively illustrates the ongoing damage that abuse brings about in peoples lives but does not have to.
It offers hope as well. Hope that healing can come and perpetrators can be confronted. That closure can come and with it healing and a the opportunity to go forward and no longer live in the past.
I strongly recommend this book and hope that as many people as possible have a chance to read it and learn from it….I certainly did.
John J. Koehler MD
President, CEO
Physicians Immediate Care