Please, Let Me Go | Caitlin Spencer | Book Review

SUBJECT: 5/5
WRITING STYLE: 4/5
RELEVANCE: 4/5
OVERALL: 4.5/5

My Musings

I feel quite embarrassed as I am writing this review and deciding on what ratings to give the book. As a woman, I feel guilty because giving this book ratings will mean belittling the struggle of its author.

My only consolation is the fact that, maybe, when I give it a good rating (which it truly deserves), my readers will be more interested in reading Please, Let Me Go. It is a necessary step as child prostitution, sex trade and human trafficking are some issues that continue to plague humanity even after thousands of years. Reading this book will ensure that we are at least aware of the ways in which it operates in current society.

What to expect? What is the book all about?

Please, Let Me Go is the true story of the decade-long struggle of a 14-year-old child who was forced into prostitution, sex trade and human trafficking because she was young, naïve and, meek. Caitlin was a happy young child until her parents decided to shift to a new neighbourhood.

She applied to many schools in the new locality but she was put on a waiting list and because of this she had a lot of time in hand. To pass her time and earn some pocket money in the process, she applied for many part-time jobs but all of those needed her to be at least 16 years old.

Disappointed but still having a normal childhood, Caitlin’s life took a wrong turn when one day she saw a simple looking advertisement seeking models. It was then that everything that could have gone wrong did go wrong and Caitlin was forced to become a medium for satisfying the lust of sick paedophiles.

Something which started on a rather simple note became so twisted that Caitlin couldn’t find a way out. Please, Let Me Go is her sad, but true, story that sheds some necessary light on the ugly nexus of politicians, policemen and shady businessmen who continue to force young girls into sex trade so that they can retain their money and power.

The writing style of the author

Please, Let Me Go is a memoir of the author’s life as a child sex worker. It has been written chronologically, starting with Caitlin describing her happy childhood days, how she fell into the trap of a man called Gordon, how she got sucked into it deeper and deeper, how her ownership was then transferred to a man who often sold her to groups of Pakistani Muslims who gang-raped her violently while racially abusing her at the same time and finally how, after a lot of effort, she was able to get out of it.

The language of the book is simple and the author speaks candidly. She chooses not to hide anything that happened to her because it is only then that the readers will know about the horrors that she had to go through.

While talking about the tortures of her perpetrators she also talks about the mistakes that she made along the way. Throughout the book, she is unforgiving of her own shortcomings and blunders that made her sink deeper into this muck but if you think about it, she was just a girl who was naïve and meek.

Cover, Font and Readability

The cover of Please, Let Me Go is okay. It is neither captivating nor unappealing. The blurb sounds interesting because, as a reader who loves memoirs, I was quickly fascinated and horrified by what lay inside.

The better part is the book’s readability – the font style, font size, line spacing, paragraph spacing and all other related parameters make the book very easy to read.

These days I see many publishers resorting to smaller fonts and poorly aligned pages to bring the price down but such books are becoming more and more difficult to read. I really hope Indian publishers will soon realize this blunder and shy away from such mistakes in the future.

A message for all parents

Please, Let Me Go has a strong message for all parents who often get so absorbed in their own world they end up completely overlooking what is happening in their children’s life. Had Caitlin’s parents decided to probe and take action in the first few months, things wouldn’t have gone so bad for Caitlin. What’s done cannot be undone, but Caitlin, throughout the book, stresses on the importance of “being there” for your child.

Final Verdict

The book is a fast-paced breezy memoir even though the subject that it is written on is far from breezy. It is a short read which should be read by every woman, especially every mother.

Pick up the book if

If you are a reader who loves memoirs, then I don’t see any reason why you shouldn’t pick this book up.

Can’t wait to read it? Buy your copy of Please, Let Me Go using the link below.