Book Review 73

Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Child Abuse Review Vol. 17: 73–74 (2008)DOI: 10.1002/car

Bent Twigs by Wally Harbert, Blackie and Co, Peterborough, 2005.352pp. ISBN 1-904-986-15-3 (Pbk), £8.99

After a lifetime in social services as a social worker and latterly seniormanager, Wally Harbert has written a novel with a difference. At its heartis a saga of abuse in a residential school, in councils and by electedmembers. The author has skilfully intertwined a cast of characters fromthese settings with the life of Paula, a young person in care. She is a survi-vor of abuse and the novel links that abuse to other people’s actions. Thereare powerful descriptions of people who cared and of others who shouldhave cared about the well-being of children in care but did not.

Bent Twigs explores the power struggles and prejudices that wouldbe familiar to many directors of social services. The petty bureaucracyof local authorities, the meaningless protocols which only serve to puthurdles in the way of residential staff doing their job, the ineffectualcouncillors and the power hungry leader of the council are vividlydescribed. There are sympathetic portrayals of the few caring workers,teachers and managers who are depicted as powerless to ensure thatchildren are safe and happy.

Paula is portrayed as an angry, sad and disillusioned young woman whois wise beyond her years. She can engineer situations to thwart workersor to get the results she wants, she can rage and weep but Paula’s deepsadness makes her vulnerable. Mary is the young social worker who standsby Paula and who evokes reactions of disbelief and anger from Paula whenshe does not let her down as others have done. The characters come alive,whether they are the scheming leader of the council, the director ofpersonnel or the chief executive who show no appreciation of the task ofresidential care, being more afraid of challenges from the unions than forchildren’s safety when allegations of abuse are made. The quiet tenacityof the manager of the residential school who tries to make life bearablefor the girls, despite her despair at the failures of the system to protectchildren, the caring director of social services who is opposed at everyturn and the powerful trades union representative who has the ear of theleader of the council are all skilfully described. The novel depicts theactivities of a sexually predatory teacher as being minimised at councillevel to avoid bad publicity or controversy. Even the suicide of one ofthe girls fails to make the senior managers act.

I found Bent Twigs a challenging novel in which the author’s experi-ences over many years have been rolled into two years in the life of aschool. However, some sections felt more like a case record than a noveland did not add to my enjoyment of the story.

Wally Harbert has written a book that will make childcare workers andmanagers from the 1970s and 1980s feel uncomfortable. His stated hopeis that people reading it now will act to ensure that his depiction of thepettiness and lack of attention to the needs of children then will makepeople today more vigilant. There are softer moments in the book, butthe conveyed pain of the residents overshadows them, ensuring that theimpact of the young people’s misery is never forgotten. For professionalreaders, the message is that vigilance is still crucial to protect children fromharm and that there is no room for complacency. For other readers, thebook shows that, in addition to children who experience abuse, managers

Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Child Abuse Review Vol. 17: 73–74 (2008)Published online in Wiley InterScience(www.interscience.wiley.com) DOI: 10.1002/car.1000

BookReviewEdited by Jacqui Casher

‘A saga of abuse ina residential school,in councils and byelected members.’

‘Vigilance is stillcrucial to protectchildren from harmand that there isno room forcomplacency’

74 Book Review

Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Child Abuse Review Vol. 17: 73–74 (2008)DOI: 10.1002/car

and staff can also suffer at the hands of corrupt local governmentmembers or powerful officials who value procedures and power rather thanpeople. The final chapter confirms Paula’s survival but at what cost?

Anne BlackIndependent Social Work Consultant

Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI: 10.1002/car.1000