The Convent: THE SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLER: A shocking true story of surviving the care home from hell

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This book follows the story of Marie and her life in Oldham growing up in poverty in the 1950's before being taken into a Roman Catholic Convent that was overseen by a cruel and sadistic nun. Marie will never in her lifetime face that no matter how much she loved her mother, gave her the excuse of depression, when it was overwork, grinding poverty and an adherence to a religion that kept her that way that was the cause of the depression. These children are either orphaned or from very poor homes, that I thought it might be interesting after reading Stolen: A Memoir of a girl from a very wealthy family in the US placed in a therapeutic school that she, and many others, accuse of very similar sorts of abuse. Body language expert explains Meghan Markle's 'proud reason' behind placing her hand on Prince Harry's chest.

Marie is emotionally damaged by the experience of being given up to the orphanage, the terrible abuse there, and never having been reclaimed. This book is so heartbreaking, the experiences that Marie endured are things that no human should ever have to endure, she tells the tale of not only the horrific years she spent at the convent at the hands of the nuns but also the impact it had on her when she left, and going into later life. I adored my children… I wanted to make sure they felt loved and safe; something I had never had as a child,’ Marie says. No missing or damaged pages, no creases or tears, no underlining or highlighting of text, and no writing in the margins. Marie tells the story of how she was taken away from a poor, but happy and loving home life, to live in a convent - away from everyone and everything she holds dear.It is impossible to comprehend how little Marie suffered at the hands of the cruel nun, Sister Isobel and all those that looked the other way during the terrible abuse she endured and what impact it had on the rest of her life. It was just one of those things kids say, but it made me cry, because it was the only show of affection I'd had for years.

The Roman Catholic Church confirmed they were aware of the complaint and have since apologised to Marie. It’s possible that she was taken due to the family’s extreme poverty, or because of her mother’s struggles with depression and having ten children. A police investigation in December 2015 revealed Sister O'Brien as the suspect, but also made the crushing discovery that she had died before the allegations could be tested in court. Marie says she now feels she could forgive Sister O'Brien, and even wishes to place flowers on her grave.Nearly 60 years later, she found the courage to come clean about the abuse she suffered at the hands of the nuns. Later, I thought that it was the author remembering it as experienced by a six year-old and not adding the details that an adult knows as is usual in memoirs. I literally could not put this book down once I began reading, and was on the edge of my seat the entire way through as I flipped through the pages to see what happened next.