WISE LITTLE ONE

In this debut memoir, a woman relates her spiritual journey as she grapples with childhood trauma.

Wilson writes that she was born into a troubled family of four that lived in a series of different homes in Las Vegas, Atlanta, and Plant City, Florida. The kids witnessed constant fights between their parents, Wilson writes, who would periodically split and reunite in a never-ending “toxic cycle.” The author says that her mother, who had bipolar disorder, had frightening episodes that included an incident involving a shotgun; she also says that her father physically abused her mother when she was pregnant. At age 12, Wilson had a spiritual awakening, and she later devoted her life to “learning to connect with my Spiritual guidance and to my inner child,” which she called “Little Jana.” She writes that these aided her in moving past the traumas of her youth and in pursuing healthy relationships as an adult. On the road to self-realization, Wilson says, she studied and worked with such people as self-help author Debbie Ford and led group retreats that taught attendees about meditative practices and listening to one’s inner child. In this book, the author openly discusses her family’s difficult history, noting abuse in each parent’s past. The memoir’s message, however, is overwhelmingly positive, as Wilson’s struggles with feeling “not good enough” and “unwanted” eventually led her to love and accept herself. She shrewdly clarifies concepts such as internalization and emotional intelligence by showing how she applied them to her own life. However, some readers may not be persuaded by some accounts, as when the author tells of recalling a vivid memory of when she was in her mother’s womb during hypnotherapy. She’s nondenominational concerning religion, advocating that readers foster a “spiritual source of love and wisdom,” whether one calls it God, Creator, or Spirit. Wilson rounds out the book with “tools” that one may use in one’s healing journey and a few personal black-and-white photos of herself and her parents.

An intimate portrait of perseverance and a helpful guide to spirituality.