A kiss is not just a kiss: The isolation of the adult victim of child abuse

Abstract

Translating great novels to the small or large screen inevitably involves the loss of some of the insights gained from the written word and the creation of a new world. Some novels appear to be written with screen translations in mind. Others appear to be impossible to translate. In this article The Kiss, by Kathryn Harrison, is reviewed. The book provides beautifully written insights into the painful world of emotional and psychological child abuse, anorexia and bulimia. There are other important messages in the work, not the least being those that we can learn about the isolation that an abused child can suffer. Such abuse can prepare (or groom) children for later abuse as an adult.