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Quick answer: If you loved Cathy Glass, try Damaged, Cut, A Child Called “It”, The Lost Boy, One Child and Tiger's Child. Each one is a moving true story about foster care, childhood trauma or adults who refuse to give up on a child.
Cathy Glass is the pen name of a British foster carer who has written many bestselling memoirs about the children she has looked after, starting with Damaged in 2007. Each book follows one child, often deeply hurt by abuse or neglect, and shows the patience it takes to earn their trust. Readers love her honesty and the hope in each story, though the subject matter is hard. These books share its true stories of resilience and care.
Table of Contents
Quick Picks at a Glance
| Book | Author | Type | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Damaged | Cathy Glass | Memoir | readers new to Cathy Glass |
| Cut | Cathy Glass | Memoir | readers who want another early Glass book |
| A Child Called “It” | Dave Pelzer | Memoir | readers who want a famous survivor story |
| The Lost Boy | Dave Pelzer | Memoir | readers who want the next Pelzer book |
| One Child | Torey Hayden | Memoir | readers who like teachers who care |
| Tiger's Child | Torey Hayden | Memoir | readers who want the follow-up |
| Three Little Words | Ashley Rhodes-Courter | Memoir | readers who want a foster child's view |
| The Glass Castle | Jeannette Walls | Memoir | readers who want a hard childhood told with grace |
| Educated | Tara Westover | Memoir | readers who like escaping a harmful home |
| Ugly | Constance Briscoe | Memoir | readers who want another survival memoir |
| Finding Fish | Antwone Q. Fisher | Memoir | readers who want a foster child grown up |
| The Language of Flowers | Vanessa Diffenbaugh | Novel | readers who want a fictional foster story |
| Orphan Train | Christina Baker Kline | Novel | readers who like foster care in history |
| The Great Gilly Hopkins | Katherine Paterson | Novel | younger readers |
| Pictures of Hollis Woods | Patricia Reilly Giff | Novel | younger readers |
1. Damaged by Cathy Glass
Glass fosters a troubled eight-year-old girl with a dark secret.
Best for: readers new to Cathy Glass.
2. Cut by Cathy Glass
Glass takes in a troubled girl whose behavior hides a painful past.
Best for: readers who want another early Glass book.
3. A Child Called “It” by Dave Pelzer
A man recalls the severe abuse he survived as a child.
Best for: readers who want a famous survivor story.
4. The Lost Boy by Dave Pelzer
Pelzer describes his years in foster care.
Best for: readers who want the next Pelzer book.
5. One Child by Torey Hayden
A teacher reaches a silent, violent six-year-old girl.
Best for: readers who like teachers who care.
6. Tiger's Child by Torey Hayden
Hayden reconnects with the girl from One Child as a teenager.
Best for: readers who want the follow-up.
7. Three Little Words by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
A girl survives years in the foster system before adoption.
Best for: readers who want a foster child's view.
8. The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
Walls recalls growing up with brilliant, neglectful parents.
Best for: readers who want a hard childhood told with grace.
9. Educated by Tara Westover
A woman raised without school earns a PhD.
Best for: readers who like escaping a harmful home.
10. Ugly by Constance Briscoe
A girl abused by her mother grows up to become a judge.
Best for: readers who want another survival memoir.
11. Finding Fish by Antwone Q. Fisher
A man raised in foster care tells how he survived and found his family.
Best for: readers who want a foster child grown up.
12. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
A young woman leaving foster care finds her gift for flowers.
Best for: readers who want a fictional foster story.
13. Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline
A teen in foster care befriends an old woman who rode an orphan train.
Best for: readers who like foster care in history.
14. The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
A tough eleven-year-old foster girl plots to find her mother.
Best for: younger readers.
15. Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff
A foster girl finds a home with an elderly artist.
Best for: younger readers.
How We Chose These Books
Every pick is a real, widely available book that shares something specific with Cathy Glass: its tone, its themes, its pace or the kind of characters it puts at the center. We mixed well-known favorites with a few less obvious titles, and we noted who each book suits best so you can match it to the reader. Where a book belongs to a series, we list the first volume so you can start at the beginning.
If you are not sure where to begin, start with the first three picks in the table: they are the closest match to Cathy Glass. The rest of the list moves further out, so it works well once you know which part of the original you liked most. If a pick is part of a longer series, read the first book before you commit, and check the age or content notes in the table before passing a book to a younger reader.
How to Choose
Start with Damaged if you are new to Cathy Glass. If you want other carers' and teachers' accounts, Torey Hayden's One Child and Tiger's Child are classics. For the child's own voice, read Three Little Words or Dave Pelzer's books, which are very hard going. If you want a gentler fictional story about foster care, The Language of Flowers and Orphan Train are excellent, and younger readers will enjoy The Great Gilly Hopkins.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Cathy Glass?
Cathy Glass is the pen name of a British foster carer who writes memoirs about the children in her care.
Are Cathy Glass books true stories?
Yes, though names and identifying details are changed to protect the children.
Which Cathy Glass book should I read first?
Damaged, her first book, is the most popular starting point.
Are Cathy Glass books upsetting?
Yes. They describe abuse and neglect, so readers should take care.
How many books has Cathy Glass written?
She has written dozens of memoirs, plus some novels and parenting guides.