a little bit of god

a little bit of god is a memoir that spans 400 years, as the author tracks the origins of her life story to the birth of the European “Age of Reason.”

She was born to immigrants from The Netherlands shortly after WWII who were traumatized by their own histories there and in the Dutch colony of Indonesia.

After years of wondering what was wrong with her, the author begins to remember a childhood of sexual violence inflicted on her by her father and others, while her mother worked hard to be oblivious. In fragmented narratives written over a 30-year period, the author reveals her life-long journey of remembering, healing, and discovering both who she is and what humanity is.

“Klingenberg's book is a loving excavation of self as she exposes the abuses and betrayals of both father and mother on her journey to self-healing. Her language is at once stark yet poetic as she unearths the memories and images of multiple inner children. She shows us an example of what it looks like to sit still and keenly listen to the voices of these younger selves as she seeks to lovingly wrap them into the fold of self-integration. She describes for us with exacting and precise language what it feels like to be dissociated from oneself. The journey she describes is one of dissociation to embodiment, which is self-love. She concludes her personal narrative by grounding it in the larger world context, showing us that the personal is political and how childhood insights of sexual abuse can provide a unique lens to critique present political challenges.”

—Amy E. Sousa MA Depth Psychology, www.theknownheretic.com

“A powerful story and exploration of the experience of childhood sexual abuse and human development, that sometimes reads like poetry and manages to combine dark and painful material with a life-affirming trajectory. A Little Bit of God combines a reconstruction of a child’s terror and vulnerability with an unfolding recognition of inner resilience, self-compassion and human frailties. It’s a tour de force that provokes reflection on the broader influences of philosophy and social psychology and a spiritual search for healing. This courageous memoir deserves to be widely read.”

— Adrienne Montani,
First Call Child and Youth Advocacy Society

Now Available on Amazon and Kindle!