Cathy Glass

Cathy Glass is one of Britain's bestselling non-fiction authors, a foster carer whose moving, sometimes harrowing memoirs about the children she has looked after have touched millions of readers. Writing under a pseudonym to protect the identities of the children in her care, she has published over thirty books that shed light on the realities of fostering, child abuse, neglect, and the resilience of young people. Glass began fostering over thirty years ago and has cared for more than 150 children and young people. Her books draw on these experiences, telling the stories of individual children — changed in detail to protect their identities — who have come into her care. Each book follows a child's journey from often desperate circumstances through the challenges and breakthroughs of foster care. Her first book, Damaged (2007), told the story of a young girl whose behaviour revealed a history of severe abuse. It became a bestseller and launched a career that has produced dozens of books including Hidden, Cut, The Saddest Girl in the World, Cruel to Be Kind, Another Forgotten Child, and many more. The books are unflinching in their depiction of what some children endure, but they are ultimately hopeful — focused on healing, trust, and the difference that safe, loving care can make. Glass's books have been credited with raising awareness of the fostering system and inspiring people to become foster carers themselves. She writes with warmth, honesty, and deep compassion for the children whose stories she tells. The audiobook editions of Glass's memoirs are deeply affecting listens, with narrators conveying the emotional weight of these stories with sensitivity and care. Her books and audiobooks are essential for anyone who cares about vulnerable children and the people who step up to help them — and they serve as powerful reminders of the difference that one person's kindness can make.