ONE OF SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL's BEST BOOKS OF 2022





In You Ruined It, Anastasia Higginbotham, acclaimed author of Not My Idea: A Book About Whiteness, sheds light on the confusion and pain that many children feel in the aftermath of incest and sexual assault.


When 11-year-old Dawn discloses that a favorite cousin sexually assaulted her, it's hard to tell what hurts more: the betrayal or the fall-out. After all, everyone always says to tell someone, but does this mean she'll never get to hang out with him again? What if he goes to jail? 

And the biggest question of all: How will she know if she can trust someone again?

You Ruined It is a testament to a child's experience of a confusing betrayal, her broken heart, and the loved ones who help her piece it back together.

I wish I had this magical brave book when I was young and being abused. So beautifully rendered and carefully told. May it inspire anyone caught in childhood sexual abuse to tell their story and get free. —V (formerly EVE ENSLER), award-winning playwright and author of bestsellers The Vagina Monologues and The Apology

Illustrated by: Anastasia Higginbotham