Celia Belt, as a child almost two years old, was badly injured when her abusive father threw boiling water over her. Treatments left her permanently scarred, but her strength and courage allowed her to survive that and numerous other tribulations throughout a difficult childhood and young adulthood. As a child, she survived her father’s alcoholism, abuse, and abandonment of the family, and helped to support and raise her younger siblings. As a grown woman, she raised three children, married several times until she found the love of her life – and then lost him to cancer – built a career in real estate and as a sales manager for a pickle manufacturer, learned to ride horseback and hunt, and founded a charity called the Moonlight Foundation that helps provide financial and emotional help for burn survivors and their families. This autobiography tells the story of how she survived everything thrown at her and came out, well, REMARKABLY INTACT.
REMARKABLY INTACT is a powerful, painful and yet hopeful story, full of twists and turns, obstacles to overcome, successes and failures, grief and joy. Celia’s personality shines through, along with the innate toughness that has allowed her to survive traumas that would debilitate a normal person while maintaining a cheerfully optimistic perspective on life. The kindness and warmth that allow her to speak even of her abusive father with loving forgiveness are indeed impressive. Her writing is full of verve and humor, charming, lively and quite readable. She doesn’t gloss over her failings or past mistakes, but relates them with the same sort of acceptance and affectionate compassion for her younger self as she has for others who hurt her – a healthy response and a good example for readers struggling with their own past burdens. Also evident is her determination and energetic drive to succeed, creating a vigorously productive career and a rich and fulfilling life for herself and her kids.
REMARKABLY INTACT is an inspiring and positive story of one woman not only surviving, but learning to thrive despite everything life could throw at her.
~Catherine Langrehr for IndieReader