Finding Angela Shelton, recovered

Angela Shelton began interviewing other women with her name with the goal of making a movie that inspired women to unite. What happened is heartbreaking, joyous, sad, miraculous, and a one-of-a-kind read. Finding Angela Shelton cleverly moves through the filmmaker's life story along with the recurring dreams she had while on the road in search of women who shared her name. She discovered that 70% of the Angela Sheltons she interviewed were victims of child sexual abuse, rape and/or domestic violence. Her namesakes inspire the filmmaker to confront her own past along with her abusive father when one of the Angela Sheltons lives in the same town as the filmmaker's father who abused her and her siblings for five years. The additional chapter available in the "recovered" version tells the unbelievable bookend to the story. Finding Angela Shelton is mandatory reading in many Women's Studies programs around the US. The message of the book urges survivors of any kind of abuse or trauma to break the cycle of violence and find joy.