Overview

The Ladybug and the Dove is a powerful memoir about trauma, resilience, and the healing power of art. Valerie Paterson shares her journey of survival after enduring two rapes in her twenties-one at knifepoint by a juvenile serial rapist-and the decades of silence that followed. Her story takes readers from a peaceful hamlet in France to the courtrooms of Boston, revealing the lifelong impact of sexual violence and the complex pursuit of justice. A chance meeting with another survivor decades later compels Valerie to confront her buried pain and reclaim her voice. Central to her healing is quilting-a creative lifeline that allows her to express grief, anger, love, and hope when words fail. Each stitch becomes part of a narrative of survival, culminating in her powerful quilt, Hell and Hope, which stands as both a personal testimony and a public symbol displayed in legal and advocacy settings. Through unflinching honesty, Valerie explores themes of race, justice, and forgiveness, challenging societal perceptions of sexual assault-especially when the attacker is a Black male and the victim a white woman. Her story is as much about finding empathy as it is about reclaiming agency and purpose. For readers of Chanel Miller's Know My Name and Alice Sebold's Lucky, this memoir is both a reckoning and an offering of hope. The Ladybug and the Dove is not just one woman's story-it's a testament to the transformative power of creativity and the enduring strength of the human spirit.

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Valerie Paterson is an award-winning creative quilter and writer using both mediums to express her emotions and experiences. At the Guilford County Family Justice Center, she advocates for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. She lives in Greensboro, North Carolina where she finds joy in yoga, tennis, and dancing with her husband.

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