Torey Hayden books in order

Lesley’s Hungarian mother Mara – charming, childlike, lovable – was traumatized by her adolescent Holocaust experiences. Though her American husband and daughters try to live a normal life in Kansas, Mara holds them thrall to her moods and quirks. Lesley struggles to understand, but dealing with Mara is a severe strain which sets her apart from her peers.

When Mara’s psychosis results in tragedy, Lesley goes to Wales in search of her mother’s remembered joy, a sunflower forest.

This adult novel speaks in the genuine voice of a 17-year old, while delving more deeply into her psyche.

Conor, aged nine, arrives in the play therapy room of child psychiatrist James Innes with the diagnosis "autistic". His mother Laura, an aloof, enigmatic novelist, can't handle him. His rancher father, embroiled in divorcing Laura, does not feel there is anything wrong with Conor.

His six year old sister Morgana insists he really does see ghosts.

As James becomes convinced Conor is not autistic, he is drawn first into Conor's strange world of "things the cat knows" and then into Morgana's stories of her friend the "Lion King".

James is pulled most deeply, however, into Laura's world; at first that of a lonely, rather difficult woman and then, eventually, into the world of her imagination, an enthralling world that seems almost real - and that hides a terrible secret.

NB: This book is also known as The Mechanical Cat.

David doesn’t belong anywhere.

He isn’t good at school, or talking to people, or making friends. He’s been in six different foster homes, and he can’t really remember his parents. It seems like he’ll never have anything all his own.

Then he finds an owl egg. With the help of Mab, the skinny “girl genius” of his class, he names it King Arthur and sets out to hatch and raise an owl of his very own. As they wait for King Arthur to hatch and as they raise the funny-looking owl chick, Mab and David become true friends.

But Mab’s father thinks they should return King Arthur to the wild. Can David give up his owl? Is it even the right thing to do? What can David do if the worst thing of all happens?

“The thing you got to understand about foxes,” Dixie said, “is that they’re innocent of what they’re doing. They got no idea they’re destroying what they love most.”

Abundance, Montana, once a lively mining town in the days of the wild west, is now not much more than a ghost town. Local girl, Dixie, a struggling single mother who has just lost her baby, tries to make ends meet while her feckless boyfriend Billy drifts from one job to another, always believing his next moneymaking scheme will be the winner.

Above them in the magnificent mountains surrounding Abundance, jaded Hollywood actor Spencer Scott conceals himself from the paparazzi on the ranch that has been his pristine sanctuary until the arrival of his obnoxious, nine-year-old son.

Then Billy puts into motion a plan almost too appalling to contemplate, and from which there is no escape. As all four are forced to confront the brutal reality of the Montana mountains, so too are they forced to face their damaged lives.

They were all "just somebody else's kids"—four problem children placed in Torey Hayden's class because nobody knew what else to do with them. 

They were a motley group of children in great pain: a small boy who echoed other people's words and repeated weather forecasts; a beautiful seven-year-old girl whose brain was damaged by savage parental beatings; an angry and violent ten-year-old who had watched his stepmother murder his father; a shy twelve-year-old who had been cast out of Catholic school when she became pregnant. 

But they shared one thing in common: a remarkable teacher who would never stop caring—and who would share with them the love and understanding they had never known and help them become a family.

When Torey Hayden first met fifteen-year-old Kevin, he was barricaded under a table. Desperately afraid of the world around him, he hadn't spoken a word in eight years. He was considered hopeless, incurable, but Hayden refused to believe it. 

With unwavering devotion and gentle, patient love, she set out to free him--and slowly uncovered a shocking, violent history and a terrible secret that an unfeeling bureaucracy had simply filed away and forgotten. 

But she never gave up on this tragic "lost case." For a trapped and frightened boy desperately needed her help--and she knew in her heart she could not rest easy until she had rescued him from the darkness.

NB: This book is also known as Silent Boy.

Torey Hayden faced six emotionally troubled kids no other teacher could handle—three recent arrivals from battle-torn Northern Ireland, badly traumatized by the horrors of war; eleven-year-old Dirkie, who only knew of life inside an institution; excitable Mariana, aggressive and sexually precocious at the age of eight; and seven-year-old Leslie, perhaps the most hopeless of all, unresponsive and unable to speak.

With compassion, rare insight, and masterful storytelling, teacher Torey Hayden once again touches our hearts with her account of the miracles that can happen in her class of “special” children.

Jadie never spoke. She never laughed, or cried, or uttered any sound. Despite efforts to reach her, Jadie remained locked in her own troubled world…until one remarkable teacher persuaded her to break her self-imposed silence.

Nothing in all of Torey Hayden's experience could have prepared her for the shock of what Jadie told her—a story too horrendous for Torey's professional colleagues to acknowledge. 

Yet a little girl was living in a nightmare, and Torey Hayden responded in the only way she knew how—with courage, compassion, and dedication—demonstrating once again the tremendous power of love and the resilience of the human spirit.

Seven-year-old Venus Fox never spoke, never listened, never even acknowledged the presence of another human being in the room with her. 

Yet an accidental playground “bump” would release a rage frightening to behold. The school year that followed would be one of the most trying, perplexing, and ultimately rewarding of Torey Hayden’s career, as she struggled to reach a silent child in obvious pain. 

It would be a strenuous journey beset by seemingly insurmountable obstacles and darkened by truly terrible revelations—yet encouraged by sometimes small, sometimes dazzling breakthroughs—as a dedicated teacher remained committed to helping a “hopeless” girl, and patiently and lovingly leading her toward the light of a new day.

Nine-year-old Cassandra, kidnapped by her father and found starving, dirty, and picking through garbage cans—is a child prone to long silences and erratic, violent behavior.

Charming, charismatic four-year-old Drake will speak only in private to his mother—while his tough, unbending grandfather's demands for an immediate cure threatens to cause irreparable harm.

And though she had never worked with adults, Hayden agrees to help fearful and silent eighty-two-year-old massive stroke victim Gerda—discovering in the process that a treatment's successes could prove nearly as heartbreaking as its limitations.

Create lasting, positive change for our most troubled students!

How do you move beyond traditional classroom management to create a learning environment that engages our hardest-to-reach students―students who may be struggling due to emotional disturbances, disabilities, or environmental circumstances? Marlowe and Hayden have the answer: through a relationship-driven classroom. With the help of their book, you will:

Gain a meaningful understanding of troubled students and how to reach and teach them

Learn how to change inappropriate behavior rather than just control it

Develop the essential skills for building successful classroom relationships

Become more reflective about teaching and learning with challenging children

An inspiring, uplifting tale of a troubled child and the remarkable woman who made a difference.

In a forgotten corner of Wales, a young girl languishes in a home for troubled children. Abandoned by her parents because of her violent streak, Jessie—at the age of ten—is at risk of becoming just another lost soul in the foster system.

Precocious and bold, Jessie is convinced she is possessed by the devil and utterly unprepared for the arrival of therapist Torey Hayden. Armed with patience, compassion, and unconditional love, Hayden begins working with Jessie once a week. 

But when Jessie makes a stunning accusation against one of Hayden’s colleagues – a man Hayden implicitly trusts – Hayden’s work doubles: now she must not only get to the root of Jessie’s troubles, but also find out if what the girl alleges is true.

Eloise is a vibrant and charming young teen with a deeply caring nature, but she also struggles with a troubling obsession. She’s been moved from home to home, and her social workers have difficulty dealing with her habit of running away. 

After experiencing violence, neglect, and sexual abuse from people she should have been able to trust, Eloise has developed complex behavioral needs. She struggles to separate fact from fiction, leading to confusion for the social workers trying to help her. After Torey learns of Eloise's background she hopes that some gentle care and attention can help Eloise gain some sense of security in her life.

Can Torey and the other social workers provide the loving attention that has so far been missing in Eloise's life, or will she run away from them too?

One Child

Six-year-old Sheila never spoke, she never cried, and her eyes were filled with hate. Abandoned on a highway by her mother, unwanted by her alcoholic father, Sheila was placed in a class for emotionally disturbed children after she committed an atrocious act of violence against another child.

Everyone said Sheila was lost forever, everyone except her teacher, Torey Hayden.

Torey fought to reach Sheila, to bring the abused child back from her secret nightmare, because beneath the rage, Torey saw in Sheila the spark of genius. And together they embarked on a wondrous journey--a journey gleaming with a child's joy at discovering a world filled with love and a journey sustained by a young teacher's inspiring bravery and devotion.

The Tiger's Child

When special education teacher Torey Hayden wrote her first book One Child thirty-five years ago, she created an international bestseller. Her intensely moving true story of Sheila, a silent, profoundly disturbed little six-year-old girl touched millions.

From every corner of the world came letters from readers wanting to know more about the troubled child who had come into Torey Hayden's class as a “hopeless case,” and emerged as the very symbol of eternal hope within the human spirit.

Now, for all those who have never forgotten this endearing child and her remarkable relationship with her teacher, here is the surprising story of Sheila, the young woman.

Just Another Kid

Torey Hayden faced six emotionally troubled kids no other teacher could handle—three recent arrivals from battle-torn Northern Ireland, badly traumatized by the horrors of war; eleven-year-old Dirkie, who only knew of life inside an institution; excitable Mariana, aggressive and sexually precocious at the age of eight; and seven-year-old Leslie, perhaps the most hopeless of all, unresponsive and unable to speak.

With compassion, rare insight, and masterful storytelling, teacher Torey Hayden once again touches our hearts with her account of the miracles that can happen in her class of “special” children.

For the first time, Casey Watson’s The Girl Without a Voice, Torey Hayden’s Beautiful Child and Mary MacCracken’s Lovey are combined in an exclusive e-book bundle. Discover the moving stories of three inspirational teachers as they try to pull their students out of the darkness:

The Girl Without a Voice by Casey Watson

This is the shocking story from bestselling author and foster carer Casey Watson. Thirteen-year-old Imogen joins Casey’s class and suffers from selective mutism – although her grandparents insist they have no idea why. Not content with the explanation that Imogen is just playing up, Casey starts digging and it’s not long before she starts to discover a very different side to Imogen’s character. After months of silence, Imogen utters her first, terrified, words to Casey: ‘I thought she was going to burn me.’

Beautiful Child by Torey Hayden

This is a stunning and poignant account of an extraordinary teacher's determination never to abandon a child in need. Seven-year-old Venus Fox never spoke or listened. Yet an accidental playground 'bump' would release a rage frightening to behold. The school year that followed would prove to be one of the most trying, perplexing, and ultimately rewarding of Torey's career, as she struggled to reach a silent child in obvious pain.

Lovey by Mary MacCracken

This is the account of eight-year-old Hannah, who joins Mary’s class and retires to a cupboard, refusing to come out. Howling almost non-stop she was displaying the worst symptoms that Mary had ever seen. How could Mary help a child who had been shut up in closets and treated like an animal? How could she reach this lost girl?

Children will love learning the calming power of meditation alongside Ziji, a playful puppy.

Ziji is a noisy, bouncy puppy who lives with the Anderson family: Mom, Dad, Jenny, and Baby Jack. He loves to bark and play and—most of all—chase pigeons in the park. Then one day, Ziji sees a new boy from Jenny's school, Nico, sitting in the park. What is Nico doing? Why does he look so calm and happy? Ziji can't wait to find out.

This book, written by Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, one of the new generation of Tibetan Buddhist masters, will teach your child the basics of meditation in a fun and engaging way. Included after the story is a guide for parents and teachers with more information on what meditation is and how it can be helpful as well as suggestions on how children can continue to practice meditation on their own.

NB: Co-authored with Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche.

Help kids learn to face their fears and self-soothe with this adorable puppy companion.

Ziji is a bouncy puppy who lives with the Anderson family: Mom, Dad, Jenny, and Baby Jack. He loves to play and chase balls in the park with Jenny and their friend Nico. Then one day, an angry man shouts at Ziji and scares him so much he never wants to go back to the park again. Can Nico show him how to calm his mind and face his fears?

Renowned meditation master Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche shows young children how following our breath can calm us down—and how practicing compassion shows us that even Very Scary Men can be frightened sometimes too. A detailed appendix gives further guidance for parents.

NB: Co-authored with Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche.

Six-year-old Sheila never spoke, she never cried, and her eyes were filled with hate. Abandoned on a highway by her mother, unwanted by her alcoholic father, Sheila was placed in a class for emotionally disturbed children after she committed an atrocious act of violence against another child.

Everyone said Sheila was lost forever, everyone except her teacher, Torey Hayden.

Torey fought to reach Sheila, to bring the abused child back from her secret nightmare, because beneath the rage, Torey saw in Sheila the spark of genius. And together they embarked on a wondrous journey--a journey gleaming with a child's joy at discovering a world filled with love and a journey sustained by a young teacher's inspiring bravery and devotion.

When special education teacher Torey Hayden wrote her first book One Child thirty-five years ago, she created an international bestseller. Her intensely moving true story of Sheila, a silent, profoundly disturbed little six-year-old girl touched millions. 

From every corner of the world came letters from readers wanting to know more about the troubled child who had come into Torey Hayden's class as a “hopeless case,” and emerged as the very symbol of eternal hope within the human spirit.

Now, for all those who have never forgotten this endearing child and her remarkable relationship with her teacher, here is the surprising story of Sheila, the young woman.