OUT OF THE LION’S DEN
“…a brave, honest, and intimate book.”
“Out of the Lion’s Den” is the true story of five-year-old Laura Small’s attack in an Orange County, California park.
But it’s not only the story of Laura’s long recovery from brain injuries.
Her parents soon realized that the attack wasn’t just the result of a lone mountain lion. Early morning anonymous phone calls, erasures on police reports, and a California moratorium on killing lions, led a persistent investigator and a brilliant lawyer all the way to a trial against Orange County for negligence.
And for Laura’s mother, who believed in God and had been a nun for six years, one question still haunted her. How could a loving God allow such suffering?
Wylie Aitken with Laura Small at trial in 1991
“Susan Mattern has written an amazing memoir of her five-year-old daughter’s attack by a mountain lion in an Orange County park, her daughter’s near miraculous recovery, and the ensuing legal battle to hold county park officials accountable for negligence. For a story of the indomitable human spirit for survival, hope against all odds, and an indefatigable determination to see justice done, few books have done justice to one of these human dramas. Mattern manages all three in a relentless narrative of emotions lived on the edge.”
“Susan Mattern genuinely recounts her search for answers in court and her search for ultimate truth in her heart. If you’ve never questioned your faith, this book is the splendid guide as you look through the eyes of a family’s pain and hope. If you’ve already experienced moments of doubt, then this book is a kindred spirit that beckons you to share the journey.”
“ . . . a multi-dimensional book covering the family dynamic and how it changes through the years. The author asks a lot of questions about the meaning of life and God’s place (if any) in her life.”
Out of the Lion’s Den is “a brave, honest, and intimate book that gives the reader an inside view of a very public event that many in Southern California will remember.”
Once started, I could not drop the book until I finished it. [Then] I had to read it again. [T]his book is about hope in the face of the seemingly insurmountable and very powerful systems (political, social, and economic). It is a David and Goliath story. This book can help in letting us know that we are capable of unleashing incredible forces within us to win the battle. We may get bruised on our way, but we can still build a better world. We can collectively come “Out of The Lion’s Den”.
“OMG I love this book. It is heartbreaking, and sweet, and uplifting all at once. It is also beautifully written. Books don’t usually make me cry, but this one did. And there is scandal and intrigue too!”