"How does one live with the ugly contradiction when faith is highjacked by religiosity to cover abuse? How does one grow to love the truth when truths are used to camouflage lies? David Zailer's heroic tale of coming back to himself is a wild, compelling, hope-filled ride."
Dan and Becky Allender, Co-Founders of The Allender Center for Trauma and Abuse
The little fisherman inside David Zailer died when he was eight years old. Fifty years later, a business trip to his hometown of Houston forces David to face long-buried memories of hidden and unspeakable evil.
With the encouragement of a unique cast of characters - a no-nonsense grocery store clerk, a compassionate gravedigger, a quirky flower shop owner, and long-lost friends from childhood - David confronts his pain-filled memories of sexual abuse and church toxicity, the narcissism of his father, the suicide of his mother, and his life-threatening addictions. To his surprise, the process leads him on a journey of healing and forgiveness that resurrects the little fisherman long lost.
A vividly colorful memoir, Death of a Fisherman is a torrent of truthful courage and defiant hope. Zailer's winsome yet authentic vulnerability illuminates a path towards forgiveness for everyone who has wrestled with the complicated family dynamics of religious, physical, sexual, and chemical abuse.