THE BEAUTY OF BROKEN THINGS (Hawkeye Publishing 2026) is the connection of three stories that weave together to form the complex life of author Melissa Sharman: her experience of childhood abuse and her shocking near miss with an infamous child killer; her navigation of domestic and family abuse, coercive control and guilt; and finally her incredibly generous and courageous initiatives and activism in the world of egg donation and surrogacy, loving and losing her own children, and loving and sadly losing the children of others she helped so hard to become families. But the shining jewel of this book is her achievement of not only founding a support organisation, but assisting in bringing at least 22 babies into the world, some through egg donation and some through surrogacy, a fraught and emotional experience for all concerned.
I was privileged to read an early draft of this memoir and I wrote to the author at the time: ‘You’re an amazing woman. Congratulations on surviving and telling your story.’
Through this warm-hearted, honest, vulnerable, raw account, Sharman opens her chest and shows us her big, beating heart. By the time she is in her thirties, she has lived more lives than many of us ever will. Travel, love, heartbreak, mistakes, poor decisions, generosity, fear, courage, self-identity, passion, spirit and determination to make a better life for her own children, along with assisting other couples to create their own families, are the hallmarks of this beautiful story that I know will help others navigate difficult challenges.
‘Does one keep secrets or do your secrets keep you?’ Sharman explores this question in THE BEAUTY OF BROKEN THINGS, an exquisitely evocative, painful yet optimistic story of childhood trauma, domestic abuse and the ultimate gift of giving joy to families through egg donation and surrogacy. Sharman wears her physical and emotional scars with honour because they represent her mantra: ‘Women are strong and resilient; we can handle more hardship than we ever imagine possible.’
This vulnerable, honest and wise account is beautifully crafted with lyrical phrases and connections to the natural world. It cracks open a carapace of secrets to reveal the dichotomy of terrible abuse and trauma versus altruistic generosity, love and the simple joy of the greatest gift. THE BEAUTY OF BROKEN THINGS is about the family we choose and how hard we fight to build the life we want.
Sharman begins life faced with more difficulties than most and by 15 is an adult in behaviour and lifestyle if not in the eyes of the law. Damaged, frightened, wary and vulnerable, she falls for the first man to show an interest in her and finds herself on the other side of the world with no safety net. Even once back home, as a divorced woman of the grand old age of 18, she has difficulty setting boundaries, telling the right man from the wrong one, and all the while facing the inevitable guilt of giving up a child (what an impossible choice in impossible circumstances), bringing children into the world (what a joy but also what guilt at the instability and possibly dangerous situation she is exposing them to), and her continual, never-ending battle between self-esteem and a fragile ego, between resentment towards her partner and her family and self-loathing for her own behaviour, the dichotomy between the self-less love and all protective guiding hand towards her children and her fear that she has – and continues to have – that she might damage them because she cannot seem to change her behaviour. Even as she works in the domestic violence space, and sees what other women go through, what they will put up with and still stay, what they will not stand for and leave, what is the final straw, she STILL cannot recognise that in herself, or if she does (and it’s not for want of trying – therapy, ultimatums, leavings, promises) she still can’t seem to take that final step.
Her story is, as she says, not linear. It’s not from bad to good to better to best. It’s a rollercoaster of emotions, physical and mental injuries, police reports, break-ups and reconciliations. But, in the end, it is a complex story of her life, all the ups and downs, and how she finally came to be free to be herself, to manage her own life and expectations, to protect her children, and to find love again.
And somehow, amongst it all, this extraordinary woman finds her calling: assisting other couples desperate to have a child to achieve their goal. She does this selflessly and with no expectation of reward. But the intrinsic rewards are manifold. Her life has become inextricably intertwined with the women and men she has helped become parents, and just as importantly, she has forged friendships of iron with other women who like her, donate to help others, or who are the beneficiaries of her generosity.
This book is for anyone navigating confronting familial circumstances; it is for every mother who would protect their child with their life; it is for those women who yearn to be mothers, and the women who make that possible without expectation of reward. It is for all of us that believe it takes a village, and that female communities and friendships are the bedrock of society.
Bright, illuminating, vulnerable, wise, evocative and generous.