ROGER KISER'S BOOK REVIEW: Page 1
The atrocities author Roger Kiser suffered at the hands of his "caretakers" in this Florida institution will make
your toes curl. The depravity of the people running this home for boys will sicken you. The triumph and hope that
Mr. Kiser offers as a result of his broken life will make your life's troubles pale to trivialities, and cause you to
question what right you've ever had to complain.
As Mr. Kiser continues his work with the state of Florida and even the FBI, in an effort to ensure that heinous
crimes like the ones committed upon him and other young boys are a thing of the past, he has put his personal
life back together, setting an example for all of mankind that nothing is greater than the human spirit.
Written with the strength of a survivor and the compassion of one who knows severe physical and emotional pain,
Mr. Kiser's book is a well-scripted look into a childhood of hell.
While the subject matter is difficult, the book is exceptional. It flows from fact to feeling in an effortless, plain-
spoken manner and is interspersed with photos as well. The White House Boys...An American Tragedy is a must-
read true story of abuse and hope.
The White House Boys: An American Tragedy Overview
Hidden far from sight, deep in the thick underbrush of the North Florida woods are the ghostly graves of more
than thirty unidentified bodies, some of which are thought to be children who were beaten to death at the old
Florida Industrial School for Boys at Marianna. It is suspected that many more bodies will be found in the fields
and swamplands surrounding the institution. Investigations into the unmarked graves have compelled many
grown men to come forward and share their stories of the abuses they endured and the atrocities they witnessed
in the 1950s and 1960s at the institution.
The White House Boys: An American Tragedy is the true story of the horrors recalled by Roger Dean Kiser, one
of the boys incarcerated at the facility in the late fifties for the crime of being a confused, unwanted, and wayward
child. In a style reminiscent of the works of Mark Twain, Kiser recollects the horrifying verbal, sexual, and physical
abuse he and other innocent young boys endured at the hands of their "caretakers." Questions remain
unanswered and theories abound, but Roger and the other 'White House Boys' are determined to learn the truth
and see justice served.