'Shame' by Annie Ernaux is a powerful and unsettling memoir that delves into a single, traumatic incident from her childhood in June 1952, when her father violently attacked her mother. At just twelve years old, Ernaux witnessed this horrifying event, which profoundly shaped her understanding of family, class, and herself. The book is not merely a recounting of the incident, but a meticulous exploration of the deep psychological and social shame it instilled, and how it colored her perception of her working-class background. Ernaux dissects memory, truth, and the burden of a shared secret, reflecting on the enduring scars left by violence and the indelible mark of a defining childhood trauma.