the use of abuse in autobiography

Just had to rave about an article that Jane Sullivan wrote in the Age about memoir novels and her wondering what use they are- apart from the cathartic value they have to their respective authors. In today's Saturday Age there is a wail of complaint from one reviewer saying there is a flood of "I've had a nasty childhood" books. Well I see the point of well written memoirs or nastier works of childhood abuse in fiction. The more these horrible stories are shared, the more likely people will be sympathetic to those people in real life who disclose such events in their pasts or presents. Unfortunately abuse is part of the real world and society has yet to deal with these issues properly. No one seems to question the purpose of love stories and epic novels etc.
On a slightly related topic I'd also like to blog about my admiration of people like MJ Hyland whom are up front about their childhoods and her depressive illness. The more this stuff is shared the better I think. Then those of us that have experiences of these things know we are not alone. And that will be the subject of my next post.