Reflecting on the past

College freshman Katherine Tarbox didn't quite make it to the tour when she visited Penn as a pre-frosh. She was too busy being interviewed on her cell phone by Time magazine. The reason for the interview? Tarbox is the author of Katie.com, a book that discusses how, at the age of 13, she was molested by a pedophile she met over the Internet. "It's about growing up in this society as a girl and about dealing with all the societal issues that a girl has to face... because it's really difficult," Tarbox said. The book, released last May, has become an international bestseller, praised for shedding new light on online sex offenses. Originally bid on by five major publishing houses, the book was picked up by publishing giant Penguin Putnam and is now being released internationally, in over 40 countries and in 23 different languages. It is currently a bestseller in Britain and Australia, and NBC recently bought the movie rights. Internet surfers can discover more about the book at its Web site, http://www.katiet.com. Still, in the face of overwhelming success, Tarbox remains surprisingly grounded. "I've always loved to write, so afterwards it just seemed like a natural thing to go and write about this experience in the hopes that it would help young people," Tarbox said. After two years of legal battles, in what was a landmark case, the man was sentenced to 18 months in prison. But despite the support of those around her, Tarbox said the outcome of the case was never satisfying enough. "I couldn't see any tangible evidence of the good I was doing by putting him away, so I think that's what naturally turned me to writing," Tarbox said. The man went to prison, the media moved on to bigger and better things, and Katie Tarbox went home to write a book about her experience as molestation victim. Writing it was the most therapeutic thing for me," Tarbox recalled. "It allowed me to get over being a victim of [molestation], which takes a lot of people a lot of time." While the book offers advice to children and young adults, particularly females, who could find themselves in similar situations, Tarbox said she hoped readers would walk away with a deeper message. "I think parents need to sit down with their kids and figure out what's going on in their kids' lives," she said. "I think part of the reason why I went into a chat room was because I felt like somehow my life was difficult... and [the Internet] was an easy way out." The days of meeting people in chat rooms seem like a distant memory to Tarbox, who admits that her life has become split between college and the adult world of editorial meetings, interviews with Time magazine and deals with the entertainment industry. Just this past week, for example, Disney offered Tarbox the chance to co-host a talk show this coming summer. Glowing at the prospect of this, Tarbox did not hesitate to say that the entertainment industry is not as glamorous as some might think. "I don't really enjoy the entertainment business as a whole.... You think it's really exciting to fly around the country and do this media tour, but it was a lot of lonely nights in hotels. You learn that the news... is not really what you think it's about -- it's about making money." And, no doubt, she has made quite a bit. But this is of little importance to Tarbox, who donated a substantial portion of the proceeds of her book to the Rape Abuse and Incest National Network. Above all else, she prefers to focus on her goals for the book. "My greatest hope for this book... is that it's helping young girls to deal with issues of confidence and to use the Internet safely. I just wanted it published and to see it do some good. All the rest is just a whole lot of icing."

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.