Examined Lives - Softcover

Allen, Roberta Reb

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1480863203 ISBN 13: 9781480863200

Publisher: Archway Publishing, 2018

Synopsis

Gretchen Richard was a vivacious, competent woman who moved to Chicago on her twentieth birthday and began her rise in the hospitality industry. In her off hours, she devoured the nightlife with a string of young swain who wanted to marry her. But in 1950 after she had already become a wife and mother, everything changed for Gretchen when Dr. Walter Freeman pronounced her a paranoid schizophrenic on a Friday and performed a lobotomy the following Monday, robbing her of her drive and sparkle forever.

In a compelling memoir and family history, Roberta Reb Allen shares a fascinating glimpse into her mother, Gretchen’s, journey before, during, and after the lobotomy as she was adjudged insane and institutionalized for periods of time. Utilizing family letters, diaries, scrapbooks, medical records, an unpublished novel, poetry, photographs, and the writings of Walter Freeman, Allen sheds light on the effects the lobotomy had on her mother and herself as well as the societal and familial forces that fostered their mental illnesses, all while giving a long-awaited voice to the female patient whose lobotomy was completely unnecessary.

Examined Lives provides a candid look at mental illness while offering hope for overcoming even the most debilitating psychological conditions with the right kind of support.

About this title

About the Author

Roberta Reb Allen graduated from the University of Chicago with a BA and MA in history. She spent most of her professional career as a curriculum writer, authoring works on a wide variety of topics. Now retired, Allen resides in Chicago and Albuquerque with her dog, Hayden. For more about her and her work, visit her at

www.examininglives.com.

Review

 "This is a candid and throughly researched and documented tale. Allen writes without judgement, letting readers get to know the characters. . . .Overall, this is a well written and researched story. It should resonate with wide readership, particularly those touched by mental illness."--BlueInk Reviews.  "The writing is clean and crisp--direct, but peppered with allusions to Svengali, La Bohème, and other cultural touchstones. The prose captures emotions, relationships, and greater truths well, sometimes in just a few evocative brushstrokes. Sentences are declarative and images are concrete, including of mashing potatoes, proofing galleys, and feeling a sharp sense of isolation at university. The sparing use of direct quotations is effective, reserved for emotional truths. Frequent and candid family photographs help to illustrate the events described."--Foreword Clarion Reviews"Allen's skill as a storyteller is apparent right from the start of the book. . . .The author not only sheds light on the disturbing mid-20th-century practice of lobotomy (which was mostly performed on female patients), but also thoughtfully examines the ramifications of such practices--and mental illness generally--on subsequent generations.  Allen stares boldly into the darkness but manages to find in her own life a glimmering alternative" --Kirkus Reviews

About this edition

• Publisher: Archway Publishing
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 1480863203
• ISBN 13: 9781480863200
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 308