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Title: Interesting story mangled by poor plotlines
Review: This book has tremendous potential--delving into the life of an elderly woman who's shown up at an insane asylum in a near-catatonic state. But what ruins the story is, quite simply, the writing. Characters--such as Alice's violent boyfriend--surface once, have their dramatic moment, and then never return again. This seems to be a trend in the execution of this book. Sedgwick frequently introduces interesting and dramatic elements, but then leaves them hanging in space and takes the "easy" way out. Thus, the book ends in mid-air, with a lot of loose ends, and not much substance beyond everyday pop psychology. Best to leave this book behind and instead pick up a psycho-thriller like "In the Cut".
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