Reviews tagging 'Addiction'

Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family by Robert Kolker

27 reviews

bersblue's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective sad

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Rape, Emotional abuse, Murder, Mental illness, Addiction, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Violence, Suicide, Gun violence, Drug use, Death, and Child abuse

mitchelfacereads's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative sad medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Suicide, Child abuse, Sexual assault, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Addiction

dustghosts's review against another edition

challenging dark informative reflective slow-paced

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Murder, Rape, Death of parent, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Incest, Sexual assault, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Medical content, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse

Minor: Alcoholism, Drug use, Addiction, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, and Child abuse

citrinuke's review

dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Incest, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Suicide, Violence, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Forced institutionalization, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pedophilia, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Death

semeyers's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative sad tense slow-paced

4.0

I have put off reviewing this book for quite a while, mostly for want of the words to accurately describe it. Many other reviewers here have summed up my feelings much more eloquently, so I'll try to keep things short and sweet here.

Hidden Valley Road was riveting, heartbreaking, and infuriating all in one. The Galvin family, made up of Mimi, Don, and their 12(!!) children - 10 boys and 2 girls - had the extraordinary misfortune to have 6 of their boys diagnosed with schizophrenia at a time when mental illnesses were treated as shameful and were not well understood by the medical community. We learn that even having a single child sent to a mental institution could ostracize an entire family from the community. As a result, the Galvin parents desperately try to keep up with the Jones' while their home life is falling apart. Don throws himself into his work and charitable causes, while Mimi focuses so much on her sick boys - determined to keep them at home - that her well children are left to endure horrifying neglect and abuse by their siblings.

Throughout the novel you bounce back and forth between the family and the medical professionals working behind the scenes, researching treatments for schizophrenia. You learn that the treatments were sometimes worse than the symptoms themselves and regularly led to patient deaths from the side effects.

As stated in other reviews, the author here does have a clear bias towards one of the family members. Whether from a true bias or just as a consequence of only having access to so few living Galvins, I could not tell. I also felt the author went a little easy on Don, often laying blame solely on Mimi unfairly. These instances are what made me take off a star.

Overall, this one is a highly recommended read. It is a heavy one though! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness and Addiction

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Murder, and Sexual assault

onewoman_bookclub's review

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Adult/minor relationship, and Rape

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death of parent, Dementia, and Medical trauma

dianna_reads's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Rape, Mental illness, Medical content, Addiction, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Abandonment, Bullying, Death of parent, Murder, and Toxic relationship

kellyofcali's review

challenging dark informative sad slow-paced

2.5

This is a fascinating look at mental illness and schizophrenia based around a single family's experience - the author clearly did a lot of research, and it's truly informative. At times, it does feel a bit long/repetitive, but if you are interested in (and not triggered by) mental health it's a good nonfiction read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Rape, Pedophilia, Violence, Medical trauma, Medical content, Incest, Grief, Gun violence, Forced institutionalization, Death, Death of parent, Chronic illness, Adult/minor relationship, and Abandonment

Moderate: Addiction and Drug use

mandi4886's review against another edition

emotional informative medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Abandonment, Ableism, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Grief, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Violence, Stalking, and Torture

Minor: Cancer, War, Abortion, Chronic illness, Dementia, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Sexism, and Terminal illness

katielaine_w's review against another edition

dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Gun violence, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, and Violence