A review by katie_liz
The Glass House by Graeme Simsion, Anne Buist

emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

The Glass House follows Hannah, a psychiatry registrar working on an acute care ward, as she navigates and reflects upon the experiences of patients, and staff within the hospital. 

The story is rich with characters and captures the experience of patients, family and health workers with a frank honesty. At times the number of threads felt almost too much to follow, reflecting the very real experience of navigating mental health care within Australia. 

Individual case stories at the start of each chapter appear standalone but gradually weave together, highlighting that psychiatry and psychology is a challenging, necessary and often unknown endeavour. The story highlights the enduring impact of trauma, relationships, loss and suicide, as well as the role of personal choice, and experiences within and beyond therapy and treatment. 

The narrative was reflective, and left space for the reader to draw their own conclusions as they followed Hannah. The fictional cases and the behaviour of the various characters felt authentic and genuine. Whilst the subject matter was at times heavy, it was handled with sensitivity and did not feel gratuitous. The authors note summarises significant consultation and collaboration with health professionals and people with lived experience in the development of the book. 

Thank you Hachette and NetGalley for a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed are my own.