The Lost Girls of Willowbrook: A Heartbreaking Novel of Survival Based on True History

Ellen Marie Wiseman

Aug 2022 · Kensington Books

About this ebook

Instant New York Times Bestseller!

For fans of The Girls with No Names, The Silent Patient, and Girl, Interrupted, the New York Times bestselling author of The Orphan Collector blends fact, fiction, and the urban legend of Cropsey in 1970s New York, as mistaken identities lead to a young woman’s imprisonment at Willowbrook State School, the real state-run institution that Geraldo Rivera would later expose for its horrifying abuses.

An Indie Next Pick | Peruse Book Club Pick | A Room of Your Own Book Club Pick | A Publishers Lunch Buzz Books Selection Sage Winters always knew her sister was a little different even though they were identical twins. They loved the same things and shared a deep understanding, but Rosemary—awake to every emotion, easily moved to joy or tears—seemed to need more protection from the world.
 
Six years after Rosemary’s death from pneumonia, Sage, now sixteen, still misses her deeply. Their mother perished in a car crash, and Sage’s stepfather, Alan, resents being burdened by a responsibility he never wanted. Yet despite living as near strangers in their Staten Island apartment, Sage is stunned to discover that Alan has kept a shocking secret: Rosemary didn’t die. She was committed to Willowbrook State School and has lingered there until just a few days ago, when she went missing.
 
Sage knows little about Willowbrook. It’s always been a place shrouded by rumor and mystery. A place local parents threaten to send misbehaving kids. With no idea what to expect, Sage secretly sets out for Willowbrook, determined to find Rosemary. What she learns, once she steps through its doors and is mistakenly believed to be her sister, will change her life in ways she never could imagined . . .

“A heartbreaking yet insightful read, this novel will open one's eyes to the evil in this world.” –New York Journal of Books

“Unvarnished, painful and startlingly clear.” – Bookreporter.com

Ratings and reviews

NOTE: I was given early access to this manuscript in exchange for writing an impartial review. Thank you edelweiss+ and Kensington. Publication: August 30, 2022. I felt SUCH genuine relief when I finished the last page of this book. NOT because it isn't well-done. But because it is SO extremely powerful, suspenseful, and deeply compelling -- but also VERY difficult to read. So much of it is horrific, yet true. The book touches on all the most horrible elements you've ever read or heard about warehousing people in large, mental hospitals. Based on the true story of Willowbrook State School, the Staten Island facility whose deplorable treatment of residents was first exposed by reporters Geraldo Rivera and Jane Kurtin in the early 1970s. Their reports lead to a nationwide rethinking of the treatment of mentally ill people and largely, over the next generation, eliminated these large facilities across the country. But back to this book. Overcrowded and understaffed, living in dilapidated buildings, about 5400 residents were housed at Willowbrook. In THE LOST GIRLS OF WILLOWBROOK, author Ellen Marie Wiseman (one of my favorite authors) creates a fictional account of a single resident's story. On the recommendations of medical personnel, 10 year old Rosemary is sent to live at Willowbrook by her alcoholic mother -- who can no longer deal with her at home. But Rosemary's twin sister, Sage, is told instead that Rosemary died of pneumonia -- leaving a deeply grieving Sage who feels that she has lost half of her own self. Six years later, when this book begins, and after their mother's death, Sage overhears her stepfather talking about Rosemary being missing from Willowbrook. MISSING, not dead. This news sends Sage on a desperate quest to find her lost sister. And it is her quest that is the focus of the novel. But you can well imagine that a 16 year old is hardly equipped to deal with such trauma alone. It turns out that for me, and I imagine for most of us, Sage's journey contains so many elements of our worst nightmares. No one believing you when you speak the truth. Being locked up, with no escape. Witnessing staff members physically and sexually abuse patients. Medical experimentation and surgical interventions without consent. Overuse of drugs to keep patients quiet. Inadequate care that doesn't even meet the most basic standards of human needs -- food, clothing, and sanitation. Despite all these horrors, I HAD to finish the story. I found myself deeply emotionally involved. I too wanted to know if Rosemary would be found? I identified with Sage's desperation to discover the truth and worried whether she would remain safe? And, like her, I wasn't sure who to believe or who could be trusted. The story of how mentally ill people were treated at this time is an important story. Shameful, but part of our history. So, the least I could do was expose myself to it. And I guarantee that if you complete this book, your own understanding of and compassion for mentally ill human beings will change.

Truly sad.. A great read, highly recommend!!

About the author

Ellen Marie Wiseman is the New York Times bestselling author of the highly acclaimed historical fiction novels The Orphan Collector, What She Left Behind, The Plum Tree, Coal River and The Life She Was Given. Born and raised in Three Mile Bay, a tiny hamlet in northern New York, she’s a first-generation German American who discovered her love of reading and writing while attending first grade in one of the last one-room schoolhouses in New York State. Since then, her novels have been published worldwide, translated into twenty languages, and named to “Best Of” lists by Reading Group Choices, Good Housekeeping, Goodreads, The Historical Novel Society, Great Group Reads, and more. A mother of two, Ellen lives on the shores of Lake Ontario with her husband and dog. Visit her online at EllenMarieWiseman.com.