Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family

Fascinating, devastating look at a deeply disturbed family with 12 children, 6 of whom became seriously mentally ill. The first half is almost like a suspense novel - who will break next? Will it be the hippie son or the hockey playing son? Which symptom will they display - violence, hallucinations, delusions, withdrawal? Kolker lists all of the family members are the start of each chapter, which helps keep track of all of the similar-sounding, all-American names (Peter, Mike, Joseph, James, etc.), although several of the boys make such strong impressions that I won't soon forget them.

The harrowing family saga is interspersed with chapters that present how the diagnosis and treatment of schizophrenia have changed over the years. Unfortunately even if the Galvin boys had come of age in the 21st century, they might have been diagnosed sooner and received slightly better treatment, but there is still no cure.

The book's second half is weaker. There's only so many times you can read about the sons' revolving door of going in and out of psychiatric hospitals. But the latter part of the book really belongs to the two Galvin daughters, the youngest of the 12 children, and their disparate reactions to the chaos around them. Margaret tried to distance herself as much as possible from her family, while Mary/Lindsay became a second caretaker, especially after their mother's death. Kolker doesn't judge about which one of these reactions is the healthier response to an intolerable situation.

At the heart of the entire book is the Galvin matriarch, Mimi, who fought fiercely for her family even though her protection included a veil of secrecy that haunted the younger children especially for life. Kolker points out the few options available for parents dealing with seriously mentally ill children in the 1960s and 1970s; there was a strong emphasis on the effect of poor nurturing and the “schizophrenogenic mother” whose illogical behavior caused schizophrenia in her offspring. So while it's not always easy to admire Mimi, you have to admit that she had few options at the time.

A fascinating, dark and compelling book that deserves the attention it is receiving.