THE LOST GIRLS OF WILLOWBROOK
by Ellen Marie Wiseman
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Kensington
8/30/22
Historical Fiction / Mystery
Paperback, 367 pages
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A novel about the real-life Willowbrook State School, the infamous Staten Island, New York mental institution that shocked a nation when exposed in the 1970s as a dumping ground for unwanted children.
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 lingered there until just a few days earlier when she went missing.
Sage knows little about Willowbrook. It’s been a place shrouded by rumor and mystery, where 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 imagine.
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Dear Reader,
On January 6, 1972, inside a small Staten Island diner, a former physician from Willowbrook State School met secretly with a reporter. The physician had been fired for trying to improve the state-run institution, and he handed the reporter a key.
That reporter was Geraldo Rivera, and he would lead a film crew unannounced into Building #6 at Willowbrook, where they would capture the appalling abuses, filth, and overcrowding inflicted upon its residents. 2022 marks the 50th anniversary of Rivera’s television exposé, which shocked the nation with that horrifying, raw footage. It sparked public outrage, a lawsuit was filed against the state of New York, and Willowbrook eventually was shut down. But it took over twenty years.
As an author who endeavors to cast light on social injustices of the past. I’ve written previously about institutional abuse. Even so, much of what I knew before I began researching the dark history of Willowbrook was based on urban legends and rumors, some of which turned out to be true and made it into this novel in ways that surprised even me.
The more I learned about Willowbrook, the more I realized that “life” inside was far more complex than I imagined, and the more my sympathy for those who lived and worked there grew. Far from being a school, Willowbrook was overcrowded, underfunded, and understaffed— the 375-acre idyllic campus with its sweeping lawns and groves of willow trees belied the fact that it was a warehouse for children and adults with and without physical and mental disabilities. Out of public sight, it provided the ideal breeding ground for human abuse, an underground city with its own hierarchy and society, where employees could buy and sell everything from drugs to jewelry to meat. It was a hideout for researchers carrying out controversial medical experiments funded by the Defense Department.
The Lost Girls of Willowbrook takes place in the early 1970s when the extreme stigma and fear surrounding disabilities pressured parents to give up their children “for the sake of the family," when words that we now recognize as violent and dehumanizing were used to describe the people most deserving of compassion.
I hope Sage’s ability to turn heartbreak into a force for good and her determination in the face of danger inspires and entertains you, But most importantly, I hope you are disturbed by the cruel reality of Willowbrook and institutions of its sort, and stirred by how people lived, worked, suffered, and eventually triumphed with the closure of Willowbrook. What happened there should serve as a reminder to be more protective of the most vulnerable and that human beings have the right to learn and grow and above all, to be treated with kindness, respect, and empathy.
Wishing you all the best,
Ellen
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THE LOST GIRLS OF WILLOWBROOK
Book Club Menu
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Sadly, food doesn’t play a huge part in The Lost Girls of Willowbrook because of the institutional setting, but there is a middle-of-the-night scene in which Sage and Eddie go to a Staten Island diner for pancakes and bacon. (No orange juice, please! You’ll have to read the book to find out why). Unless you hold your book club meetings in the morning, breakfast items probably aren’t your first choice. But a menu with popular food from the 1970s would be perfect!
People were all about finger food in the ‘70s and I think appetizers are a good idea when getting together to talk about books too. Cocktail meatballs and cheese balls or logs were especially trendy at that time. Bonus points if your cheese ball includes ham or pineapple. If cheese balls aren’t your thing, you could serve cheese fondue, which premiered at the 1964 New York World's Fair.
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For something salty and sweet, one of the most popular recipes of the decade, Devils on Horseback —dates and almonds wrapped in bacon—is perfect for sharing. How about an iconic piece of mid-century Americana fare that was served at numerous bridal showers— a frosted sandwich loaf made with shrimp salad and deviled ham spread? For dessert, I’d suggest Watergate Cake, which made its debut in the early 1970s and helped the popularity of pistachio pudding mix skyrocket.
For drinks, try Whiskey Sours, Pina Coladas, Tequila Sunrises, or Strawberry Daiquiris. Okay, now I’m thirsty!
-Ellen Marie Wiseman
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