Naked in the Parade
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by Janet C. Saugstad, Review by Louise Bouta |
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This novel is based on very engrossing personal experience. It reflects the experience of many people who don't have the support of private advocates and personally-afforded attorneys. It will be foreign to most readers.
The protagonist's experience of being in court to defend herself from the mental health system is quite accurate from the perspective of this court-monitor. Someone asked: Why isn't this ever in the papers? Why, indeed, except that a lot of people make a lot of money off human misery and discomfort. The medical/pharmaceutical industry provides 625 lobbyists in Washington selling the benefits of psychiatric drugs, according to Public Citizen.
The part about the court scenes and behind the court scenes are very graphic and accurate--described in vivid and realistic detail. This is what happens to people. Most people do not have any experience with court procedures and think people have adequate representation in court. The novel coincides with my experience as a court monitor for people who have mental/emotional problems. The National Council on Disability says as much.
The sexy scenes are quite racy and remind me of Gone With The Wind. Maybe their presence will engender curiosity in a lot of people. The reader may skip over these parts, if so inclined.
This story mixes money, power and politics. It illustrates the actual situation of many people who call us regularly. It was the rape of the protagonist that caused feelings of suicide and propelled her into the mental health system. Then flashback memories of childhood incest came up. Childhood abuse of some kind is in the background of 30 to 50 percent of people in the mental health system, according to www.nasmhpd.org.
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