Kate’s 2¢: “I Never Promised You A Rose Garden” by Joanne Greenberg

“I Never Promised You A Rose Garden” by Joanne Greenberg

Kate’s 2¢: There is a plethora of in-depth biographies of authors and reviews of their books, that state the title, author, published date, and genre; as well as,     describing what the book is about, setting, and character(s), so, Kate’s 2¢ merely shares my thoughts about what I read.  I’m just saying…

   I became interested in this story when Richard Peck mentioned it in his book about writing for Young Adults. Its impact on teens and adults when it was written in 1964 must have been phenomenal.  It is such a deep, poignant exploration of a 16-year old girl’s fantasy world that rules her life. Descriptions of the mental ward are disturbing, to say the least. However, the therapist earns Deborah’s trust, so Deborah shares the descriptions of her alternat universe, the people, the language, and the consequences of speaking to humans.  

   It was interesting to read how the alternate universe dissembled into the various experiences from Deborah’s childhood.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Joanne Greenberg (born September 24, 1932 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American author who published some of her work under the pen name of Hannah Green. She was a professor of anthropology at the Colorado School of Mines[1][2] and a volunteer Emergency Medical Technician.[3]

Greenberg is best known for the semi-autobiographical bestselling novel I Never Promised You a Rose Garden (1964). It was adapted into a 1977 movie and a 2004 play of the same name.

She received the Harry and Ethel Daroff Memorial Fiction Award as well as the National Jewish Book Award for Fiction[4] in 1963 for her debut novel The King’s Persons (1963), about the massacre of the Jewish population of York at York Castle in 1190.

Greenberg appears in the Daniel Mackler documentary Take These Broken Wings (2004) about recovering from schizophrenia without the use of psychiatric medication.[5]

Her book In This Sign (1970) was made into a Hallmark Hall of Fame television movie titled Love Is Never Silent, aired on NBC in December 1985.

From NLS/BARD/LOC:

I never promised you a rose garden DB12303

Greenberg, Joanne. Reading time: 9 hours, 15 minutes.

Read by Esther Benson. A production of the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, Library of Congress.

Psychological Fiction

Sixteen-year-old schizophrenic Deborah retreats into a fantasy world of her own invention. Only after her parents reluctantly commit her to a mental hospital does she begin to face reality. Some strong language.

Downloaded: August 21, 2021

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