I Never Promised You a Rose Garden

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Summary: um..
Review: i didnt like the ending, for some reason. but its a really good book anyway, everyone should read it.

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Summary: Journey through the Mind
Review: I stumbled across this book by accident in the library one day last summer. As a student of psychology, I found this book to be insightful and educational. As a human being, I found this story very touching. The author paints a rather detailed picture of mental illness from inside this young girl's mind. I feel this book is superior to "Girl, Interrupted" which was a little too sporadic. I highly recommend this book to those seeking to understand how the mind sometimes works. If you pay attention, you will gain insight in terms of other people but more importantly, in terms of yourself!

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Summary: An insightful view into the mind of the mentaly ill
Review: I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, though at times painfully slow, is a worthwhile book all the same. It depicts a young girl tormented by a world of her own making. Piece by piece her psychologist, Dr. Fried, brings peace to the screaming voices in her mind. This book is only for those who can get through the long stretches in the middle for a very rewarding end.

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Summary: A Wonderful Book
Review: I first read this book when I was about 13 years old. A lot of people said it was hard to understand, but I found it very easy. The book describes Deborah, the main character's reality clearly and really shows you what she is feeling and thinking. The story is descriptive and entrapping. And, regardless of what others say, you don't need to be mentally ill to understand the story. I usually don't like reading, but I couldn't put down this book, it was so great! I just recently re-read it, I am 15, and it still remains my all time favorite book. I haven't found another book I have enjoyed nearly as much as this one. The book is very well written and it is an excellent story, but I guess some people just don't get into it. Therefore, I don't know whether you would like it or not, but I would definitely recommend it.

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Summary: Forget about this one.
Review: I am an avid reader and enjoy novels in this genre such as Sybil, by Schreiber, et cetera. Yet this novel was so deeply clinical that it could not hold my attention. I was more than halfway through the book and definitely not interested. I really do not recommend it and I do not understand why it was a national bestseller.

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Summary: I am sixteen and I tried to understand this sixteen year old
Review: I read this book a long time ago and I thought that re-reading it would help me to understand it more. The girl, Deborah, is more screwed up than meets the eye. I had a hard time following this story, not because of my age. I am an avid reader and I understand most books and storylines, but this book totally messed with my brain. I would not recommend this book to anyone who has not had any mental illness for, they will not understand it very well. those who have said that this is a good book, lied.

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Summary: Powerful and Emotional
Review: Madness and insanity. Having voices in your head and being kept in a mental hospital because you have to be. This book, I Never Promised you a Rose Garden, by Joanne Greenberg, is an emotional book that makes the reader feel as if he or she were right in the story. I think this was a good book because of how the book was realistic and informative. Personally, I liked books that relate to real life situations. This book does a good job of demonstrating life in a mental hospital. Fights, breakdowns, and feeling are all happenings that really occur in hospitals like this one. In this book, Deborah has to overcome seeing unhappiness and the sickness of others. People around her go into another state of mind and are acting in a different way all of the time. Due to the changes in personalities, people begin to fight with each other and hate each other. Deborah has to witness everyone's emotions coming out, while having to try and deal with her own. Another reason I thought the book was good, is it was unpredictable. Deborah was always facing a new challenge. At one point, she would think she was recovering. Then, voices would come back to her. The voices were supposedly from a place in her mind from another world. Yri words were what they were referred to as. This voice would act kind of like her conscience. She would never know what they would have to say. At one point, they might tell her to do the right action, and at other times, the voices would tell her to go and do something wrong. An example is when she got into a fight with her friend and pushed her. She was not going to however, the voice in her head told her to. Another unpredictable happening was when Deborah told the doctor about these voices. That was something that I did not think would be said. I figured she would keep that to herself. One more action I thought would not happen was Deborah having to spend three years in this hospital to recover. I thought it would take less time. As much as I liked this book, I'd have to say that the one down fall, is for this book, focusing was much needed. For me at least, I had to really concentrate on what was going on. By reading this book sporadically, only once and a while, keeping tract of everything may be difficult. When I left off and then went back, I had to think about all of the occurrences previous for the rest to make sense. This book is the type that flows and is good to just sit and read through at once. In some books, each chapter is sort of a break in the story. This book was not like that. I think the book would be the same, even if the book had no chapters and was all one long story. Overall, I would have to say that this was a pretty decent book. I think the book could have been better it had separate parts and was not all one story. Endings of chapters I feel should be something that will make the reader wonder. In this book, that was not the case. The book was informative and gave a good idea of how life is for people who have mental conditions. Also, the book was good because nothing unbelievable or far-fetched was mentioned. In some books something is read that makes the reader say, "yeah right". This book was also very serious and emotional. I say emotional because I felt bad for the patients. Even though I know this particular book is fiction, this situation is happening in real life. So in conclusion, I'd recommend this book for other people to read, especially for those who know someone in a mental hospital.

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Summary: A Must Read Novel
Review: I Never Promised You A Rose Garden was a very mind disturbing book. Debrah, a mentally sick patient on "D" ward,soon figures her self out, and learns a lot about her fellow friends. She goes through years in this ward. Telling Dr. Fried all that is beyond the walls of her hidden secret world. Read this real-life book, and understand that young and elder people are out there, and that every one is different.

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Summary: Incredible Story!!
Review: I remember reading the book for the first time in jr.high school, and then watching the movie. It's been about 14 years since I have seen & read the story, and it remains one of the best book & movie's I have ever read & seen. I must say that the book was a lot more interesting than the movie. I highly recommend reading it. However, I must say that Kathleen Quinlan was great in the movie version. Regardless of whether you read or see the story, it will not disappoint. I give it 2 thumbs up!!!

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Summary: Remember, it's not a textbook on schizophrenia
Review: If you take the book for what it is, a "story", it is great and very enjoyable. It is even very realistic and helps us to understand mental illness.

Just keep in mind, reading this book doesn't make you an expert on schizophrenia. This isn't a professional case study.