This book was upsetting when reading it knowing that in some respects it was true. There really was a place Willowbrook and it was for children who had mental issues and it wasn’t a place you would want your mentally challenged child to be. The story is about Sage finding out her sister Rosemary, who is in Willowbrook, is missing and decides to go to search for her and find out why she didn’t even know she was there. Sage was told Rosemary had died. When she got to Willowbrook, administration thought she was Rosemary and no matter what Sage said they didn't believe her and they locked her up stating she was really Rosemary. The story goes on about the horrible treatment the children there are treated and Sage trying to find a way to get them to believe she really isn’t Rosemary. Sage finds a friend in a janitor who helps her escape and calls the news to report on Willowbrook but little did she know that Eddy wasn’t who she thought he was. I had so much emotion reading the book feeling sad and mad at how they were treating Sage. I enjoyed the book even though saying enjoyed doesn’t seem right with the subject background of Willowbook. ( )

Being from Staten Island and 67 years old, I found this haunting could not finish reading, Iam sure it was good but not for me. ( )

Based on a true story. An American tragedy of epic proportions. ( )

I'm not going to lie. This was a difficult book to read in the beginning, difficult because it's based on true events, and although we read of the horrors of prisoners of war, concentration camps, and other atrocities, I think what made this story even more horrific is it happened to people who were supposed to be cared for. And the fact it happened while I was growing up (I'm roughly the same age as Sage, the main character in the book in 1971.)
I've read and loved every book by this author, and although I received an eBook copy of this story from NetGalley, I also purchased the paperback because I own all her other books and knew this would be another must-have for me.
The difficult part of the story (for me) was finding out how people KNEW the treatment was horrific at Willowbrook, yet nothing was done about it for years. As with many historical fiction books I read, I often broke away from the story to Google the reality part of the book. Watch the YouTube video of Geraldo Rivera's 1972 as he exposed what was going on in Willowbrook, even though Robert Kennedy toured Willowbrook in 1965 and called it a snake pit.
I love Sage's tenacity as she pushes to find answers to what really happened with her twin sister, and how she manages to self-preserve in a life full of adults letting her down.
I appreciate the story bringing this tragic piece of history to light, and also the plot twists to the story. Ellen Marie Wiseman writes relatable characters and wonderful (if disturbing!) historical fiction. Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book, and I am glad I purchased a paperback of the story so I can read it again. ( )

Happy Publication Day! (August 30,2022)

In 1971, sixteen-year-old Sage Winters overhears her stepfather Alan and his friend Larry discussing the recent disappearance of Sage’s twin sister Rosemary from the premises of Willowbrook State School in Staten Island, New York. Unbeknownst to Sage, her mentally disturbed sister had been sent away to Willowbrook six years ago. Sage had been told by her now-deceased mother that Rosemary had died from pneumonia. Sage is shocked by the revelation that her sister, whom she loved and still grieves for, is alive. Concerned for her sister’s well-being, she travels alone to Willowbrook to assist in the search efforts. She has also heard rumors of a serial killer who kidnaps and kills his victims and is said to commit his crimes in and around the area. However, upon her arrival, things do not go as planned. Mistaken for her absconding twin sister, Sage is institutionalized and what follows is nothing less than a nightmare. Sage soon realizes that this is no School but a “dumping ground for the broken and insane and the unwanted”. She witnesses firsthand the neglect, abusive treatment and horrific living conditions within the closed walls of the facility.

What happened to Rosemary? Is there anyone in Willowbrook she can trust? How can Sage prove her true identity before it’s too late? Is the rumored serial killer with ties to Willowbrook more than just an urban legend?

Informative, fast-paced and suspenseful, I found The Lost Girls of Willowbrook by Ellen Marie Wiseman hard to put down. The author brilliantly combines fact and fiction in this hard-hitting, gripping and intense novel.

Please note that this is not an easy read.
In reality, Willowbrook State School was a state-supported facility for the treatment of developmentally disabled children that was in operation between 1947 and 1987. Though there were rumors of questionable medical practices and unsanitary living conditions (Senator Robert F. Kennedy called it a "snake pit" after touring the facility in 1965), Willowbrook garnered national attention after an expose by investigative journalist Geraldo Rivera in 1972. The atrocities inflicted upon the vulnerable residents of Willowbrook are unimaginable and the author does not hold back in describing the depravity and inhuman conditions the patients of Willowbrook had to endure including the physical and sexual abuse, experimental treatments and filthy living conditions. The author also incorporates the urban legend of the serial killer “Cropsey” with the narrative of Willowbrook. The author’s note at end of the book is quite informative and tells us more about the facility, its history and the aftermath of the scandal. Readers interested to know more can go through the news articles, documentaries and reports on the overpopulated and understaffed Willowbrook State School and its survivors, to get a more historically accurate picture of what went on behind the closed doors of the infamous facility and the events following Rivera's exposé till the facility was finally closed down in 1987.

Many thanks to Kensington Books and NetGalley for providing a digital review copy of this exceptional book. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This book is due for release on August 30, 2022. ( )