People who attend the Massachusetts School for the Feeble-Minded
knows it is a place where no one wants to be. The young women who live
there certainly don't want to be there. Maxine has to protect her
younger sister Rose from mean attendants and older girls who like to
bully the weak. Alice has to fend for herself after her brother couldn't
support her because of her club foot. London was dragged to the school
after one unexpected moment in her life. Each of the four girls is
determined to change their fate, no matter what happens to them.
The novel was an interesting and unexpected read. Sometimes, it's
hard to imagine that we make progress when we are now having "The first
woman to do/win" or even a person of color to be the first. After
reading this novel, I am truly glad I was born in this era, otherwise, I
would surely have been deemed a moron, imbecile or idiot. It's hard to
imagine what these people suffered through just because they were
labeled as "different". However, there were
a few things I didn't like about the book. I wasn't fond of those
endings where the reader gets to decide what happens to the characters. I
wanted to know what happened to them. I wish there were more details on
London's foster guardian and I wanted to know what happened to her.
**Disclosure
- I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest
opinion. This post may contain affiliate links which means I earn
advertising and/or referral fees if you purchase an item through my
link. Please note, there will be no extra charges to you. Thank you for
your support.**
The Degenerates
by J. Albert Mann
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Release Date: March 17th 2020
Genre: Young Adult, Historical Fiction
Synopsis:
In the tradition of Girl,
Interrupted, this fiery historical novel follows four young women in the early
20th century whose lives intersect when they are locked up by a world that took
the poor, the disabled, the marginalized—and institutionalized them for life.
The Massachusetts School
for the Feeble-Minded is not a happy place. The young women who are already
there certainly don’t think so. Not Maxine, who is doing everything she can to
protect her younger sister Rose in an institution where vicious attendants and
bullying older girls treat them as the morons, imbeciles, and idiots the
doctors have deemed them to be. Not Alice, either, who was left there when her
brother couldn’t bring himself to support a sister with a club foot. And not
London, who has just been dragged there from the best foster situation she’s
ever had, thanks to one unexpected, life altering moment. Each girl is
determined to change her fate, no matter what it takes.
BOOK LINKS
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2TKQGD7
BOOK AUTHOR
J. Albert Mann is the author of six
novels for children, with S&S Atheneum Books for Young Readers set to
publish her next work of historical fiction about the Eugenics Movement and the
rise of institutionalism in the United States. She is also the author of short
stories and poems for children featured in Highlights for Children, where she
won the Highlights Fiction Award, as well as the Highlights Editors’ Choice
Award. She has an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts in Writing for Children
and Young Adults, and is the Director of the WNDB Internship Grant
Committee.
Jennifer is represented by Kerry Sparks
at Levine Greenberg Rostan Literary Agency.
AUTHOR LINKS
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GIVEAWAY
Prize: Win (1) copy of THE DEGENRATES by J.
Albert Mann (US Only)
Starts: March 11th 2020
Ends: March 25th 2020
