The heartrending story of a mid-century American family with twelve children, six of them diagnosed with schizophrenia, that became science's great hope in the quest to understand the disease.
Don and Mimi Galvin seemed to be living the American dream.
After World War Il. Don's work with the Air Force brought them to Colorado, where their twelve children perfectly spanned the baby boom: the oldest born in 1945, the youngest in 1965. But behind the scenes was a different story: psychological breakdown. sudden shocking violence, hidden abuse. By the mid-1970s. six of the ten Galvin boys, one after another, were diagnosed with schizophrenia. How could all this happen to one family?
The story of the Galvins offers a shadow history of the science of schizophrenia, from the era of institutionalization, lobotomy. and the schizophrenogenic mother to the search for genetic markers for the disease, always amid profound disagreements about the nature of the illness itself. And unbeknownst to the Galvins. samples of their DNA informed decades of genetic research that continues today. offering paths to treatment, prediction, and even eradication of the disease for future generations.
With clarity and compassion, bestselling and award-winning author Robert Kolker uncovers one family's unforgettable legacy of suffering, love, and hope.