Cora Sledge is horrified when her children, who doubt her ability to take care of herself, plot to remove her from her home. So what if her house is in shambles? Who cares when she last changed her clothes? If an eighty-two-year-old widow wants to live on junk food, pills, and cigarettes, hasn’t she earned the right? When her kids force her into The Palisades, an assisted living facility, Cora … facility, Cora takes to her bed, planning to die as soon as possible. But life isn’t finished with her yet, not by a long shot.
Deciding that truth is the best revenge, Cora begins to write a tell-all journal that reveals once and for all the secret she has guarded since she was a young woman. In entries that are profane, profound, and gossipy, she chronicles her childhood in rural Missouri, her shotgun wedding, and the terrible event that changed the course of her life.
Intermingled with her reminiscences is an account of the day-to-day dramas at The Palisades—her budding romance with a suave new resident, feuds with her tablemates, her rollicking camaraderie with the man who oversees her health care, and the sinister cloud of suspicion that descends as a series of petty crimes sets everyone on edge. The story builds to a powerful climax as Cora’s revelations about her past mesh with the unraveling intrigue in the present.
Cora is by turns outrageous, irreverent, and wickedly funny. Despite a life with more than its share of disappointment and struggle, she refuses to go gently into her twilight years, remaining intensely curious, disinclined to play it safe, and willing to start over.
Breaking Out of Bedlam captures the loneliness and secrets that lurk within families, the hardscrabble reality facing women with limited resources, and the resilience of a woman who survives, despite all the odds, through an unlikely combination of passion, humor, and faith.
“Tough-edged Cora Sledge, 82, is a reluctant resident of The Palisades nursing home—a ‘prison [where] your only crime is you lived too long.’ Her tell-all journal, recounting dramas at the home (thefts, love affairs, rivalries) and a tragedy buried in her past, is profane, harrowing, comical—and Cora’s voice is spot-on.”—AARP Magazine
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Am still thinking about this story! It has so many levels of meaning; is funny and heartbreaking, and a very surprising personal journey as a woman finds love and freedom to live life on her own terms. Cannot wait to read more from this author!
I can relate to this book on so many levels. With children who probably like to put me in a nursing home and just having taken care of my father there I can understand a lot of the situations. This is a great read and hard to put down.
The most original and compelling book I have read in a long time!
Very enlightening for people moving into their twilight years.
loved the first chapters & the narrative voice was wonderful, but i lost some steam as we came to the middle of the book.
Not my style of book.
Predictable
The book was very well-written. Terrific character development. But I found it depressing as I read it, and the despair lingered when I had finished. The protagonist evolved, and got her happy ending, Not so all the miserable people left behind in the assisted living home.
Very depressing.
I can’t recommend this book. The protagonist was quite rough. As much as I wanted to sympathize, I never got there. I did wonder, tho, how the author was able to depict the actions and thoughts of an 82 year old woman so realistically.
I was a little disappointed in this one, as I thought it would be funnier. I still enjoyed it though.
On the whole, a good read; however, I was wishing for the main character to be stronger or somewhat less gullible so I could feel more sympathetic towards her.
I was under the impression this was a hilarious read. While I found some humorous wit from Cora, I found the story sad. Placing an elder person in Assisted Living is never easy for the person.
Ok
entertaining. i am 70 so appreciated a lot of the content whereas a young person would probably not.
Great characters. A bit predictable but overall an interesting and honest glimpse of life might be like when your family decides you must not live on your own any longer.
I expected humor but the reality of it got to me. Being placed in Assisted Living or any Senior Living institution can be very difficult for the elderly.
Started out funny and warm but eventually got too monotonous and easy to know what was going to happen next. Finally kept wishing for it to end