I was a big fan of Rust & Stardust, also by T. Greenwood, so I was really looking forward to this one and I was not disappointed! I love the authors writing style and the way she gives depth to characters without getting too slow or overwrought. I will continue to read all of T. Greenwood's books!

Oh my, I think I loved this book (it doesn’t happen that often as I find love to be a very strong word, hence the uncertainty). It was beautifully written and gave me a new perspective on motherhood and a not so long-ago time - so many feelings! And I loved the diverse cast of character personalities - it showed that most people truly are good. Would definitely recommend.

I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read and ARC on Kindle of T. Greenwood's newest book, Keeping Lucy. One of the best books I read in 2018 was Rust and Stardust, also by the author. T. Greenwood is the master of a heart-wrenching tale. Keeping Lucy is the story of Ginny, who is married to Ab. They have a son and then Ginny gives birth to Lucy. Lucy is born with Down's Syndrome and Ginny is told that Lucy also has a heart defect that will shorten her life drastically. After the birth, Lucy is taken (without Ginny's consent) to a facility for children with disabilities. Two years later, Ginny reads a news article, stating the facility where Lucy was placed is filthy and the children are neglected. Without telling Ab, she enlists her best friend, Marsha, to check the facility out to see the conditions. As stated in the news article, the conditions are abhorrent and Ginny checks Lucy out of the facility for a weekend visit and decides to leave the state with her son, Peyton, and Marsha, in order to keep Lucy from having to go back. The story of the friendship between Ginny and Marsha, their run from the authorities, Ginny's loving mothering skills and her 1960's type marriage to Ab are all so well-stated that I felt as if I were right there with the characters. Keeping Lucy is an absolutely absorbing book that I couldn't put down. Keeping Lucy has completely different characters and setting from Rust and Stardust but is an excellent companion book for it. T. Greenwood's writing style is absorbing and interesting. I can wait for the next great read by this author.

Dover, Massachusetts, 1969. Ginny Richardson's heart was torn open when her baby girl, Lucy, born with Down Syndrome, was taken from her. Under pressure from his powerful family, her husband, Ab, sent Lucy away to Willowridge, a special school for the “feeble-minded."
But two years later, when Ginny's best friend, Marsha, shows her a series of articles exposing Willowridge as a hell-on-earth--its squalid hallways filled with neglected children--she knows she can't leave her daughter there. Keeping Lucy is a searing portrait of just how far a mother’s love can take her.

T. Greenwood has done it again! I absolutely love the writing style of Keeping Lucy and how detailed it was. This is just about the only author that can get me so engrossed and involved with the characters that they feel like my own family and friends. This was another book that made me reach for the tissues multiple times!

Thanks to #NetGalley for the ARC of Keeping Lucy by T. Greenwood
Pub Date: 06 Aug 2019

I can easily see why Keeping Lucy by T. Greenwood is one of PopSugar’s must reads of 2019. Keeping Lucy tugged at my heartstrings from the moment the narrative began, and I just could not stop reading it. This is a touching story of the strength of a mother’s unconditional love for her children. When Ginny, the protagonist, discovers her daughter, Lucy, has been mistreated at a special school in which her husband entrusted Lucy’s care, Ginny does everything in her power to save her child. My empathy as a mother propelled me through this novel. Keeping Lucy is as much of a page turner as any thriller, and the environment Lucy was living in is depicted as equally horrific. The plot rotates between three parts of Ginny’s life helping the reader to better understand the time period and also Ginny‘s relationship with her husband. This rotation created suspense for me in that I really wanted to ensure that Lucy would be okay, but I also wanted to understand how Lucy had ended up in her horrible school. T. Greenwood did an excellent job of painting the sometimes horrific nature of institutions while also portraying our highly discriminatory society in the late sixties and seventies. Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy of Keeping Lucy in exchange for my honest review.

I received a free copy of Keeping Lucy from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

Keeping Lucy is set in the late 1960s through 1971. Having a child with Down's Syndrome or cerebral palsy or any birth disorder was viewed as a failure and many parents were encouraged to institutionalize their children. Facilities were shockingly rundown and abuse, neglect, understaffing, and decay were the norm. In real life, state schools served to house these forgotten children. The children were housed not cared for. Parents and other family members were encouraged to forget about these children and move on with their lives.

Ginny and Ab are loving parents but they come from two very different worlds. Ab's parents are wealthy and, in many ways, have always controlled their son. Ginny comes from a much more modest background with a working mother and long-deceased father. Together they want a simple life filled with books and love. When Ginny becomes pregnant, he begins law school at Harvard, fulfilling his father's dream but causing Ab to abandon his own. Their son, Peyton, is a joy and they settle into suburban life. Ginny is restless, believing that the life she is living is a little too perfect.

Their second child, Lucy, is born with Down's Syndrome. Ab and his father quickly arrange for Lucy's institutionalization telling Ginny it is for the best. Ginny believes Willowridge to be a real school and a real hospital but she never loses the longing for her child. Two years pass before a friend alerts Ginny to a news expose about the conditions at Willowridge. Ginny knows she must see for herself, see the daughter she only glimpsed when she gave birth. Her first contact with Lucy sets off a multi-state trip to keep and care for her child.

The horrific conditions at Willowridge are based on real state schools like Willowbrook on Staten Island. Many readers may find it difficult to believe the description of Willowridge and the mild-mannered behavior of women like Ginny. It is important to recognize the societal attitudinal changes toward children with disabilities but even more important to realize the power of a mother's love.

A beautifully written story about a mother's undying love to keep and care for her daughter, Lucy, who has downs syndrome in the 1970's.

Keeping Lucy by [Greenwood, T.]

So the character development, especially of the children, was weak in places, but overall a decent read.



Review copy provided by publisher.

I read Rust and Stardust and absolutely loved that book - this one touched close to home - I could not put down this heart wrenching story of a mother fighting for herself and her child - Ginny gives birth to a child with Down Syndrome whom is immediately placed into an “institute.” This is one mother who refuses to be blinded further and once she opens her eyes shows the great lengths she will go to for her child. this was a wonderfully told story and probably eye opening for some as to the lengths people would go and the lack of care individuals received just for being “different” - I smiled - I cried - this should be on everyone’s list to read

It’s the first time I read T. Greenwood, but it won’t be the last. Keeping Lucy captivated me from beginning to end. It’s very well written, it’s intricate and flows wonderfully in a way that each flashback chapter gives a great hindsight on the characters, so well developed.
It’s also Women Fiction as readers dive into what life was like for women back in the 60-70s and therefore what it took for Ginny to take back control. As a mother, you’ll feel for her, you’ll feel for her precious little Lucy, and just keep turning the pages. Highly recommend it.
A huge thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for giving me the opportunity to read and review this advance copy.

Thank you to St. Martin Press for the ARC of this book. Ginny Richardson gives birth in 1971 to a baby with Down’s Syndrome. Her powerful father-in-law has the baby sent to Willowbrook School telling Ginny and her husband it’s the best thing. Two years later Ginny’s friend Marsha brings her newspaper articles detailing the horrific conditions and abuse at the school. Ginny sets out to check it out herself and what follows is a harrowing and heartbreaking tale as Ginny tries to save her daughter. This story had me on the edge of my seat and I read in one day as I could not put it down! This should be on your must be read list! Five stars all the way!

An interesting novel that takes place in the late 60s and early 70s about a mother and her fight to take back her daughter borh with Down Syndrome, who was taken and institutionalized at birth. I found the details horrifying. That this was commonplace around the time I was born makes me so sad and yet glad to see progress is being made. The story also touches on the role is women in marriage and the legal system at that time. That a husband could make decisions without any required or expected input from his wife is shocking. I enjoyed the story and characters and overall thought it was thought provoking.

*Keeping Lucy* is a book bound to get anyone out of a reading rut! It certainly did for me. T. Greenwood, author of fan favorite *Rust & Stardust*, is back and pulling at readers' heartstrings with this captivating novel.

Characters Ginny (mother), Lucy (daughter), and Martha (BFF) spring to life on these pages as readers leap back to 1969. This is a story of a mother's love and how far she'll go for her daughter. Lucy is institutionalized at birth, as she is born with Down Syndrome. While Ginny was told this was best for her daughter, her best friend Martha shares with her the many atrocities happening at the "school."

Overall, it's an incredibly engaging books. Some readers may be put off by the overall narrative arc of the book, but it's historical fiction, and it's exploring a time when women did not have as much agency as they have in contemporary society (even though we still have a ways to go).

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

When Ginny has a baby daughter with Down Syndrome, she's taken away from her immediately . Her husband and father-in-law institutionalize Lucy, insisting that it's for the best. Ginny agrees because she is led to believe it's the only choice.

Two years later, Ginny reads that Willowridge is abusing and neglecting the children. She travels to the "school", takes Lucy, and embarks on a journey that will change her heart and soul.

On the surface this seems that it would have been a book I LOVED.

But something fell flat for me. I'm not sure why this book didn't really do it for me. I feel like I could have learned so much more about Down Syndrome and the horrors of institutionalization but that part was kind of a minor story compared to Ginny and Ab. I found Ginny so ridiculously week. Yes, I know this was the 60s/ 70s and she seemed to have some feminist thoughts (never mind the totally ridiculous portion where she goes off on a tangent about lesbians) but she cannot do anything for herself. Even at the end of her "awakening", a male police officer has to make all of the decisions for her.

Ab doesn't ever read as the great man Ginny wants you to think he is. He comes across as incredibly spineless and intentionally clueless.

I did enjoy the parts that painted Ginny as a fierce mother. I also liked her friendship with Marsha, but I feel like Marsha cursed constantly to prove that she was a liberated woman. So unnecessary. Their road trip was heart warming and laugh out loud funny in places. I just wish I liked the characters more.

3 stars.

T. Greenwood has done it again, she brings the pages to life for me when I read her books. However, this book was not a happy page turner for me. Ginny's major struggles begin when her baby is born with Down's Syndrome and the story centers on what happens to that baby, Lucy. It is hard to read about at times. It is also hard to believe how close minded and self centered some people are when it comes to supposed disabilities-Furthermore, it is not easy to read about it as you get so frustrated at how Ginny's bond with her daughter is almost destroyed.

I highly recommend to anyone-T. Greenwood is an author to watch! Thank you to Net galley and the publisher for a chance to read and review.

I was unable to become invested in this story as much as many readers. I thought the plot was compelling but did not care for the writing style which seemed to me to be melodramatic, simplistic and with cliches. I am old enough to remember the horrific conditions in institutions similar to the one in which Lucy was placed. In fact, as a young student, I worked for part a summer in such a place, which in some ways was even worse than the neglectful and atrocious conditions described here. The plot to rescue Lucy, a child with Downs Syndrome had great appeal.

I did not connect with, or care for the characters. I had sympathy for Ginny, Lucy’s birth mother, but found she was too passive, lacked assertiveness, and had a poor self-image. She was completely under the control of her husband, Ab, was given an allowance and spent her days in a comfortable home caring for her son, Peyton. Ab, himself, was controlled by his dominating father, a prominent and wealthy attorney. When Lucy was born Ab and his father relinquished Lucy to the State without Ginny’s knowledge or permission.

Ginny was told that Lucy was in a school to meet her special mental and medical needs and was dissuaded from visiting her. It was not until someone made Ginny aware of a series of newspaper articles exposing dreadful conditions at the institution that Ginny decided to act.

Ginny sees the squalid conditions and the neglect of Lucy and others when she visits the institute with her friend, Marsha. She signs Lucy out for the weekend and is determined to never bring her back to the wretched place. Due to Ginny’s lack of decisiveness, she and Marsha start out on a badly planned road trip. It is difficult to believe these two women could ever be friends in real life. Whereas Ginny has become an isolated and devoted mother to Peyton and housewife, Marsha is single, impulsive, hard living by partying, drinking and flitting from man to man. She packs a gun and frequently swears in front of children.

They start out in a dilapidated car, without much forethought or money in order to rescue Lucy from authorities and Ab’s family. When Lucy is not returned on time, Ginny could now be considered a kidnapper and fugitive. Peyton should be starting first grade but is now in the car and staying with Marsha’s friends or in sleazy motels. Many stops are made to change Lucy’s diapers, with much description of what is discovered about her neglected condition.

I felt that this was a story about Ginny’s personal growth with a fierce love of her daughter she was rescuing and sudden courageous development of self-assertiveness. Most of the characters end with admirable, if unbelievable, changes in their beliefs and lifestyle.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Saint Martin’s Press for an ARC in return for an unbiased review. I don’t think prospective readers should be dissuaded by my misgivings, and feel it is a story which will grip their emotions and that many will enjoy.

This book captivated and moved me. To think of how things have changed in the world for women and for children with special needs. How it still has changed to be made, but to have faith those changes will come to fruition is moving. This book is heartwarming and heartfelt. It’s the journey of so many lessons and of great love, devotion and courage. I love how Ginny gains herself by trying to get her daughter. It’s all about being willing to take the risks necessary to create change. I’m so glad NetGalley gave me the opportunity to read this early edition of this book. I’m liking reading books more for their content and the power within their pages than to follow trends blindly. This was an emotional and powerful read. I loved the format, the characters and the heart behind the story and writing.

A special thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This heartbreaking story—inspired by true events—is a tale of how far a mother will go for her child. In 1969, Ginny Richardson gave birth to a baby girl with Down Syndrome. Her husband's family arrange to have the baby sent to Willowridge, a state-supported institution for children with intellectual disabilities. Abbott, her husband, tries to convince Ginny that it is for the best and that they should move on after they grieve for her daughter whom, they were going to claim, died at birth.

Two years later, Ginny's best friend, Marsha, shows her articles about Willowridge—the living conditions are nothing short of horrifying, and the children are severely neglected. Ginny, Marsha, and Ginny's six-year-old son visit the school to see for themselves if there is any truth to what is being reported and how Lucy is being cared for. With the circumstances being exactly as described, Ginny takes Lucy and flees. For the first time in her life, she is in control and in for the fight of her life against Ab and his powerful family.

Greenwood's writing is great, in fact, it's better than great. She effortlessly draws the reader in and deftly balances the delicate subject matter with the story—based on real events—that needed to be told. I felt that she kept the writing light on purpose given the horrific reports of institutions, like Willowridge, that actually existed. It could be argued that this did the novel a disservice however, in this case, I think it worked. Ginny was naive and passive and this type of character couldn't shoulder a heavier plot with a deeper exploration into both the depression that Ginny experienced as well as the deplorable conditions that Lucy was living in.

At first, I was a little thrown by the third perspective, and the sentence structure was distracting because every sentence seemed to start with "Ginny". Once I got past that and into the rhythm of the writing, I devoured this page-turner.

I read Rust & Stardust last year and really liked it, so I was excited to receive a copy of T. Greenwood’s newest book, Keeping Lucy, in hopes of learning more about a period of history I didn’t know much about. I did like this book and I did learn something, but I didn’t like it quite as much as Rust & Stardust because I felt it lacked in plot.

Finding Lucy is about a family from Massachusetts in the 1970’s whose second child is born with down synodrome. Down syndrome has a sad history in the United States and the delivery doctor strongly recommended enrolling the baby, Lucy, in an institution that could better see to her needs. Her mother, Ginny, was excluded from the decision to give up the baby and years later, she struggles with the loss of her little girl. When Lucy is two years old, a journalist publishes an expose about Willowridge, Lucy’s school, that reveals the deplorable living conditions in which the children are kept. Ginny is horrified and upset by the article and travels to Willowridge for the first time to see the conditions for herself and meet her daughter.

Greenwood definitely has a unique style of writing. It is very simple and straight forward, but does an excellent job of making you feel acutely uncomfortable and anxious. Rust & Stardust was about the kidnapping of Sally Horner, the young girl who inspired Lolita, and made me feel so anxious and frustrated about the way Sally was manipulated and treated. I had a similar reaction to Keeping Lucy in that I found this part of history shocking, I was frustrated by the way the health and justice system worked in the 1970’s, particularly in how it ignores the agency of women, and I was so anxious about the decisions the characters made and the potential ramifications. I flew through the book, reading about 75% of it on a lazy saturday.

I liked that this looked at a disturbing and lesser known part of history, but unfortunately I was a little disappointed in the execution. I was expecting this book to focus on Willowridge, the poor living conditions, the pursuit of justice against the institution, and the fight for custody of the children and for people with Down Syndrome to be recognized as people with a full set of rights. Willowridge is not a real place, but I trust it was imagined based on other similar institutions. Likewise, Ginny is not a real person, but I imagine there are parents out there who unknowningly were advised to send their babies off to similar institutions. In Ginny’s case, she was more or less blindsided by her husband and father-in-law, which plays a large role in the story.

I liked Ginny’s story arc in that it highlights how little agency women had in their lives and relationships. But overall I felt the author missed an opportunity to write a more historically meaningful plot. In order for the babies to be committed to the institution, parents essentially gave up their custody rights to the state. Once the story got going, I was expecting for this to be a story about Ginny’s battle with the state to save her daughter and regain custody while fighting against the antiquanted and sexist beliefs of her father in law, who thought he was entitled to make decisions for his son and family. The story provided a great look at how the patriarchy robbed women of any power or agency and the gender dynamics that often existed in families at this time. But ultimately this story was not about a custody battle, but rather was a drawn out road trip in which Ginny tries to escape with her daughter and the trials she faces as a single woman/mother in rural America. It was an interesting story with a surprising amount of action, but meaningless in that while I understood Ginny’s desperation, her actions were drastic and not realistic. I know Ginny was only try to save her daughter from being returned to Willowridge, but her actions were short sighted and actually really harmful to the result that she wanted. She’s applauded at the end for her good motherly instincts, which I thought pretty rich because she basically just ran away from any responsibility.

Ginny and Martha made a lot of bad decisions that I felt there was really no coming back from. I disliked the ending because I thought it was extremely unlikely and absolved Ginny of any wrongdoing. (view spoiler) What I really wanted to hear about was the struggle all those other families went through in gaining custody of their children and what legal actions were taken against the institutions for their neglect. People with Down Syndrome had to fight for their legal rights, care, and education, and I would have much preferred to learn more about that.

The story did hold my interest throughout the whole book and I sped through it, but the longer GInny and Martha spent on the road, the more I wondered what the whole point was. I didn’t expect them to be on the run for so long and I was really surprised when it ended up being the main plotline of the story. This is a fascinating part of history and I really just wish we had gotten a different story. I won’t fault the author because she did still deliver on a fast paced and interesting story, but personally, it just wasn’t the story I was hoping for and I thought it was a bit of a missed opportunity. I’m still giving it 3 stars because I did learn something and I thought the writing was pretty good, but overall it just left me wanting more.

This was an incredibly emotional story to read following a mother's harrowing journey to reclaim her daughter. Several times (reading on my subway commute) I had to catch myself from spilling tears from the overwhelming emotions in this book.

The novel did a good job of demonstrating some of the stereotypes and prejudices that people with a disability must have endured in the 60s and 70s. It also did an incredible job of depicting the main character Ginny and demonstrating how this could have easily happened during the time period - losing the rights to your child thanks to a husband's decision.

What is really eye-opening is realizing that this didn't take place so long ago even though it feels like our society has changed and evolved so drastically. At the same time, it hasn't and most mental disabilities are still very misunderstood.