Set in 1998, Laura Brandon, 40 is coping with the death of her father, Carl Brandon who was a gifted astronomer. He leaves with her a deathbed request, Which is to check in on a woman named Sarah Tolley. Ms Tolley is a widow in a nursing home and she has the beginning stages of Alzheimer's.
Curious, Laura tries to figure out her father's connection to Sarah Tolley. Her husband Ray, champion for the rights of homeless people and her daughter Emma, 5 round out her current family. Laura's mother died in 1966 When She Was. 8
Ray is adamantly opposed to visiting Laura Sarah. She refuses to back down and goes out to meet the mysterious Sarah Tolley. They immediately form a bond and Laura learns a lot about Sarah's past. Sarah had been married to a lovely man named Joe Tolley and her late Aunt Jane had a crippling case of agoraphobia. As a nod to her aunt, Sarah Becomes a psychiatric nurse and has many horrific tales to share about the hospital in Which she worked in the late 1950s. So she had a daughter named Janie who was born in April of 1958 Whom she is trying to locate.
When Laura returns home, she is greeted by a mute and traumatized Emma. Ray had shot himself to death and left a very unsettling note. In Dealing with the aftermath of the man's suicide, Laura has to help Emma work through her trauma. Emma stopped speaking When she found out what Ray had done.
Eight months slog past and Emma silent is not speaking. Emma's therapist is very Encouraging and even invites Sarah to join them for Emma's sessions, Which turns out to be a good thing. Emma has developed a real terror of men and think all They Do is scream and shoot Themselves. She will not even play at a friend's summerhouse When the girl's father is present.
Again, Sarah Tolley might have more insights as to what Caused Emma's fears to segue into more fears. She and Emma Bond.
So does a man named Dylan Geer. He Receives a call from Laura, literally out of the blue and denies the claim she makes. He has a successful hot air balloon touring business and he wants to keep his life free attachment. His current girlfriend is a selfish whinebag named Bethany. More than once I wanted to kick Bethany in the shins. Laura counters Dylan's anger by sending him a picture of Emma. Once he sees That picture, the world changes for him.
"Breaking the Silence" is a masterpiece. Sarah's tales of horror about atrocities committed on psychiatric patients in the 1950s bleed over into 1998. Which is When this story is set. She is the glue That Binds Dylan, Laura and Emma as well as Emma's very astute therapist. Their stories are heartwarming and this book might make you cry. Just a warning.
At the risk of sounding corny, I am going to miss thesis characters. This book gets nothing but accolades from me.
The Fifth Dimension's 1967 classic "Up Up & Away" could be the soundtrack of this book.
