Behind the Gates of Gomorrah 1
Life inside one of America's largest hospitals for the criminally insane, treating the real Hannibal Lecters of this world
- ISBN:
- 9781760112301
- 9781760112301
- Category:
- True crime
- Age range:
- + years old
- Format:
- Paperback
- Publication Date:
- 01-01-2015
- Publisher:
- ALLEN & UNWIN
- Edition:
- 1st Edition
- Pages:
- 288
- Dimensions (mm):
- 234x153x21mm
- Weight:
- 0.36kg
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Reviews
1 Review
If you were working in a forensic mental health facility, what would you write about? Whose story would you want to tell?
I can pretty much guarantee that the answer you come up with will be different to the stories that Dr Seager decided to tell in his novel.
“Behind the Gates of Gomorrah” builds up quite an evocative image in your mind. You’re already thinking about the worst of the worst – the manipulative, violent, insane criminals of the “Hannibal Lecter” ilk.
Would it disappoint you if these types of characters are glossed over heavily in the book, and that the main focus is on Dr Seager’s day to day battles over cigarettes, staffing issues and cost cutting?
Less a book about the peculiarities of his patients, and more to do with the inanities of a forensic facility, the book doesn’t quite live up to it’s name.
Dr Seager’s struggle with the humanization of the patients at the facility is an interesting moral dilemma – can you forget the atrocities and become friendly with these men? He waxes and wanes on this topic, as does his commitment to the position. There are many family talks around the table about what to do.
Perhaps the most poignant part of this book is how it highlights the lack of resources, security and funding that is available. The vignettes are like a cry for help, when nurses and doctors are being assaulted regularly, and keeping staff is like winning the lottery.
There’s a couple of chapters that feel misplaced – gun control rants and congressional spending for instance, that the book could have done without.
Seager attempts to inject some humor and ‘One flew over the cuckoos nest’ narrative into some of the book, but it’s a little sparse to get you through the whole thing.
There’s better books out there that speak of forensic patients in different settings (I’d recommend a few John Douglas books), but as this book is rather short in length, you may still find it entertaining.
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