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***NO SPOILERS***

Hidden Valley Road is about the Galvins, a family of twelve children, half of whom developed schizophrenia. This was obviously a devastation to the family, but their loss was science’s gain. Robert Kolker skillfully wove the incredible story of this family with the fascinating science of schizophrenia, explaining exactly how researchers' understanding of the disease has improved over time. Studying the Galvins helped researchers significantly advance their understanding of this appalling illness.

Schizophrenia is remarkably complex. Despite decades of research, it remains frustratingly mysterious, and the nature-versus-nurture debate that surrounds it has never fully abated. The role of genes, however, is becoming clearer to researchers, and Kolker chronicled this and explained the gene science as accessibly as he could (no small feat). Most interesting was learning about the evolution of this research, thanks to the tireless and passionate efforts of a few notable scientists (who get the ample attention they deserve in this book). Current treatment is severely inadequate--although still better than nothing--but astounding new break-throughs in understanding the disease could make life-changing in-utero intervention a reality.

Kolker’s research into the Galvin family was extensive, and he painted a vividly tragic portrait of life in their chaotic household. He wrote about the family with sensitivity while holding nothing back in describing the extreme toll that schizophrenia took, not just on the six affected children but on the entire family. Life in this home was hell--genuinely dangerous because of violent outbursts from some of the schizophrenic children. Each day was unpredictable and strange. At the end, the unaffected children get some time in the spotlight, and now, well into adulthood, each is terribly scarred.

Unfortunately, Kolker left out a necessary part of this story: the psychology of the parents. It’s hard to comprehend the depth of the grief they must have felt as they watched one child after another fall ill with a horrible disease. I expected Kolker to touch on how multi-dimensional that kind of grief is. In an instant, a number of things fell apart for these parents: There was the obvious grief they felt over watching their children lose their minds but also grief over the loss of their hopes and dreams for those children and grief over the loss of their eventual life as empty-nesters. Finally, the parents totally lost the lifestyle they so enjoyed--a materialistic and status-obsessed lifestyle, but nonetheless, another loss to grieve. None of this comes across. It’s possible this hole in the story is owing to lack of information available to Kolker, but still, it’s there.

I read Kolker’s riveting Lost Girls: An Unsolved American Mystery in 2014, and over the years I’d wondered now and then whether he’d publish another book, and, if yes, why it was taking so long. Having read Hidden Valley Road, I now understand why it took so long. It’s because the schizophrenia in this family is far from simple. If not written about carefully, the Galvins could come across as a freak show, but both of Kolker’s books show that he’s considerate and very cognizant of writing about people with fairness. He brought the Galvins to life as flesh-and-blood people, and this comes across strongly at the end especially, when the children are adults. With the science, he had the lay reader in mind and broke it down, including only what was necessary, and remaining objective and respectful when discussing the use of psychiatric medication. Hidden Valley Road has cemented Kolker as a sympathetic nonfiction writer, and it’s the book to read for a thorough and humanizing look at schizophrenia.