Winnipeg 1963. Eighteen-year-old psychology student Ruthie J. is the 
bane of her traditional Jewish family. Briefly married, she drinks, swears,
has casual sex and mixes with questionable characters. She also
argues incessantly with her father. When a bizarre car accident lands
her in court, the confused teen is sent for testing and diagnosed with
epilepsy – then considered a mental illness. Against her wishes,
Ruthie’s family admits her to a posh Maryland mental hospital,
Chestnut Lodge, of I Never Promised You a Rose Garden notoriety.
Put in the care of a sadistic psychiatrist who threatens to have her
committed for life, the spunky adolescent finds herself at the mercy of
an insane institution. Through the friendship and love of her fellow
patients and the subsequent help of a remarkable therapist, Ruthie J.
frees herself, discovers her true sexual orientation and perseveres in
her dream to become a physician. Told with humour and drama,
Dr. Ruth Simkin’s memoir The Jagged Years of Ruthie J. is a powerful
reading experience that will inspire all who struggle with illness,
adversity or sexual identity.