Draft:A Story of Beautiful Girl by Rachel Simon

The Story of a Beautiful Girl is Rachel Simon’s 2011 novel that follows multiple people affected by institutionalization, illustrating notions of family, love, and motherhood with regard to historical stigmas surrounding physical and intellectual disabilities. It is told from the third-person omniscient perspective, but the chapters alternate characters of focus. The book is a work of fiction, although Simon researched thoroughly and includes accurate historical context, and contributes to the ongoing conversation within the field of disability studies. Simon’s book was nominated for the Readers’ Favorite Fiction for the Goodreads Choice Awards in its publishing year.

Synopsis/Plot

On a rainy night in 1968 in the southern town of Wells Bottom, two strangers appear at the house of an elderly widow, Martha, with a newborn child in their arms. The couple consists of Lynnie, the mother with an intellectual disability, and Homan, an older deaf African American man who does not appear to be the father. Still, together they all seem to be a family. Soon after letting them in and giving them fresh clothes, police and officials from the school for the Incurable and Feebleminded, a fictional institution in the novel which Lynnie and Homan attended together, appear on Martha’s doorstep and swarm the house. They physically restrain Lynnie and return her to the school, while Homan escapes. The authorities seem to have no idea about the baby, who the mother hid carefully in the attic, and the only words she verbalizes to Martha are “hide her.”

After that evening, the three adults embark on separate paths, completely unaware of each other’s fate. Martha takes Julia on a journey from New York state to Massachusetts and beyond, carefully moving to ensure that school authorities cannot find them or take Julia away. Lynnie returns to the school and lives there under close watch, with the man who assaulted her still on staff. Kate, who also works on the grounds but does so in an effort to serve others, presses Lynnie to confide in her about where baby Julia is, and searches for Martha and Lynnie’s child, following the trail of where they are hiding. Homan runs from the police and finds himself in multiple dangerous situations, including being robbed, arrested, and taken to a church that claims to cure disabilities.

Simultaneously, each character reflects on their past and the events that led them to this point. Lynnie was institutionalized by her family as a child after repeated comments by others about her behavior. As a young girl with a developmental disability, she was repeatedly categorized as “different.” Subsequently, her father convinced the family to take her to the school against her sister’s desire and her mother’s conscience. Still, eventually the entire family stopped visiting, and Lynnie was left completely by herself. From then on, she was forced to wear uniforms and do difficult chores, rather than being cared for. The environment proved to be unsanitary, unsafe, and neglectful. Throughout her time at the school, Lynnie witnessed many people she knew, including a friend, being buried on the property without explanation.

Homan became deaf at six years old after falling ill. His uncle, Blue, eleven years older than him, made a special effort to look after Homan and care for him. Blue introduced Homan to the McClintocks, a family with other deaf Black children who would teach him to sign. He began to enjoy communicating with his hands and eyes, and did not miss his hearing. Nine years later, a neighborhood boy began to stir up trouble with the McClintocks, Blue, and Homan by destroying a car they were working on with a baseball bat. When they tried to fight back, the boy, Wayne, also struck Blue’s horse with the bat, devastating the family. In an effort to get back at the boy, Blue and Homan drove a car through his house, but Blue was shot and killed by the father while running away. Homan deserted the town after the incident because he felt he had ruined his life and his mother’s. After running away, he was arrested in Wells Bottom and sent to the school as a John Doe because his sign language set him apart from others living in the small town and could not be understood by other deaf people he encountered.

Martha was a schoolteacher who had longed to be a mother. However, the doctors informed her that her son had been born with a disability, and he died following birth. The only other family she had was her husband, Earl, and the tragedy drove a wedge between them. Earl died several years later, leaving Martha alone to manage the farm. She was faithful but had stopped attending church, so she primarily only interacted with others at Christmas, when her old students would visit her while they were in town. After Lynnie leaves her baby in Martha’s care, Martha leans on those past students for guidance and support. She arranges to stay with Henry and his wife Graciela at their hotel in New York State, where she names the child Julia. After that, she stays at another student’s home in New Jersey, and then in Massachusetts, where she and Julia settle in.

Kate, one of the few employees at the school for the Incurable and Feebleminded who truly cares for Lynnie and the other students, decides to search for Martha and the baby after Lynnie draws pictures of what happened the night she escaped. The same religious calling that led her to the job at the school guided her in the search for Julia. She was led to the first student that Martha confided in, Eva, who had been forwarding Martha her mail and staying in touch with her.

Homan works hard to find his way back to Lynnie, but after being chased by the police on multiple occasions, he finds himself completely unsure of where he is. After being arrested, he is sent to live with a religious family that provided for him but made him feel uncomfortable. Finally, they take him to a church where attendees with disabilities were sent to be “cured.” He met Sam, a young man in a wheelchair, and the two stole Sam’s van and ran away from the town. However, after driving for months, Sam directed Homan to drive him home, where Homan was pushed out and sent away on his own again.

Meanwhile, as Julia begins to grow up in Martha’s care with the company of a widowed friend named Pete, the national news releases a story about the school’s terrible treatment of Lynnie and its other residents. The coverage leads Lynnie’s sister, Hannah, to reconnect with Lynnie, and the school to adjust its policies and allow the residents more autonomy.

After 27 years, Lynnie learns to speak and moves into a group home. Julia, living with Martha and Pete on Cape Cod, acts out and misbehaves as a teenager. Clarence, a harsh worker from the school who quit during its alterations, reaches out to Kate and confides in her that he witness Lynnie’s rape years prior and did nothing to stop it or speak up. He was bullied by his co-worker and Lynnie’s attacker into remaining silent. Sam tracks down Homan and takes him to the school, which has recently been shut down, and they retrace Homan’s last steps in Wells Bottom to find Lynnie and Julia.

In the last of the book’s four parts, Lynnie and Homan are reunited after visiting a lighthouse that Lynnie had drawn in pictures for years. Julia learns about her parents from letters that Martha had written, and the three are able to come together as a family after decades.

Characters

Lynnie

For the majority of her life, Lynnie, a young white lady with a developmental handicap, has been housed in the school for the Incurable and Feebleminded. Even though she lives in cruel and demeaning circumstances, Lynnie is kind, observant, and emotionally complex. Despite being mostly nonverbal, she has a rich inner life and a strong ability for resilience, love, and trust. Her tenacity and desire for independence are heightened by her relationship with Homan. Lynnie gains strength and independence throughout time, particularly after being split off from Homan and their newborn baby. Perseverance, affection, and an unwavering hope for reunion characterize her journey.

Homan

Homan is a young Black man who is deaf and also institutionalized, although his disability is misinterpreted, and he is classified as mentally impaired. Homan frequently experiences severe solitude since he is unable to interact with those around him, except Lynnie. Sign language was not widely supported when the book took place in 1968. As a Black deaf individual, he may have communicated using Black American Sign Language (BASL), a distinct dialect shaped by segregation in deaf education. He is very smart, resourceful, and motivated. His character revolves around his love for Lynnie, and he spends years searching for her when they part ways. Homan's journey demonstrates his quiet strength, tenacity, and unshakable dedication. His story is one of survival and resolve.

Martha

Martha is an elderly woman who has tended to her late husband’s farm daily since his passing. A retired teacher, she primarily spends the year entirely isolated and alone, aside from when her past students visit her each Christmas day. After Lynnie leaves baby Julia in her hands, Martha throws herself into the role of motherhood–one that readers learn was taken away from her years ago when she gave birth to a child that doctors told her was “defective” and died not long after. The loss of their child drove a wedge between Martha and her husband, and she has been lacking companionship, love, and intimacy with people for a long time, as the novel begins. Following her experience with Lynnie and taking on responsibility for Julia, Martha is led to reconsider stereotypes and harmful narratives about individuals with disabilities. She does everything in her power to protect Julia from experiencing the horrific treatment that Lynnie and Homan have each undergone.

Julia

Julia, the titular ‘beautiful girl,’ is Lynnie’s daughter and the linchpin of all the novel’s characters. In her infancy, Julia was smuggled out of her mother’s mental health institution, and the novel begins with her arrival at Martha’s house. Julia spends her early childhood moving from home to home with Martha, both characters growing and learning from one another. Julia doesn’t get to meet her mother for many years, and does not connect with Homan at any point. Eventually, Julia meets Lynnie and Homan, offering some small sense of justice for the trio of characters. Julia can be read as a connective thread between the novel’s many characters, providing a source of hope and determination in an often dark narrative.

Kate

Kate is a mother who felt compelled to dedicate her life to serving and caring for others after she realized she had not protected her children from their father. A devout Christian, she felt led to accept a position at the school for the Incurable and Feebleminded. However, despite giving more affection to the residents than other workers, the job had certainly taken its toll on her, and she had gained weight and started smoking over the course of her time there. Kate has a particular fondness for Lynnie, knowing the circumstances of her horrific mistreatment, and does all in her power to be a light for Lynnie during her time at the school.

Themes

The Story of Beautiful Girl has interwoven themes, each contributing to a broader observation concerning human dignity, autonomy, and resilience. Of greatest significance throughout the book is the feeling that all individuals, regardless of disability, are owed dignity and the right to self-determination. Through the very existence of their protagonists, Homan, a deaf African American man, and Lynnie, an intellectually disabled woman, the novel addresses people's biases as well as institutions' inequities that have so long excluded the disabled.

One of the most powerful themes is love, a redemptive force in the novel. Their relationship is unique because they can understand each other even though they cannot traditionally communicate through words. Simon pushes the message that words aren’t always a necessary component of connection; connection is a human ability. Through hardship, the characters are reminded of each other, which drives them forward in their personal journeys. Discrimination and institutionalization are also significant issues. The book highlights the harsh realities of institutional life for people with disabilities and the demeaning encounters they encounter daily. These narratives demonstrate the need for reform and present the institutionalized people as fellow humans needing the same liberties and rights as everyone else.

Escape is another key motif in the book, presented in Lynnie and Homan in literal and symbolic ways. Their initial escape from the institution is not only a physical act to get away from the toxic environment but also a metaphor of independence. It acted as an additional metaphor of reclaiming their identities and futures.

Hope and strength are additional motifs, as the characters consistently demonstrate resiliency in the face of hardship, using their good memories to drive them forward. Lynnie's determination to keep her child safe and Homan's desire to reunite with his true love are prime examples of quiet but profound strength.

Finally, motherhood is a key motif. Lynnie goes on a quest to leave the institution and is forced to leave her newborn daughter in the hands of a stranger. Out of love, Lynnie was selfless. The novel shows motherhood as a biological relationship and a place for hope, continuity, and heritage.

Together, the themes create a rich story highlighting the importance of human rights, compassion, and the irrepressible desire to live honestly and freely.

Historical Context and Disability Studies

Before the release of The Story of Beautiful Girl in 2011, Americans with disabilities had already seen a significant upheaval in their status quo. Starting with the “Americans with Disabilities Act” (or ADA) in 1990, the United States began to make a concentrated effort to address protections for disabled people. The ADA was later expanded in 2008, furthering the web of protections offered to those with disabilities.

Key among those protections, and most relevant to Rachel Simon’s book, is the ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court on the ‘Olmstead v. L.C.’ case. Tackling the now-infamous psychiatric wards and mental health asylums of the 20th century, Olmstead v. L.C. featured two people: Lois Curtis and Elaine Wilson. Both women had disabilities, both were admitted into a psychiatric unit in Georgia, and both were kept for years after being “cleared” to leave. Lois and Elaine, seeing this as a violation of the recently passed ADA, had their day in court and won. The ruling of the judges determined that forcibly keeping disabled people in institutions was a violation of their civil rights.

This landmark court case almost certainly influenced Rachel Simon as she wrote The Story of Beautiful Girl. Though the rights of those with disabilities had greatly improved by 2011, Simon emphasizes just how bad things were in the mid-20th century when her book takes place, before any special protections or guarantees had been granted to a single disabled American.

About the Author

Rachel Simon is an American, award-winning author. She has written six books, many regarding disability-related issues. She has a developmentally disabled sister, Beth, whom she wrote about in her book Riding the Bus with My Sister. In 2005, the memoir was adapted into a Hallmark Hall of Fame movie starring Rosie O'Donnell, who plays Beth, and Andie MacDowell, who plays Rachel. Her historical fiction book, A Story of Beautiful Girl, was originally published in 2011; it is another success that has been adapted into several languages and explored throughout the United States and abroad. The novel was on the New York Times Best Sellers List. She currently lives in Wilmington, Delaware. Her website includes multiple pictures of her and her sister, Beth.

In an interview with PBS, she reflects on her upbringing with Beth, stating that, in reality, she was not institutionalized. Her father grew up as an orphan, and therefore, he was able to reflect and understand “institutional life,” stating that he would not put any child of his in an institution. This family ideology that disabled people should be assimilated into society helped inspire her original writing of Riding the Bus with My Sister. As she began to explore disability studies, Simon realized how little people have heard about stories of people with disabilities and how they were treated. In explaining the reason for writing A Story of Beautiful Girl as fiction, Simon explained how her familial connections to disability allowed her to get into the mind of a character like her sister and of an aide as she has grown up learning how to translate for her sister and help her through the daily hardships those with disabilities often experience. Her projects have been a way for her to fight for disabled people's rights and amplify unheard perspectives.

Reception

Upon its release in 2011, The Story of Beautiful Girl took less than two weeks to hit The New York Times’ bestseller list. The Washington Post’s Suki Casanave promised that readers of the book would come away from it with “a new level of empathy for those who were once hidden away--and for all those living with a disability.” Wisteria Leigh of the Historical Novel Society described the book as, “globally relevant, with promise of high praise from all who take heed to read it.” The Story of Beautiful Girl also won a Goodreads Choice Award, boasting above-average reviews on the site.

Rachel Simon certainly benefited from her choice of publisher, commenting in an interview, “The publisher has wanted this book to be a big commercial bestseller since they acquired it in 2010, and they've put a lot … into promoting it.”