The Outward Room

TheOutwardRoomisabookaboutayoungwoman’sjourneyfrommadnesstoself-discovery.Itcreatedasensationwhenitwasfirstpublishedin1937,andhaslostnoneofitsimmediacyoritspowertomovethereader.?Havingsufferedanervousbreakdownafterherbrother’sdeathinacaraccident,HarrietDemuthiscommittedtoamentalhospital,butherdoctor’sFreudiannostrumsdolittletomakeherwell.Convincedthatsheandshealonecanrefashionherlife,Harrietmakesadaringescapefromthehospital—hoppingatrainbynightandridingtherailsintothevastnessofNewYorkCityinthelightoftherisingsun.ItisthemiddleoftheGreatDepression,andatfirstHarrietislostamongthecity’sanonymousmultitudes.Shepawnsherjewelryandlivesanincreasinglyhand-to-mouthexistenceuntilshemeetsJohn,amachine-shopworker.SlowlyHarrietbeginstorecoverhersenseofself;slowlysheandJohnbegintofallinlove.Thestoryofthatemerginglove,toldwiththelyricismofVirginiaWoolfandtherealismofTheodoreDreiser,istheheartofMillenBrand’sremarkablebook.,