Review: The Sleep Room: A Sadistic Psychiatrist and the Women Who Survived Him

The Sleep Room: A Sadistic Psychiatrist and the Women Who Survived Him by Jon Stock
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Narrated by Richard Armitage, Celia Imrie, Antonia Beamish
Presented by Tantor Audio

This was interesting but the swerve into conspiracy theories threw me a bit.

An interesting account of Dr William Sargant, a psychiatrist who kept a bunch of 'troublesome' women drugged up and asleep so he could give them continuous bouts of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).

Now sure, it was a different time, but there is so much wrong with what this guy did. There are some interesting discussions of consent (or lack thereof) and how much was for the good of the patient versus how much the research would benefit the doc and his ego.

It does focus more on Sargant than the women, as most of the women have sparse memories of their time in the facility. So instead we learn more of Sargant's biography, and how he justified doing horrible things in the name of science.

I found the inserts from patients quite interesting, and at the start they blended well though by the end they began to feel out of place. This book seemed concerned with the women only up to a certain point, but they end up being reduced to something of a footnote to the rest of Sargant's scientific exploits. That didn't sit too well with me.

I listened to the audio and as much as I love Richard Armitage I did have to speed him up to x1.75 and then eventually x2. He spoke eloquently but left such long pauses I found myself getting impatient. Otherwise, though, his narration was perfectly serious and well suited to the job. The female narrators were okay, but I found them sounding too - for lack of a better word - sane. They spoke very well as they discussed all manor of struggles and it didn't quite fit for me. I know that seems like a weird complaint, but ultimately it comes down to the narrator not seeming to match the written voice.

I enjoyed it much more at the start but as it started to drift away from the sleep room I found my attention wandering. There were a few questionable inclusions and it seemed a little like the author had an agenda when it came to discussing spies and psychological warfare.

I think this will be fascinating to fans of psychology, though listening to what the women were put through does enrage. It's an interesting study of a sadistic man, but if you want to read it for the stories of the women involved, you may be disappointed.

With thanks to NetGalley for an audio ARC

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