The Fifth Sally

This book is amazing. Having never read anything by Daniel Keyes I wasn't sure what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised. I bought this book because Multiple Personality Disorder fascinates me. This book doesn't seem to still be in print, but I would recommend this book to anyone interested in mental illness.If interested in this book, I would suggest looking in libraries, used bookstores, and maybe even thrift stores. I read this book in about two weeks, however, if time had permitted I would have finished it quicker.I definitely recommend this book.

I gave this book 4 stars rating because of how deep into human mind Daniel Keyes explores. It shows how well-informed Daniel is on the cases of MPD.

Well written and great dialogue. Can't figure out why I wan't deeply affected, but perhaps I was unable to relater strongly with the original trauma, unlike the book Sybil that deeply affected me.

Recently I began a project investigating the works of Alan Keyes for a project in one of literature classes. Through this project I became interested in 'The Fifth Sally' and decided to order a used copy.I'll admit I had my hesitations, it had been published once in 1980 and hadn't been published since. Evidently it hadn't even warrented a paperback edition. But after reading the novel, I can only weep that it seems fated to die in obscurity.Without a doubt, The Fifth Sally was one of the best books I have ever had the fortune to read and it solidified my belief that Daniel Keyes is an excellent author and one of the greats of the twentieth century.Strictly speaking, this book is not comparable to Keyes' Flowers For Algernon, the novel that he will be remembered by and for good reason, but The Fifth Sally is never-the-less excellent. The tale is of Sally, Bella, Nola, Derry, and Jinx. The interesting thing about these five women is that they all seem to be occupying the same body.Keyes pays little attention to the controversy over whether Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD) is a real disease and instead writes from the assumption that it is in fact very real. He hints at the controversy from time to time but ultimately that is irrelevent. You see, the tale is written from a first person point of view, Derry tells us the story. When she is in control, it is pure first person and when one of the others is in control, she is little more then an observer.The style can be described as little more then simply fascinating. It's generally a cardinal rule not to mix multiple viewpoints, especially in a single scene, but Keyes slips between Derry's first person narration (and Derry is a great story teller!) to an impartial recording that you almost forget it is Derry telling that you never feel lost.The book is riveting, all along we see Sally's more acceptable personalities: Sally the motherly type, Derry the tomboy, Bella the party-goer, and Nola the artist. But all along we know that Jinx, the maniac, is lurking just under the surface and we never know just what Jinx is going to do.All I can say of this book is this: ordering a used copy of it will be the best thing you ever do. Pay exhorbatent prices (not too exhorbatent lets hope, I paid a modest $15 but it was well worth it) climb over hills, steal from libraries (ok, well maybe not that) Anything - just find a way to get a copy of this book. It is simply fantastic. Whether it is comparable to Keyes's more well known The Minds of Billy Madigan is hard to say, but I know this much: I won't forget Sally or the others for a long time to come.

This was the third book I've read from this author, really enjoyed all of them. Very well written, deep and emotional, wish they would make a movie out of it, although I know it wouldn't be near as good as the book.

I found the whole story a bit corny. After reading other books by Daniel Keyes I found this one less compelling than others. Somehow the personalities inside Sally did not ring true, and of course there was one, really evil personality among them and again, of course, Sally falls in love with her psychiatrist. Not really recommended. Read Flowers for Algernon or the Minds of Billy Milligan - far better reads than Sally.

Good Book！

⭐: 2.5📖: Sally often suffers from excruciating headaches, blacks out, loses time and wakes up with no memory of her actions. She begins to realise that she has four other immensely different personalities who are struggling to get out.💭: I was disappointed with this novel but I think it is because I read Keyes non fiction book The Minds of Billy Milligan first, which is the true story of a man who suffered from multiple personality disorder. For me this book seemed too simplistic, not realistic and the dialogue irritated me. The storyline felt rushed and simple.Keyes' other novel Flowers for Algernon is one of my top reads so far this year so I had high expectations for this one.If you are interested in this topic read Billy Milligan. If you enjoy science fiction try Flowers for Algernon.

Excellent book received in good condition.