Ten Small Beds

by Kate Kasten

At forty-five, clinical psychologist Davida Grayson, leaves a thriving practice in Oakland, California to return to her childhood home in Still Water, Kansas after the death of her reclusive father. Her mother is in a nursing home, suffering from Alzheimer's disease. In the ensuing months, unsettling events threaten Davida’s safety, sobriety, and sanity. Foremost among these is the reappearance of her high school sweetheart, Paul, who had traumatized Davida as a teenager by playing an inexplicably cruel practical joke. Events suggest that he may be stalking her, but she is starting to question her own perceptions. Despite increasing self-doubt, she continues to work, via long distance phone calls, with three of her Oakland therapy clients: a Korean college student whose burden of responsibility toward his immigrant parents has led him to attempt suicide; a stoic, workaholic man anguished by being his family’s scapegoat; and a woman coping with the family havoc wreaked by her husband’s bipolar illness. Interwoven with the main plot of the novel, their stories resonate with Davida’s struggle against mental deterioration and her quest to solve the central mystery of her life.

From Kirkus Reviews: “[A] … readable novel about making sense of family history beset by secrets and pain. … At times vivid and evocative … [a] riveting mystery at the novel’s core. … the plot’s serpentine twists will propel readers through to the satisfying end.” Kirkus Reviews

374 pages, Paperback

First published October 22, 2011

Reviews

[Sandra de Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just what a person would hope for in a second novel from a new author. (Full disclosure, Kate Kasten is a friend. Nevertheless, I write what is true for me.) The opening of this book is intense, it draws you in and leaves you gasping for breath. All throughout the book you are left wondering what is real, what is imagined, until the end. The protagonist is dealing with some heavy life issues that many of us are dealing with today: ailing parents, Alzheimer's, isolation, care-giving. If you don't see yourself in here somewhere, you will see someone you know and get a taste of what she or he is going through.

[JeanAnn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading "Ten Small Beds" reminded me of a few childhood memories I've gladly carried or wished I could let go of and how they've affected me throughout my life.

I've enjoyed reading both of Ms. Kasten's novels, The De-Conversion of Kit Lamb and Ten Small Beds.

[Erica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoying this story by local author and bookclub member!!!!!