by Judith Guest

Ffirst-time novelist Judith Guest made a stellar debut in 1976 with the publication of Ordinary People. Guest was born in Detroit, Michigan, in 1936, and raised there as well. She would later reside in Minnesota with a family of her own. Having lived all of her life in the Midwest, Guest was able to lucidly depict the type of upper-middle-class suburban community in which Ordinary People is set. Being the mother of three boys as well as an elementary school teacher further aided Guest in creating her fictional portrait of a troubled adolescent boy. The novel focuses on the boy's battle with severe mental distress and his experience in psychotherapy as he comes to terms with his suppressed feelings of guilt over the accidental death of his brother.

Events in History at the Time of the Novel

Teen suicide and depression. According to studies, the...