Genie: A Scientific Tragedy - Softcover

"Russ Rymer, in the process of telling the poignant story of one desperately unfortunate little girl, raises profound questions about both the origins of language and the ultimate source of what we call 'human nature.' At once a scientific detective story and an examination of professional ethics, "Genie" is disturbing, enlightening, and impossible to forget." -- Michael Dorris, author of "The Broken Cord""A child deprived of her birthright of love...and then almost rescued: out of that 'almost' comes this remarkable story of dedication impeded by personal squabbles and the research bureaucracy."-- Roger Shattuck, author of "The Forbidden Experiment""Topical books by journalists rarely afford the reading pleasures of "Genie: " high drama, intellectual and philosophical substance, and vivid, poetic reportage...brilliant."-- Richard Higgins, "Boston"

The compelling story of a young woman's emergence into the world after spending her first 13 years strapped to a chair, and her rescue and exploitation by scientists hoping to gain new insight into language acquisition.