Some people have heard of One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest. The movie, starring Jack Nicholson as its front man, won all five major academy awards and still remains to be critically acclaimed. However, most people don’t know that it is a novel by Ken Kesey. This novel offers riveting insight into the daily life for patients in a mental ward. This story in the novel is incredibly gripping and deserves more attention than it has received compared to the movie. What Kesey offers is intense feelings of entrapment, a bountiful blend of unique characters, and interesting use of descriptors to make his scenes come alive. The story is relayed by Chief Bromden, a patient who pretends to be mute and deaf. His narration makes the readers question his reliability as a narrator. The lighthearted and bold personality of Randle Patrick McMurphy juxtaposes the blandness of the mental ward and the “Big Nurse” who is in charge of the wing. As the patients learn more about themselves under the guidance of McMurphy, to the dismay of the Big Nurse, the established order in the ward crumbles away into anarchy. If you give this book a chance, you will not regret it.
by Emma Bozenda
Coe Review 
