As related to Elliott, Fedders's story moves from her birth in Maryland in 1943, through 16 years as an abused wife, to her divorce in 1985 from John R. Fedders, an official of the Securities Exchange Commission. The couple lived graciously in Washington, where in the privacy of their home the husband beat his wife and browbeat their five sons. In a less melodramatic telling, the book would... (read more)