The Sorrow of Mary is the story of a woman with depression.  The story unfolds as Mary visits a caring psychologist.  Although the novel is fictional, the premise behind the therapy is all based upon scientific evidence and has been proven successful.  Mary fights with her thoughts and feelings of anguish throughout the book as she tries to heal herself with the directions of her therapist.  Although the therapy is, in fact, built by science, the story is rushed.  Mary comes to realizations much sooner than most people in her situation and most people would spend more time in therapy.  Luckily for Mary, she spends most of the novel thinking giving her ample time to realize the depths of her own mind.