An Unquiet Mind by Kay Redfield Jamison
Reviewed by: Becky Houghton, Reference Assistant
Genre: Memoir
Suggested Age: Adult
What this book is about: Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison is an authority on manic-depressive illness which she has also experienced firsthand. In this book Jamison examines manic-depression, which is also referred to in medical parlance as bipolar disorder, from both the perspective of a physician and a patient. Jamison describes in detail her extreme highs and paralyzing depressions experienced while pursuring her academic career and establishing herself as one of the foremost authorities on manic-depression.
My review: This is a powerful memoir. Kay is an excellent writer who openly and candidly describes her life with an almost clinical perspective. She begins with a description of her childhood as a “military kid” who moved a great deal but grew up with a strong sense of discipline and proper behavior. A clue to her eventual decline into “madness” is, however, that her father suffered severe bouts of depression and flights of mania which eventually lead to his leaving the military and beginning work in the private sector when Kay was in her late teenage years. Manic-depression has been proven to have a strong genetic connection. During her late adolescence and into adulthood, Kay’s illness became rampant with exhilarating highs and the accompanying ruinous spending sprees and then swings to severe depression, episodes of violence and an attempted suicide. This is a difficult story to read, but very enlightening about bipolar disorder which is much more prevalent in people’s lives than I previously thought. I am strongly in favor of making mental illness of all types less stigmatized by society and the candid way Jamison discusses her illness from both a medical and personal perspective helps to do this.
3 Words That Describe This Book: Gutsy, Sad, Moving
Give This a Try if You Like… Becoming by Michelle Obama, Beautiful Boy by David Sheff, Surrounded by Madness by Rachel Pruchno
Rating: 4.5/5
About FDL Reads
FDL Reads is a series of weekly book reviews from Fondulac District Library.
