The Unquiet Mind

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Summary: Of Moods and Madness
Review: Kay Redfield Jamison's book "An Unquiet Mind", takes us into the terrifying yet fascinating world of manic-depressive illness. Through her own personal experience with manic depression, Jamison allows us glimpses of a disease that is sometimes humorous, often frightening, but usually misunderstood. Viewed from the safety and predictability of "normalacy" we live the manias with it's intensity of mood and character as well as the depressions and suicidal ideations that inevitably follow. But the book does not keep readers motivated to turn pages because it is a personal story. Rather, Jamison takes us to the fringes of our own madness, our own manias and depressions. Here we are reminded how fine a line exists between sane and insane, a line perhaps none of us are immune from crossing.Jamison's struggle and ultimate victory over the disease are her ultimate gifts to the reader as she aspires to become a Professor of Psychiatryand a world authority on manic-dpression. Her book is a must for those readers brave enough to expose their own raw edges. I guarantee the joking words of the "need to be on lithium" will have a different meaning thereafter.

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Summary: Everything you ever wanted to know about bipolar disorder
Review: This author has used personal experience to describe her illness. It's not just another academic project full of research and interviews. The fact that she actually has the illness and can write about it so well is a testament to her strength and bravery to share it with the world. Sam Vaknin writes extremely well about narcissism, as he himself is a narcissist. Kay R Jamison is an expert on bipolar disorder. I would recommend this book to anyone seeking a career in counseling or psychotherapy.

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Summary: A tremendously moving book -
Review: This is the best book I know about manic - depression. It is a tremendously moving personal account. Where she is especially insightful , and I believe will give understanding to many who have no direct experience of the subject is in her description of her ' manic times'. No one has not seen a truly manic person in all their strange power and often charm and strength can understand how difficult and painful the ' up side' can be. Kate Jamison tells her own story with great narrative skill . She is just a wonderful writer, illness or no illness. She gets in this book to depths of feeling and understanding which no other non- fiction work I know approaches.
This book could not be more recommended.
However I would caution the reader, that however romantic this disorder might seem it is truly not that at all, and truly a place you should never want to be.
One important and hopeful point is Kay Jamison's own example of with all the suffering still achieving much in her life. The greatest manic- depressive I have ever known did this also. And he too had a tremendous power of poetry and language so beyond the ordinary as to move you with his slightest utterance. Though he said ' no a thousand times no' many many times he also on his good days and when he was not too high could make you laugh and cry and even love life as this book also does.