Rating: 
Summary: Like It Is
Review: I loved this book. It's a rare non-fiction tome that you simply can't put down, but this is it. I stayed up late and got up early to read it. Fascinating material, researched and written with a passion only the first person viewpoint can render. After years of suffering with this affliction, and reading extensively about it I thought I knew it all - or mostly. But, I didn't even think about the evolutionary considerations, for instance. Depression is a lot more common than I ever anticipated, life hurts! I wish more people would read this book to understood why depressives can't just cheer up, put on a happy face, pack up our troubles in an old kit bag and smile, smile, smile! The only good thing about living with the noonday demon is that you learn not to fear death. Thank you Andrew Solomon for a wonderful book!
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Summary: The Noonday Demon: an atlas of depression
Review: The book is very well documented and easy to read. The book gives insight to a very difficult subject. A must read for one who is depressed or has a loved one that is depressed.
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Summary: An amazing tour-de-force in the area of depression
Review: Andrew Solomon is a man with a disease (depression) and he is driven to research and examine this disease from every angle, interviewing dozens of fellow sufferers, gathering information on every medication and therapy available, and analyzing the effects of depression on a wide variety of socio-economic groups. This indeed has to be the most comprehensive book on this subject written by a non-medical professional. I wondered how the author found time to do all the research and interviewing necessary to gather his information. He certainly left no stone unturned, even journeying to Africa to take part in a bizarre ritual to rid him of the spirits of depression (surprisingly effective, at least in the short term). Some parts of the book were more interesting than others, and I even skipped the chapter on evolution, as I question the relevance of evolutionary theory upon attempting to discover more effective treatments. Solomon is very opinionated about some issues, and I vehemently disagree with some of his views (especially concerning the "right" to suicide) so I couldn't quite give this book the full five stars. But, because of my keen interest in this subject (having gone through "non-clinical" depression at times in my life) I found this book quite fascinating. Almost everything a layperson needs to know on this subject is within these pages.
Rating: 
Summary: Atlas Slugged
Review: Exhaustive and exhausting, comprehensive yet tedious and tangential. Had this book been properly edited it could have been very powerful. As it stands, it is really 3 books which bleed into one another. Reading Noonday Demon is akin to the experience of depression itself as the reader is in danger of drowning in minutia and there is no way to speed up the pace. In this Solomon captures the DeChiricoesque flavor of depression: the infinitely vast and bleak landscapes devoid of warmth or color. While this book can be an important tool to destigmatize mental illness and help educate family members, it lacks the organization and coherency of Torrey's "Surviving Schizophrenia". And while I applaud the fact that Solomon is an expereincer rather than a detached clinician or researcher, the reader should be cautioned to consult the sources cited as many studies and research results presented have been simplified for the sake of clarity, yet this makes the data vulnerable to distortion if taken out of context. Recommneded, but with caution.
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Summary: Attn: Gurus
Review: If someone is depressed, then, qua depression, they are saddled with the false notion that their situation is hopeless and permanent. There is no self-help in depression, because to truly be depressed, one is helpless by definition. All too often people who mistakenly believe they have suffered depression and have "survived" it without treatment are willing to tell their stories and muddle the truth about its seriousness. I had always thought of myself as one of these tough-minded individuals who, by getting through some difficult times, felt that it qualified me to be a self-help guru. Then one day I was visited by the Demon and I barely survived. My situation was nearly tragic because my preconceived notions about antidepressants caused me to delay in getting proper treatment. I had been sure treatment would not help me because I was sure no one else had ever felt as bad as I had; I thought the shame and side-effects of taking pills would only make things worse. Had I read this book before I had been treated (which, admittedly, is hard to imagine) I would have been much better prepared for the fight. What I like most about it is what it isn't - a book with the false condescending bromide found in self-help books. Unhappiness and depression must be looked at separately if our society is ever going to conquer this epidemic. I think this is the perfect book to heighten public awareness of the issue and will hopefully bring about a much-needed revolution in the way we approach this illness.
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Summary: A "must-read" for compassionate Americans
Review: Solomon has written an outstanding authoritative and compelling guide to understanding the many kinds of depression that plague us, their treatments, and their development in various ethnic , age and gender groups. His descriptions of "the experience," having been there several times, communicate directly to the reader. It's a good bet that most of us have had or do have a friend or relative struggling with this crippling process. That's why it is a "must read."
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Summary: Literate, Ironic and Uneven
Review: Andrew Solomon clearly put his beautiful heart and soul into writing a personal and cultural cutting edge tome that will live as a cult classic amidst the few indispensable biographical books on depression. It's not to be missed.Yet this is a difficult book to review. However authentic, informative and impeccable Andrew clearly worked so hard to be, there are self-absorbed problems with melodrama here (as he admits and "does not rue"). More important, he makes few distinctions between depression as its own entity and depression as an integral part of common and more complex personality disorders. This confuses and weakens the impact of an otherwise extraordinary book. In his own and others' stories, he often describes behavior and reasoning characteristic of Borderline Personality Disorder (such as recurring violent rages, self-mutilation, multiple unstable relationships, "moral turpitude," confusion of sexual identity and more) as indicative of depression. This lack of precision does not serve. With the force of Andrew's persuasive charisma, caution and informed reading are in order. (See Stop Walking on Eggshells by Randi Kreger and Paul Mason for priceless information on BPD.) He names depression as ultimately "the biggest killer on earth" while a chapter on "Prevention" is curiously missing. (See the exceptional A General Theory of Love by UCSF psychiatrists Thomas Lewis, Fari Amini and Richard Lannon for profound thoughts on prevention.) (The chapter titles are Depression, Breakdowns, Treatments, Alternatives [tales of traveling the globe trying them all], Populations, Addiction, Suicide, History, Poverty, Politics, Evolution and Hope. The index is good and the bibliography is great.) Andrew Solomon can be none other than an enneagram personality type 4. See Personality Types by Don Riso on the enneagram if you're interested.
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Summary: Solomon displays deep understanding, insight and empathy.
Review: Solomon is one of those gifted writers that paints an absorbable portrait of words that in turn creates an image which remains in the mind of the reader for a long time. And he clearly understands the subject. I kept saying to myself "that's it exactly!" It's good to know that someone is able to put into words many of the difficult feelings I have endured for so long.
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Summary: Depression is not always that interesting
Review: It cannot be overstressed that depression is a disease, that is not the afflicted person's fault, and that it is capable of being treated successfully. I know -- I've been on SSRI medications for the past 13 years. The Noonday Demon is rightly called an "Atlas" of depression. I am not familar with any other volume that approaches the subject in such an encyclopedic way. Regardless of any flaws one might find in the book, it is indisputably a landmark publication, and is superbly written. However, I am concerned about how some people may react to the book: specifically, (a) persons who suspect they may be depressed, but have not sought a diagnosis or treatment; and (b) the families of persons who have recently been diagnosed with depression and are trying to understand what may be happening, and what may happen in the future, to the depressed person. Throughout the book, particularly in the chapter entitled "Breakdowns," and with reference to his own depression, Mr. Solomon describes acute depressions that are inconceivably terrifying. In my opinion,the population of depressed persons who tell their stories in this book are atypical. I do NOT mean to say that any of these episodes are exaggerated. I think they accurately describe how horrendous depression can be, at its extremes. But it would be tragic if, reading the extreme accounts, newly-depressed persons were dissuaded from seeking help for fear of discovering that they were vulnerable to "going mad" (the same phenomenon that prevents people from having lumps investigated for fear of a cancer diagnosis), or that family or friends might be influenced to shun ANY depressed person for fear of witnessing some form of "insanity." However, most of us who are on long-term treatment for major depression have not had the same type of experiences. Even for us, depression can be a highly disruptive and partially incapacitating during those times when, for unknown reasons, the effectiveness of the medications droops, or when there are particularly stressful circumstances in our environment. However, 80% of the time, medication reduces depression to a relative annoyance, perhaps like moderate arthritis or a "bad back." Sometimes we feel perfectly normal for stretches of years. When medications "poop out," the situation is usually corrected quickly by changes of medications or creating a different balance of medications. Although holding down a complex job can be more taxing than for "normal" persons, we have never been at risk of losing our jobs or of making egregious errors. Our family lives are a little more complicated depending on the depression "weather" going on in our heads, but are for the most part indistinguishable from those of "normal" families. Our stories are too ordinary, too commonplace to wind up in a best-selling book. I realize there is as much risk in stressing the more manageable courses of depression as in emphasizing those that are utterly debilitating and resistant to treatment. However, I think the story needs to be more balanced. Not everyone who experiences major depression becomes "mad," as Solomon often puts it, and many people respond readily to treatment. For some, major depression is a real drag, but not the end of the world. ...
Rating:
Summary: Maybe I'll make it after all...
Review: This young man has illuminated my darkest corners. I read until 3:00 am last night and will finish tonight. I'm going to buy several copies and give them to all of my friends who have had to endure me over the years. The writing and perspective and insight are all ... oh heck, what do I know about a book review. I know far more about depression, and now I know even more about it, and me, thanks to this writer. Thank you, Mr. Soloman.
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