Synopses & Reviews
This beautifully written exploration of "the unusual abilities of those who are differently wired" (Psychology Today) received a Ken Book Award from the National Alliance on Mental Illness for outstanding literary contribution to the world of mental health.
In this fascinating literary memoir, Susanne Antonetta draws on her personal experience as a manic-depressive, as well as interviews with people with multiple personality disorder, autism, and other neurological conditions, to form an intimate meditation on mental "disease." She traces the many capabilities-the visual consciousness of an autistic, for example, or the metaphoric consciousness of a manic-depressive-that underlie these and other mental "disabilities."
A stunning portrait of how the world shapes itself in minds that are profoundly different from the norm, A Mind Apart urges readers to look beyond the concept of cures to the gifts inherent in many neuroatypical conditions. Employing a wide-ranging approach to her subject, Antonetta provides a rare glimpse into the wildly varying landscapes of human thought, perception, and emotion.
About the Author
Susanne Antonetta is the author of Body Toxic: An Environmental Memoir, a New York Times Notable Book for 2001 and winner of the American Book Award. Her award-winning books of poetry include The Lives of the Saints and Bardo. Antonetta lives on the shores of Puget Sound with her husband and son.