Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
The riveting story of a mother who is separated from her newborn son and husband when involuntarily committed to a psychiatric ward in New Jersey after a harrowing bout of postpartum psychosis
When Catherine and her husband set off from London to introduce her US family to their newborn son, she could not have imagined what lay in store. Before the trip's end, she would find herself involuntarily committed to a psychiatric ward in New Jersey, diagnosed with postpartum psychosis. In this unwaveringly honest, insightful, and often shocking memoir Catherine reconstructs her sense of self, starting with her early childhood as the dutiful daughter of Korean immigrants, moving through a harrowing past relationship, and on through the early years of her courtship and marriage with her husband, James. She masterfully interweaves these pieces of her past with a vivid, immediate recounting of the days she spent in the hospital and the horror of being separated from her husband and newborn.
An intensely personal, singular story with themes that are nevertheless universal, Cho digs deep into what it means to rediscover yourself when your identity has been shattered. Written in sparse yet lyrical prose, her story is as inspiring as it is heartrending, and will appeal to readers of Susannah Cahalan's Brain on Fire, Esm Weijun Wang's The Collected Schizophrenias, and even classics like Susanna Kaysen's Girl, Interrupted.
Synopsis
Inferno is a disturbing and masterfully told memoir, but it's also an important one that pushes back against powerful taboos. . . --The New York Times Book Review
Explosive --Good Morning America
Sublime --Bookpage (starred review)
When Catherine Cho and her husband set off from London to introduce their newborn son to family scattered across the United States, she could not have imagined what lay in store. Before the trip's end, she develops psychosis, a complete break from reality, which causes her to lose all sense of time and place, including what is real and not real. In desperation, her husband admits her to a nearby psychiatric hospital, where she begins the hard work of rebuilding her identity.
In this unwaveringly honest, insightful, and often shocking memoir Catherine reconstructs her sense of self, starting with her childhood as the daughter of Korean immigrants, moving through a traumatic past relationship, and on to the early years of her courtship with and marriage to her husband, James. She masterfully interweaves these parts of her past with a vivid, immediate recounting of the days she spent in the ward.
The result is a powerful exploration of psychosis and motherhood, at once intensely personal, yet holding within it a universal experience - of how we love, live and understand ourselves in relation to each other.
Synopsis
A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice
Inferno is a disturbing and masterfully told memoir, but it's also an important one that pushes back against powerful taboos. . . --The New York Times Book Review
Explosive --Good Morning America
Sublime --Bookpage (starred review)
When Catherine Cho and her husband set off from London to introduce their newborn son to family scattered across the United States, she could not have imagined what lay in store. Before the trip's end, she develops psychosis, a complete break from reality, which causes her to lose all sense of time and place, including what is real and not real. In desperation, her husband admits her to a nearby psychiatric hospital, where she begins the hard work of rebuilding her identity.
In this unwaveringly honest, insightful, and often shocking memoir Catherine reconstructs her sense of self, starting with her childhood as the daughter of Korean immigrants, moving through a traumatic past relationship, and on to the early years of her courtship with and marriage to her husband, James. She masterfully interweaves these parts of her past with a vivid, immediate recounting of the days she spent in the ward.
The result is a powerful exploration of psychosis and motherhood, at once intensely personal, yet holding within it a universal experience - of how we love, live and understand ourselves in relation to each other.