Running with Scissors is the true story of a boy whose mother (a poet with delusions of being Anne Sexton) gave him away to be raised by her psychiatrist, a dead ringer for Santa and a lunatic in the bargain.
Suddenly, at age twelve, Augusten Burroughs found himself living in a dilapidated Victorian house in perfect squalor. The doctor's bizarre family, a few patients, and a pedophile living in the backyard shed completed the tableau. Here, there were no rules. There was no school. The Christmas tree stayed up until summer, and Valium was eaten like Pez. And when things got dull, there was always the vintage electroshock-therapy machine under the stairs.
Running with Scissors is at turns foul and harrowing, compelling and maniacally funny. But above all, it is a truly amazing chronicle of an ordinary boy's survival under the most extraordinary circumstances.
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"I found myself laughing hysterically at this book while simultaneously shaking my head in horror.... is how someone started to review this book and i coukdn't say it any better! It's the story of the author's life between 13-16. His mother began to have psychotic episodes and finds her way to a bizarree psychiatrist, Dr. Finch. Soon, every aspect of their lives are touched by Dr. Finch and his equally bizarre family. At times, the events are horrifying... think molestation, drug use and rape but remarkably, Burrough's manages to find the humor even in these situations. This book left me scratching my head in disbelief that these people actually exhist!"
— Kerri (4 out of 5 stars)
“Burrough’s account of his deranged adolescence there is clear-eyed and often wildly funny. To hear it not only in his own words, but in his own voice in this fine production is ideal.”
— AudioFile“A bawdy, outrageous, often hilarious account.”
— New York Times“Hilarious, freaky-deaky, berserk, controlled, transcendent, touching, affectionate, vengeful, all-embracing. It makes you happy that there’s such a thing in the world as a string of written words.”
— Washington Post" The film sucked. The book was tense and silly. Like a boy, in box, with nowhere to run. "
— Jon-david, 2/20/2014" I found myself scouring the Internet after reading this book attempting to find out if the outrageous stories presented by the author are really truths. It turns out there was a lawsuit against the author for basically embellishing his stories. Regardless, he gets a high mark from me for creatively penning this crazy book. "
— Jiill, 2/14/2014" Never has someone's disturbing past been told in such a matter-of-fact and often hilarious way. His other stuff is better, but this is still enjoyable. "
— Miranda, 1/26/2014" Read this book some time ago. Came up recently in a book club I belong to. Tried to read again. I have come to the conclusion that I just don'g get "dark humor." Not a book I much care for. "
— Laverne, 1/18/2014" The degree of dysfunction of the people in the main character's life is absolutely amazing. Hard to believe that this is a true story but sadly it is. Does have humor amongst the sexual abuse, physical abuse, pedophilia, neglect, and psychosis. How the main character ever remained remotely sane is beyond my understanding. "
— Michelle, 1/14/2014" This was a book club selection. I can't honestly say I read this book, because I got to a certain place in the book after having to push myself to keep reading, I just couldn't go any farther and threw it across the room. "
— Catherine, 1/11/2014" I don't believe a lot of the claims in this book. "
— Ylanda, 1/10/2014" I could barely get through it! "
— Chris, 1/8/2014" This book was well-written and it was a very interesting story... I am just very succeptible to mental images dealing with sexual assault, and they stick with me for way too long. This book described Burroughs experiences as a child and teen with perverts, and I didn't enjoy that part of the book. "
— Toni, 12/27/2013" There was nothing about this book that I liked . "
— Kathy, 12/23/2013" Horrible. I tortured myself even more and waitched the HORRIBLE movie. This was one of the books that I wanted to put down the entire time, but forced myself to finish because it supposedly is a true story. Did I mention that I hated it? "
— Jeanne, 12/22/2013Augusten Burroughs is the author of the autobiographical works Running with Scissors, Dry, Magical Thinking, Possible Side Effects, and A Wolf at the Table, all of which were New York Times bestsellers. Running with Scissors remained on the bestseller list for over two consecutive years and was made into a Golden Globe-nominated film starring Annette Bening.