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Crazy: A Father's Search Through America's Mental Health Madness Audiobook
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(4.02) - 959 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Pete Earley had no idea. He'd been a journalist for over thirty years, and the author of several award-winning—even bestselling—nonfiction books about crime and punishment and society. Yet he'd always been on the outside looking in. He had no idea what it was like to be on the inside looking out until his son, Mike, was declared mentally ill, and Earley was thrown headlong into the maze of contradictions, disparities, and catch-22s that is America's mental health system.
The more Earley dug, the more he uncovered the bigger picture: Our nation's prisons have become our new mental hospitals. Crazy tells two stories. The first is his son's. The second describes what Earley learned during a yearlong investigation inside the Miami-Dade County jail, where he was given complete, unrestricted access. There, and in the surrounding community, he shadowed inmates and patients; interviewed correctional officers, public defenders, prosecutors, judges, mental-health professionals, and the police; talked with parents, siblings, and spouses; consulted historians, civil rights lawyers, and legislators.
The result is both a remarkable piece of investigative journalism, and a wake-up call—a portrait that could serve as a snapshot of any community in America.
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"The author's son was charged with a felony after breaking into a random home and taking a bubble bath while in a manic episode. The author explores current laws governing treatment of the mentally ill after finding out he couldn't compel his clearly ill son into treatment. He also looks at how the legal system finds itself treating the mentally ill as long term hospitalization becomes more rare. I didn't always agree with the author's conclusions but I really found this one interesting."
— jen8998 (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“Parents of the mentally ill should find solace and food for thought in its pages.”
— Publishers Weekly
Awards
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Finalist for the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction
Crazy Listener Reviews
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" What an eye opener! It is both a personal memoir and a journalist's look into how our system criminalizes the mentally ill. "
— Susan, 2/17/2014 -
" Haunting information about the current state of prisons and the mentally ill... but I don't agree with his conclusions about involuntary commitments just because a parent (or anyone else, really) thinks it needs to happen. "
— Zack, 2/12/2014 -
" This was an amazing book, and one everyone who cares about social justice should read. I can personally attest to the truth of this book, working inside Michigan's correctional facilities and seeing the number of mentally ill individuals who need treatment, not incarceration. Seriously, read it people. "
— Jessica, 2/11/2014 -
" Very disturbing book about how the mentally ill are treated in our country. "
— Jodi, 2/4/2014 -
" Amazing compelling read. Although I knew a little bit about the topic, this was a page-turning eye-opener. I *highly* recommend. "
— Kieran, 1/22/2014 -
" Pretty good read about our crazy mental health system. I probably would have given it five stars had I not attended the OBOC author event before I finished reading. "
— Carol, 1/9/2014 -
" An even more stark description of the mental health system since deinstitutionalization than I expected it to be. "
— Lara, 1/9/2014 -
" This was the one community,one book for summer 2011. I enjoyed it. Understand a little more about the issues in the US concerning the mentally ill. "
— Mary, 12/13/2013 -
" I read this book for my Human Behavior class at Simmons and thought it was amazing. It gives you an entirely new perspective on people suffering from mental health issues that get caught up in the prison system. Read it! "
— Meghan, 12/8/2013 -
" Right now I do not think I can say anything about this book that will do it justice. However, I can say it was an amazing, sobering, upsetting book and when the sting of it is not so fresh, I will discuss it. "
— Anita, 11/13/2013 -
" A great account of how messed up the mental health system is. "
— Rebekah, 11/7/2013 -
" Equal parts personal narrative, case study, and journalistic investigation. Informative and absorbing. "
— Megan, 11/2/2013 -
" Well researched, well told, very insightful. Will hopefully inspire changes in attitude, prejudice, laws, and system of services for the mentally ill! I highly recommend this book! "
— Michelle, 10/22/2013 -
" This book was very educational and touched on issues of the mentally ill in the prison and legal sysems. "
— Rashelle, 10/12/2013 -
" Very enlightening as to both mental health and the history of how America deals with the mentally ill. A tough subject. "
— Larry, 10/11/2013 -
" This book was haunting. It raises all sorts of questions as to where to draw the line on mental illness. "
— Sameer, 6/21/2013 -
" A startling, make-you-think kind of book. It has definitely changed the way I look at the homeless and mentally ill. It was difficult material to stomach but a book I couldn't put down. "
— Maria, 3/2/2013 -
" This book really makes you think. I was so outraged by the time I finished, I breifly considered going to get a degree in pyschiatry so I could help the mentally ill being left unhelped and ignored in our nation's prisons. Something has to be done about this. "
— Summer, 12/22/2012 -
" Wow. What a sad and scary world for people with mental illness. This book made me more aware of the people I serve and their illnesses. Medication can help but it tends to drug them which isn't productive. The United states nees to reevaluate Mental Health facilities and funding! "
— Becky, 12/12/2012 -
" Skips the sociological causes which lead mental illness. And focuses on the laws which protect (?) and "de-institutionalization" to form an educated perspective. "
— Amy, 11/28/2012 -
" A father's journey through the mental health system looking for help with his adult son who has schizoaffective disorder. "
— Jane, 5/7/2012 -
" A call for action from others, the book does an excellent job explaining this crisis and proposing action we can take "
— Andrew, 3/7/2012 -
" Wow. Several nights in a row I stayed up late reading this book which is an excellent blend of a heartbreaking personal story, journalistic inquiry and social science research. "
— Vera, 9/1/2011 -
" This is a fantastic book that very aptly describes the challenges faced by people who have dealt with the mental health system in America. "
— Heather, 1/20/2011 -
" Haunting information about the current state of prisons and the mentally ill... but I don't agree with his conclusions about involuntary commitments just because a parent (or anyone else, really) thinks it needs to happen. "
— Zack, 1/14/2011 -
" This is a must read for those of us working in the mental health field! "
— Tara, 8/4/2010 -
" Extremely important book! I will review it later, but everyone should read it. "
— Barbara, 6/11/2010 -
" This was a really informative book, and approaches the topic of mental health from a completely different perspective than most books out there. It displays the sad ironies of how we're dealing with the subject, and how much things need to change - especially with respect to the law. "
— Tara, 6/4/2010 -
" Starts a little slow. Heard him speak at MLA 2008. "
— Angela, 5/15/2010 -
" An amazing account of what happens to the mentally ill who are incarcerated, along with the author's personal story dealing with a mentally ill son. Superb. "
— Marsha, 4/21/2010 -
" A call for action from others, the book does an excellent job explaining this crisis and proposing action we can take "
— Andy, 3/23/2010
About Pete Earley
Pete Earley, a former reporter for the Washington Post, is the author of several works of nonfiction, including the bestsellers The Hot House and Family of Spies, and the multi-award-winning Circumstantial Evidence. According to Washingtonian magazine, he is one of ten journalist/authors in America “who have the power to introduce new ideas and give them currency.” Earley is also the author of three New York Times bestsellers and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.
About Michael Prichard
Michael Prichard is a Los Angeles-based actor who has played several thousand characters during his career, over one hundred of them in theater and film. He is primarily heard as an audiobook narrator, having recorded well over five hundred full-length books. His numerous awards and accolades include an Audie Award for Tears in the Darkness by Michael Norman and Elizabeth M. Norman and six AudioFile Earphones Awards. He was named a Top Ten Golden Voice by SmartMoney magazine. He holds an MFA in theater from the University of Southern California.