Hurry Down Sunshine tells the story of the extraordinary summer when, at the age of fifteen, Michael Greenberg’s daughter was struck mad. It begins with Sally’s sudden visionary crack-up on the streets of Greenwich Village, and continues, among other places, in the out-of-time world of a Manhattan psychiatric ward during the city’s most sweltering months. “I feel like I’m traveling and traveling with nowhere to go back to,” Sally says in a burst of lucidity while hurtling away toward some place her father could not dream of or imagine. Hurry Down Sunshine is the chronicle of that journey, and its effect on Sally and those closest to her–her mother and stepmother, her brother and grandmother, and, not least of all, the author himself. Among Greenberg’s unforgettable gallery of characters are an unconventional psychiatrist, an Orthodox Jewish patient, a manic Classics professor, a movie producer, and a landlord with literary aspirations. Unsentimental, nuanced, and deeply humane, Hurry Down Sunshine holds the listener in a mesmerizing state of suspension between the mundane and the transcendent.
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"I bought this book @ the Des Moines airport b/c I needed a good read for my two flights back home earlier this week (one stop in Denver). Between an afternoon & evening of travel and another bedtime or two, it was a very quick read. It's the true story of columnist Michael Greenburg's 15-year-old daughter's psychotic break (diagnosed as bipolar) and her gradual return to the mainstream. The way he told the story, I felt it was both devastating and hopeful. He writes about it beautifully. I felt moved enough that I wanted to contact either him, or his daughter, after reading it. She is courageous and admirable; he is an amazing father and ex-husband. I recommend it! (I liked it much more than "The Soloist" because it offered hope for the mentally ill.)"
— Tracey (4 out of 5 stars)
" I couldn't finish this book. It was pretty boring. "
— Jen, 1/17/2014" an intelligent, thoughtful, and honest look at a teenage girl's mental illness, told by her father "
— Linda, 1/9/2014" Despite my connection with family members and friends who've been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, I had trouble relating to this story, perhaps partly because I've never witnessed anyone in an acute stage of psychosis. The author recounts the summer his fifteen year old daughter entered full-blown psychosis. She was eventually diagnosed with bipolar disorder. The author also tells of his role supporting his older brother Steve, who struggles with his own mental illness, although a diagnosis is never named. It was interesting to be let in on the author's thought process as he tried to connect with his daughter and puzzled over the underlying cause of her metal illness. Not surprisingly, he wonders whether he did anything to contribute to her mental breakdown. Meanwhile, his mother, with whom he has a distant relationship, confesses her belief that she caused Steve's mental illness. At times, I found myself distracted by the author's lifestyle and language (describing his daughter's psychosis as a "crack up") and admitted high tolerance for different behavior/thinking. Was he blind to the early signs of his daughter's oncoming mental illness? Still, I found this was overall an interesting read. "
— Nancy, 12/24/2013" You feel like you are right there sharing the experiences along with the author. "
— Djdee, 12/12/2013" One of the best memoirs I've read. A father's moving, honest, account of his daughter's descent into psychosis, the impact on him, his life, told with compassion, love, honesty, & intelligence. But a Stupid Title! "
— Roberta, 11/18/2013" A father's story of his daughter's madness...not the cliched "descent", but the sudden "crackup" (his words) of a daughter. Along with the pain of a parent witnessing a child's disintegration, there is also something of a meditation on the line between the artistic and the abnormal. In fact, the author berates himself for not noticing something was wrong earlier, assuming that his daughter's intensity was simply that of an adolescent caught up in music and books. "
— Jennifer, 10/3/2013" Heartrending tale of a father confronted by his daughter's sudden swing into madness. "
— Joe, 8/3/2013" Little depressing...I read this book because I wanted to experience mental illness from a parent's perspective. I wasn't expecting the ending, more specifically, that her mental illness continues to plague her life despite medication and therapy. "
— Carrie, 7/9/2013" Interesting memoir by a writer who describes the summer his daughter had a psycotic break when she was 15. somewhat typical of this parent-memoir genre (The Film club, Beautiful Boy, etc.) but still well-written and compassionate. "
— Al, 6/6/2013" Not as good as I hoped it would be. "
— Veronica, 3/25/2013" I thought it ws going to be so good given the topic but it seemed like the author tried to put a lot of BIG words and use them (cacuphony for one) instead of just tell the story... "
— Krista, 2/7/2013" I really like Greenberg's writing but the subject matter was too much for me to handle 4 months after having a baby. It made for a good book club discussion! "
— Becky, 1/13/2013" Really fast read. I wish the girl would write her counterpart. I also think the author was pretty brave to include his own mistakes. "
— adrienna, 12/10/2012" Quick read---straightforward memoir of the author's experience of his daughter's first psychotic episode, very vividly and honestly told. "
— Liz, 12/10/2012" Father's wrenching account of when his teen-aged daughter went mad. "
— Linda, 7/6/2012" It was painful to read as it was a heartbreaking parent's perspective. However, I wasn't as interested in the book as I expected to be. "
— Sara, 4/2/2012" It was an okay read, nice writing, but as other people have said I was expecting it to be more about the point-of-view of the daughter. In hindsight I guess I shouldn't have, but I would have been more interested in the book if that had been the case. Oh well. "
— Dina, 3/11/2012" This book tells the story of a fifteen-year-old girl suddenly taken over by madness. Shocking in its suddenness, this case made me realize how real madness is and how overwhelming it would be. Depressing. Real. Poignant. A hard, but good read. "
— Jessica, 2/4/2012" Having a friend go through a similar experience with her child, I was VERY pleased with this book. It offered great insight for me. "
— Duckyday, 9/18/2011" Greenberg writes very candidly and astutely about dealing with a mentally ill teenage daughter. "
— Jennifer, 8/16/2011" Just ok. Some interesting parts if you are interested in psych. and the troubled mind. "
— Katie, 5/8/2011" The 3-star rating is kind of arbitrary. I'm not generally interested in memoirs, but I read a review of this one that I found intriguing. "
— Teri, 3/20/2011" A father's quest to understand and come to terms with his 15-year old daughter's sudden "crack up." Honest and frustrating. <br/> <br/> "
— Mary, 3/14/2011" Read an excerpt when it first came out. Very good and sad already. Ed, you'll enjoy. "
— Eliana, 3/3/2011" Very good insight into manic depression. "
— Judith, 2/26/2011" A father's story of his daughter's manic/psychotic break. Another interesting memoir of mental illness... I enjoyed reading it from a family member's perspective instead of from the actual individual as most memoirs I've read have been. "
— Kristina, 2/3/2011" It showed promise, but just became unravelled towards the end. "
— Tara, 1/27/2011" DE-pressing. About a young girl in New York City who has psychotic episodes and her family's reaction to them and manner of coping with them. "A father's story of love and madness." "
— Jena, 1/19/2011" Any book set in New York somehow resonates with me. I remember this book being incredibly sad. Sometimes I had to stop reading because I struggled with feeling the authors feeling. Greenberg does a great job of ellicting empathy. With him you feel frustrated and crushed with his daugher's struggle. "
— Sarah, 1/13/2011" Interesting look at mental illness. Author tells what seems to be an very honest recount of his daughter's illness and how each family member dealt with it in his/her way. "
— Beth, 1/11/2011" i give it a thumbs down... "
— Cheryl, 10/3/2010" One of those books about a grim subject (the author's daughter's psychotic breakdown) that manages to be surprisingly funny as well as beautiful, wise, and generous. "
— Kasey, 9/28/2010" Just not a big fan of memoirs. "
— Andrea, 9/23/2010Michael Greenberg, a native New Yorker, is a columnist for the Times Literary Supplement (London), where his wide-ranging essays have been appearing since 2003. His fiction, criticism, and travel pieces have been published in such disparate places as O, The Oprah Magazine, Bomb, The Village Voice, and the Boston Review. He lives in New York.