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In the Shadow of Fame: A Memoir by the Daughter of Erik H. Erikson Audiobook
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(3.33) - 6 listener ratings
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Written by the daughter of world-renowned psychoanalyst Erik Erikson, this is the intimate story of a daughter’s struggle to develop a sense of self in a family—and a world—in which being famous is the very definition of being a worthwhile human being.
Sue Erikson Bloland struggled from an early age to reconcile the public view of her father as a pioneering intellectual and quintessential father figure with the complex and insecure man she knew in private. Overwhelmed and eclipsed by her father’s fame, she spent years searching for meaning and direction in her own life; yet she felt compelled to uphold her father’s public image despite her awareness of his human vulnerabilities.
In a portrait enriched by her own psychoanalytic training, Bloland shares her personal insights into the costs and rewards of celebrity. Her story, though unique in its personal details, describes a struggle faced by all of us in the modern, fame-obsessed world.
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"Very thoughtful and revealing book about Bloland's life, about the psychological ripples of fame, and of how appearances often deceive. "
— Alice (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“Sue Erikson Bloland writes with keen insight and wonderful rich detail…I wish I had read this book as a teenager; she could have saved me a dozen years of therapy.”
— Roseanne Cash, daughter of Johnny Cash -
“Anyone interested in the problems of fame will find Bloland’s memoir useful.”
— Publishers Weekly -
“Celeste Lawson provides a warm representation of Bloland’s view of childhood.”
— AudioFile -
“Bloland’s emotionally stinging, intellectually acute recollections are sure to attract a large audience.”
— Booklist -
“This is a remarkable, deeply captivating exercise in self-reflection and self-understanding. Sue Bloland excavates the complex, layered dynamics of the family that her prominent parents forged. She arrives at unprecedented depth and remarkable insights.”
— Lawrence J. Friedman, author of Identity’s Architect and visiting professor, history of science, Harvard University -
“Bloland’s memoir is, at once, a heart-rending account of family tragedy in the context of driven aspirations and profound achievement and an illumination of fame as a powerful dynamic process. She transforms pain-filled experience into personal, and now shared, truth.”
— M. Gerard Fromm, PhD, ABPP, Evelyn Stefansson Nef Director, Erikson Institute for Education and Research, Austen Riggs Center -
“Drawing on often painful experiences as the child of celebrated parents, Sue Erikson Bloland illuminates how fame affects the dazzled public, those closest to the celebrity, and the celebrity himself.”
— Howard Gardner, author of Changing Minds and Hobbs Professor of Education and Cognition, Harvard Graduate School of Education
In the Shadow of Fame Listener Reviews
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" interesting how dysfunctional the family was, sad how little they shared their own problems with each other, telling that famous people are so insecure and need that constant reassurance of their talent. "
— Gail, 7/31/2008 -
" The title says it... and I found this inside look at Erikson's family interesting in and of itself but also instructive as to the challenges that children of the famous or celebrated live with. "
— Cary, 6/17/2008
About Sue Erikson Bloland
Sue Erikson Bloland did graduate work in both anthropology and sociology before obtaining her master’s degree in social work from New York University and her certificate in psychoanalysis from the Manhattan Institute for Psychoanalysis. She has written for the Atlantic Monthly and Psychoanalytic Dialogues and has given numerous lectures on fame. A practicing psychotherapist in New York City and a faculty member at the Manhattan Institute for Psychoanalysis, she lives in Lanesville, New York.
About Celeste Lawson
Celeste Lawson is an Earphones Award winner and Audie Award nominee. She is the recording studio director for the Talking Books Program at the Library of Congress’ National Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. She was a dancer and an actor before finding her niche in the intriguing, challenging, and extremely satisfying world of narration. In Silver Spring, Maryland, where she lives with her husband, daughter, and cat, she practices yoga and continues to dance. Celeste has also recorded for Blackstone Audio under the name C. M. Hébert.