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petrichorandcoffee's review against another edition
4.0
I absolutely would have given this book five stars were it not for issues in editing. Ironically, I found the only irritating errors to be in the sections of the book written about Vonnegut's sane times. I feel badly only giving four stars because I think it is entirely worth reading, but I just couldn't give a book five stars with multiple obvious typos. Please do read it. You'll be glad you did.
horfhorfhorf's review against another edition
3.0
Never thought I'd see the day when someone could write their way in and out of schizophrenic breaks in a way that makes sense, despite not making much logical sense at all.
josh_paul's review against another edition
5.0
Great book about going crazy in the 1960s and getting over it.
chichi27's review against another edition
3.0
This memoir tells the tale of Kurt Vonnegut's son as he graduates college in 1969, moves to British Columbia to start a commune, then battles with schizophrenia. His writing style is much more fluid and long-winded than his father's, but I can't say he provides as much insight I was hoping to gain into mental illness or hippie culture or dealing with his dad's fame. It was still an interesting read, though.
zeddee's review against another edition
4.0
Mark had a schizophrenic episode and I think it is quite a feat that he is able to make me feel schizophrenic as well just by reading what he wrote.
dunigan's review against another edition
4.0
Good book! The writing style reminds me of some sort of Kerouac / Tom Wolfe in Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test crossover. For the first fifty or so pages when Vonnegut is talking about making his way up to a commune he started in BC (represent!), the stream of consciousness style annoyed me. But when he starts to describe his schizophrenic break the style works really well.
I mainly read this because I thought I'd get some information on Kurt Vonnegut from the perspective of his son, but Kurt makes very few appearances in this book. Probably the most Mark talks about his dad is when he describes how he (Mark) was always worried (even as a small child) that his dad was going to kill himself.
In the end, the lack of Kurt didn't hurt my experience of the book because it was an interesting story in it's own right. Mark really, really, REALLY, lost it in his mid-twenties (like, covering himself in his own shit, lost it). So to listen to him describe his break from reality was both fascinating and pretty terrifying (especially to a guy also in his mid-twenties). This book was only written a few years after he recovered, so I imagine he would have a different perspective on the situation now, but I think the recency of the events at the time of writing probably made the book more interesting.
I'm also glad to see that Mark really seems to have overcome his mental-health issues, given that he went on to become a Harvard trained doctor.
I mainly read this because I thought I'd get some information on Kurt Vonnegut from the perspective of his son, but Kurt makes very few appearances in this book. Probably the most Mark talks about his dad is when he describes how he (Mark) was always worried (even as a small child) that his dad was going to kill himself.
In the end, the lack of Kurt didn't hurt my experience of the book because it was an interesting story in it's own right. Mark really, really, REALLY, lost it in his mid-twenties (like, covering himself in his own shit, lost it). So to listen to him describe his break from reality was both fascinating and pretty terrifying (especially to a guy also in his mid-twenties). This book was only written a few years after he recovered, so I imagine he would have a different perspective on the situation now, but I think the recency of the events at the time of writing probably made the book more interesting.
I'm also glad to see that Mark really seems to have overcome his mental-health issues, given that he went on to become a Harvard trained doctor.
gr33nb00ks's review against another edition
5.0
WOW. One of the BEST books I've read in a while. First of all- I live pretty close to where his farm was, so I was immediately into it. Secondly, holy shit. The moments where he goes 'crazy' are just so intense, and dark,and vivid. I was so deeply locked into this book, if my phone rang or there was a knock at the door I'd literally jump out of my seat because I was so lost in the book. I highly recommend it if you ( whoever you are) are looking for something extraordinary. Really neat afterword on how our knowledge of mental illeness changes so drastically in such a short period of time. 'Aint it the truth.
playingmyace's review against another edition
👎 I did not have a rewarding time.
dhilderbrand's review against another edition
1.0
I gave up. I was reading this for a book club. UGH, Mark Vonnegut is a total hippie which was fun (kinda) to read from his standpoint. Then his (what is clear to me as bipolar disorder) gets worse and ends up with psychotic features so he is diagnosed with schizophrenia. He then hates the meds (big surprise, they are dreadful!), he hates being treated, he hates not being treated...
The book is clearly written by someone with disorganized thought which made it a tough read. I will not finish it!
The book is clearly written by someone with disorganized thought which made it a tough read. I will not finish it!