I first came upon this book when I was about fourteen and suffering through what would be the first of many major depressions. I remember standing at a Barnes and Noble table, idly touching the smooth dust jacket and wondering if this book would have answers as to the way I felt. Nearly six years and two suicide attempts of my own later, I’ve finally read the book.
I’ve been a big fan of Jamison’s ever since I first read An Unquiet Mind, her memoir of manic-depression. She is an eloquent writer and speaks about her subject with authority. She captures the feelings and lives of those who were lost to suicide in a way most reports on suicide never even graze. As far as a reading experience, this book is smooth, information packed sailing.
My complaint, however, is that it seems that Jamison poses more questions about suicide than answers. Despite the subtitle, despite being someone who has stood on that brink between life and death more than once, I don’t feel I understand suicide any better at all. Maybe that’s the nature of the beast, but I was hoping for a little bit more.
Regardless, the book is still expertly executed and well worth the time of anyone who had ever been touched by a suicide or simply wondered about the suicidal mind.
I give it four stars.
