From Barnes & Noble
In 1999, New York Times readers were struck by a story about Ken Steele, a 51-year-old Manhattan man who had almost single-handedly launched an empowerment project that registered 28,000 previously disenfranchised voters. Actually, that was only half the miracle. The other half was that for a period of 32 years, Steele had suffered heroically under the battering of schizophrenia. The story of his disease and his recovery is truly poignant.
From the Publisher
For thirty-two years Ken Steele lived with the devastating symptoms of schizophrenia, tortured by inner voices commanding him to kill himself, ravaged by the delusions of paranoia, barely surviving on the ragged edges of society. In this inspiring story, Steele tells the story of his hard-won recovery from schizophrenia and how activism and advocacy helped him regain his sanity and go on to give hope and support to so many others like him.
Newsday
This powerful advocate for the mentally ill has an important story to tell - and anyone who has had a serious mental illness will hear the resounding fear and hope that springs from these poignant pages.
Psychology Today
...offers readers a brilliant look into the darkest of places.
Publishers Weekly
From the age of 14, mental health advocate Steele battled the ruthless barrage of voices and hallucinations of schizophrenia. His arduous 32-year struggle is chronicled in this memoir, written with journalist Berman (What Am I Doing in a Step-Family?). Despite his parents' initial reluctance to admit the seriousness of his disorder, Steele, who died last year of heart failure, understood early on that his condition was pushing him ever closer to suicide. Only reading and writing provided him a haven, offering him flights of imagination that temporarily quieted the voices. Instead of seeking proper treatment, his family allowed him to drop out of school and stay idle at home, where he only got sicker. He tried to move to New York from Connecticut; to attend theater school, only to end up in a mental ward, the first of several hospitalizations. Steele then descended into alcoholism, homelessness and exploitation by male hustlers. After AA meetings, drugs, shock treatments and repeated hospitalizations, he eventually triumphed over the illness to fashion a new life. Many readers will be emotionally drained by the time he becomes a nationally recognized spokesman for the rights of the mentally ill and the publisher of New York City Voices, a publication heralding that cause. Steele's sobering yet resonant and inspiring narrative refuses to sugarcoat the tremendous force of this disorder and its stubborn resistance to recovery. (May) Forecast: Advertising in the New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle and Los Angeles Times should help this book find its audienceschizophrenics and their families, policy makers, mental health professionals and anyone who cares about the mentally ill. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
KLIATT
The dictionary defines schizophrenia as "a psychotic disorder characterized by withdrawal from reality, delusions, hallucinations, and disintegration of the personality." But what does it really mean to be a schizophrenic? This moving, first-hand account was written for the layperson by Ken Steele, who suffered from schizophrenia for 32 years. He describes his initial diagnosis at age 14, the subsequent withdrawal of support by his family, the nature of the voices continually prodding him to take his own life, his life on the streets, his experiences with the "revolving doors" of our mental health system, his personal haven in books and libraries, and his struggle with medication until "the day the voices stopped," when he was finally stabilized on Risperdal, one of the new generation of drugs called atypical anti-psychotic medications. Ken, a "survivor," shares his pathos, frustration, and ultimate success in this memoir in order to give hope to other schizophrenics and their families. Until his death from heart failure in 2000, he was an advocate, a nationally known speaker for the mentally ill, promoting their right to vote through his initiative, the Voter Empowerment Project. He also worked as newsletter editor and support group founder at the Park Slope Center for Mental Health in New York City. Because of the alarming number of schizophrenics in our society and the fears and misconceptions related to this disease, this excellent, easy-to-understand book should be required reading for every teen and adult. Category: Biography & Personal Narrative. KLIATT Codes: SA—Recommended for senior high school students, advanced students, and adults. 2001, Perseus, Basic Books, 258p., ,Lewiston, ME
Library Journal
In 1995, Steele, a schizophrenic, began taking a new antipsychotic medication. Suddenly, the voices that had tormented him for 32 years were silenced. In this posthumous memoir (Steele died of heart failure last year), he describes the paranoia and delusions that afflicted him as he wandered across the United States. He also chronicles his post-medication triumphs: after reading a politician's letter about how the mentally ill don't vote, Steele went on to become a leading activist for the mentally ill, organizing a voter registration campaign in halfway houses and treatment centers. As publisher of New York City Voices: A Consumer Journal for Mental Health Advocacy, Steele encouraged those with mental illnesses to share their stories, and some of these personal accounts are included in the book's final section. Through Steele's eyes, readers see the changes in psychiatric treatment from incarceration in mental asylums to integration into the community made possible by a support network of halfway houses, club houses, clinics, and advocacy programs. In an afterword, Steele discusses recent changes in mental health policy and treatment and outlines future needs if the mentally ill are to become fully functioning members of society. This remarkable, well-written, and inspiring memoir is recommended for all collections. Lucille Boone, San Jose P.L., CA Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
Booknews
Steele (1948-2000) was an advocate for the rights of the mentally ill. Here is his own story of suffering for 32 years from the symptoms of schizophrenia, tortured by inner voices commanding him to kill himself, ravaged by the delusions of paranoia, barely surviving on the ragged edges of society. The day the voices stopped was the beginning of his recovery. Berman writes widely on family relations. The memoir has no index or bibliography. The CiP data shows the subtitle as A Schizophrenic's Journey From Madness to Hope. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
Kirkus Reviews
An astonishing, terrifying first-person tour through the schizophrenic's world, from Steele (late advocate for the rights of the mentally ill). When he was 14, the voices came to Steele: "Kill yourself. . . . Set yourself on fire." For the next 32 years, these voices plagued him. You're no good, they would tell him, you should never have been born, it's time for you to go. The voices overrode the sounds around him. He would hear patches of conversations people were trying to have with him, but mostly it was just the evil, derisive voices suggesting ways for him to kill himself. Not that he didn't try. He landed in one psychiatric hospital, halfway house, and institution after another—from all of which he would either escape or be discharged or evicted. Abandoned by his family, he lived on the street, where he turned tricks or drank himself silly until the voices got the better of him and he had to go back to the hospital. He received little counseling but plenty of medication—not to mention long stays in a straitjacket. Still, there were those times when he could function, when he held simple jobs, and he had resources enough to seek help during the bleakest hallucinatory times. Then, one day, at the Park Slope Center for Mental Health, he received not just counseling but Risperdal, an atypical anti-psychotic medication. The voices stopped: It is a remarkably powerful moment in the story, written with a combination of awe, appreciation, and grace—the perfect antidote to the grim, urgent tone of the earlier pages. Steele went on to become an important proponent of help for the mentally ill before he died of a heart attack lastt October—a scant four years afterthe voices were silenced. A mind-boggling account that will change the way readers respond to mental illness.
What People Are Saying
John M. Oldham
John M. Oldham, M.D., Director, New York State Psychiatric Institute
This beautiful written, moving and riveting account is a remarkable story of courage and recovery, truly against the odds. Ken Steele has much to teach us, and he does so with eloquence.
Stephen M. Goldfinger
Stephen M. Goldfinger, M.D., Professor and Vice Chair, Dept. of Psychiatry, SUNY, Downstate
In this gripping and startling memoir, Ken Steele reveals his world the world of severe mental illness with an intimacy and power few of us would otherwise be privileged to share.
In many ways , Ken is a classic American hero battling adversity, but the impediments he overcomes are within himself. His strength and his foibles, his rage and his courage, and finally his tenacity and dedication force us to confront ourselves and our world in a new light and with a new empathy. This memorable book will enrich the lives of everyone who reads it.
Laurie Flynn
Laurie Flynn, Executive Director, National Alliance for the Mentally Ill
Ken Steele amazing advocacy work is an inspiration to all who care about the suffering of people with mental disorders. This powerful book will move you to tears, to anger and to action.
loading...