Crazy

A Father's Search Through America's Mental Health Madness

By: Pete Earley

Narrated by: Michael Prichard

Pete Earley had no idea. He'd been a journalist for over 30 years, and the author of several award-winning, even best-selling, nonfiction books about crime and punishment and society. Yet he'd always been on the outside looking in. He had no idea what it was like to be on the inside looking out until his son, Mike, was declared mentally ill, and Earley was thrown headlong into the maze of contradictions, disparities, and catch-22s that is America's mental health system.

The more Earley dug, the more he uncovered the bigger picture: our nation's prisons have become our new mental hospitals. Crazy tells two stories. The first is his son's. The second describes what Earley learned during a year-long investigation inside the Miami-Dade County jail, where he was given complete, unrestricted access. There, and in the surrounding community, he shadowed inmates and patients; interviewed correctional officers, public defenders, prosecutors, judges, mental-health professionals, and the police; talked with parents, siblings, and spouses; consulted historians, civil rights lawyers, and legislators.

The result is both a remarkable piece of investigative journalism, and a wake-up call; a portrait that could serve as a snapshot of any community in America.

©2006 Pete Earley (P)2006 Tantor Media Inc

Critic reviews

"Parents of the mentally ill should find solace and food for thought in its pages." (Publishers Weekly)
"Crazy is a godsend. It will open the minds of many who make choices for the mentally ill." (Patty Duke)

facinating book, okay narrarator

the book is fantastic-- Perfect for my paper about mental illness for my Rhetoric course. However the voice chosen for this book is so dry that it makes it difficult to read. Also, be prepared for some uncovered injustices in the world

informative on Mental health.

Good self help book if looked at properly. when it comes to extremes especially. Also as far as institutions and the way the are ran the process on witch the state proceeds with mental health. Over all good read.

Harrowing, Heart-Breaking

Mr. Earley has written an important book, and he weaves his son's personal story into a well-researched narrative.

I learned a great deal about the history of treating mental illnesses in the U.S., as well as the Catch-22 implicit in many current US state laws, which place a premium on individual rights protection at the expense of appropriate treatment for the mentally ill. The result is that many mentally ill people end up in prisons for decades -- having fallen through the cracks in the health care system.

It is not a happy story; however, it is an important story -- a must for those working in local police forces or prisons, public policy makers in the area of health, and those who have family members suffering from a mental illness. Written accessibly, the book is easy to understand, and well-narrated.

Great work

This is the third Pete Earley book I've downloaded and listened to. It is the most personal to him and the most complex. Starting out as a loving father who faces the crisis of his son's escalating mental illness, Earley decided to write about his personal experience and the broader plight of mentally ill men who are incarcerated. By turns enlightening and frustrating, Crazy is a profoundly moving paean to human understanding and a call to action.

A must read for professionals

A truly enlightening story of a father's struggle and the reality of coping with mental illness in the family. Brilliantly written, very down to earth and gripping. Not a dull moment in this book.