A Mind Unraveled

by Kurt Eichenwald

Overview

The compelling story of an acclaimed journalist and New York Times bestselling author’s ongoing struggle with epilepsy—how, through personal resilience and the support of loved ones, heovercame medical incompetence and institutional discrimination to achieve once unthinkable success.  

“REMARKABLE . . . inspirational in the true sense of the word.”—The New York Times Book Review 

This is the story of one man’s battle to pursue his dreams despite an often incapacitating brain disorder. From his early experiences of fear and denial to his exasperating search for treatment, Kurt Eichenwald provides a deeply candid account of his years facing this misunderstood and often stigmatized condition. He details his encounters with the doctors whose negligence could have killed him, but for the heroic actions of a brilliant neurologist and the family and friends who fought for him. 

Ultimately, A Mind Unraveled is an inspirational story, one that chronicles how Eichenwald, faced often with his own mortality, transformed trauma into a guide for reaching the future he desired.

Praise for A Mind Unraveled

“An intimate journey . . . bravely illuminating the trials of living inside a body always poised to betray itself.”—O: The Oprah Magazine

“Poignant and infuriating . . . merges elements of medical drama, anti-discrimination fable, and coming-of-age memoir.”—The New Yorker

“One of the best thrillers I’ve read in years, yet there are no detectives, no corpses, no guns or knives.”—Minneapolis Star-Tribune

“Terrific . . . Eichenwald’s narrative is a suspenseful medical thriller about a condition that makes everyday life a mine field, a fierce indictment of a callous medical establishment, and an against-the-odds recovery saga.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Riveting . . . Eichenwald has created a universal tale of resilience wrapped in a primal scream against the far-too-savage world."—Booklist (starred review)

“An extraordinary book.”—Harriet Lerner, Ph.D., New York Times bestselling author of The Dance of Anger

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780399593628
Publisher:	Random House Publishing Group
Publication date:	10/16/2018
Pages:	416
Sales rank:	1,072,178
Product dimensions:	6.40(w) x 9.20(h) x 1.50(d)

About the Author

Kurt Eichenwald is the New York Times bestselling author of four previous nonfiction books. His second, The Informant, was made into a movie starring Matt Damon and directed by Steven Soderbergh. In addition to his distinguished work as a senior writer at Newsweek and a contributing editor at Vanity Fair, Eichenwald spent two decades as a senior writer at The New York Times, where he was a two-time finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. He is also a two-time winner of the George Polk Award, as well as the winner of the Payne Award for Ethics in Journalism and an Emmy Award nominee. He lives in Dallas with his family.

Read an Excerpt

Chapter One
(Continues…)

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Excerpted from "A Mind Unraveled"
by .
Copyright © 2018 Kurt Eichenwald.
Excerpted by permission of Random House Publishing Group.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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Editorial Reviews

[Eichenwald's] remarkable memoir reads, unaccountably, like the most hair-raising of psychological thrillers, despite the fact that the saga of [his] life as an epileptic from his late teens up until the present…would not seem to contain the potential for so much suspense. He grasps the gritty issues surrounding his own very real trauma and often horrific experiences…with so little self-pity and so much regard for the compensations the world has to offer even to those afflicted as he is. It's a quality that sets this book vividly apart from other memoirs that deal with suffering……A Mind Unraveled is inspirational in the true sense of the word rather than in a gimmicky, self-help sort of way. It is written with great verve and wisdom by someone who has closely and thoughtfully detailed his own plight as well as the journey out of it. I found myself reading it obsessively, the better to discover what happens to Eichenwald as he stumbles from one traumatic misadventure to the next while managing all the while to keep his eye on the larger picture. It is a book to take heart from.

The New York Times Book Review - Daphne Merkin

★ 07/23/2018
An epilepsy sufferer finds treatment almost as dangerous as his ailment in this gripping memoir. Newsweek writer Eichenwald (The Informant) recounts his struggle from the age of 18 with grand mal epileptic seizures that made him lose consciousness and collapse into convulsions, leaving him disoriented and amnesiac when he came to, not knowing where he was or how he got there. The seizures’ onset inaugurated a terrifying years-long period that had him waking up in emergency rooms, under a snowdrift, on a subway platform being beaten by hoodlums, or bleeding profusely after he was raped while unconscious. Overshadowing the epilepsy, he writes, was bad treatment from arrogant, incompetent doctors who almost killed him with toxic doses of anticonvulsant medications or absurdly misdiagnosed him with a mental illness. The author also battled stigma and discrimination, facing a protracted campaign by Swarthmore College to expel him because of his seizures and, as he started his journalism career in the 1980s, the near impossibility of getting health insurance. Meticulous but passionate, Eichenwald’s narrative is a suspenseful medical thriller about a condition that makes everyday life a mine field, a fierce indictment of a callous medical establishment, and an against-the-odds recovery saga. The result is a terrific memoir with a stinging critique of health care gone awry. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

His remarkable memoir reads, unaccountably, like the most hair-raising of psychological thrillers. . . . A Mind Unraveled is inspirational in the true sense of the word. . . . It is written with great verve and wisdom by someone who has closely and thoughtfully detailed his own plight as well as the journey out of it. I found myself reading it obsessively. . . . It is a book to take heart from.”—Daphne Merkin, The New York Times Book Review

“A Mind Unraveled reads like a medical thriller, at times truly frightening but also deeply inspiring. This book will make me think differently as a doctor. Kurt Eichenwald is a tremendously talented writer. When you travel on his personal journey, it is pure gold.”—Sanjay Gupta, M.D., chief medical correspondent, CNN

“This book absolutely floored me. It’s a medical mystery unlike any I’ve read before, with a propulsive narrative. Trust me, you won’t be able to put it down.”—Bryan Burrough, New York Times bestselling author of Barbarians at the Gate

“This powerful account provides an important blueprint for anyone struggling to overcome serious challenges.”—Katie Couric

“Kurt Eichenwald’s memoir is an immensely moving and captivating chronicle of his struggle with epilepsy. His unflinching descriptions of the extreme challenges of his condition have much to teach all of us about living. This is an extraordinary book.”—Harriet Lerner, Ph.D., New York Times bestselling author of The Dance of Anger

“This is a very powerful, tremendously informative book. Pure emotional honesty has great impact, and that is what Kurt Eichenwald has provided here.”—James Fallows, National Book Award winner and national correspondent for The Atlantic Monthly

“A Mind Unraveled left me overwhelmed and speechless. Eichenwald’s story is breathtaking: devastation and inspiration all under one cover.”—Susan Axelrod, founder of CURE (Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy)

“A terrific memoir with a stinging critique of health care gone awry.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“A passionate memoir of health and life and what it means to embrace both.”—Library Journal (starred review)

“In a career that’s included hundreds of articles . . . investigative journalist Kurt Eichenwald has established himself as a dogged and fearless reporter. But no story he’s unearthed is as compelling as the one he tells in his traumatic memoir. . . . Candid, meticulously reported and at times terrifying, A Mind Unraveled is an inspiring story of a man whose fierce will helped ensure he would not be defined or defeated by a chronic disease.”—Shelf Awareness (starred review)

“In this riveting personal narrative . . . Eichenwald has created a universal tale of resilience wrapped in a primal scream against the far-too-savage world. Book clubs will clamor for this tale of survival and call for compassion.”—Booklist (starred review)
 
“An enlightening and often moving memoir of one man’s struggle to live with a chronic and debilitating condition.”—Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

★ 09/15/2018
Beginning with his college years at Swarthmore to his time as an investigative reporter, Eichenwald (The Informant) thoughtfully conveys what it means to live with shame and stigma owing to disability. After being diagnosed with epilepsy in his 20s, the author lived in the shadows, afraid of losing jobs or friends, and experiencing denial and dismay from his parents. In response, he confided in his college roommates while trying to avoid putting his emotional needs in their hands. This memoir shines when expressing the vulnerability and uncertainty that comes along with disability. In Eichenwald's case, this involved a lengthy search for a neurologist who was able to properly treat his severe, life-changing seizures and memory impairment, while being misdiagnosed and mistreated in the process. He also sheds much-needed light on the challenges of life with a disability or chronic illness—trying to obtain health insurance with a preexisting condition, deciding whether to disclose his situation at work, and often wondering about accessibility. Recollections from friends, family, and former doctors are interspersed between each chapter, adding context to how the author's experiences have shaped and transformed their relationships. VERDICT A passionate memoir of health and life and what it means to embrace both. [See Prepub Alert, 4/23/18.]—Stephanie Sendaula, Library Journal

Library Journal