Susanna Kaysen Knihy

In 1967, after a session with a psychiatrist she'd never seen before, eighteen-year-old Susanna Kaysen was put in a taxi and sent to McLean Hospital. She spent most of the next two years on the ward for teenage girls in a psychiatric hospital as renowned for its famous clientele--Sylvia Plath, Robert Lowell, James Taylor, and Ray Charles--as for its progressive methods of treating those who could afford its sanctuary. Kaysen's memoir encompasses horror and razor-edged perception while providing vivid portraits of her fellow patients and their keepers. It is a brilliant evocation of a "parallel universe" set within the kaleidoscopically shifting landscape of the late sixties. Girl, Interrupted is a clear-sighted, unflinching document that gives lasting and specific dimension to our definitions of sane and insane, mental illness and recovery

Set in the 1950s, the narrative follows Susanna, a young girl who feels a deep connection to Cambridge while often being uprooted to cities like London, Florence, and Athens due to her father's career. Her experiences highlight feelings of alienation and the longing for home, exploring the theme of outsiderness. The story offers a keen observation of the intellectual elite's pretensions and charms, capturing the essence of a bygone era and the complexities of belonging and returning to one's roots.

"The Camera My Mother Gave Me" takes us through Susanna Kaysen's often comic, sometimes surreal encounters with all kinds of doctors--internists, gynecologists, "alternative health" experts--as well as with her boyfriend and her friends, when suddenly, inexplicably, "something went wrong" with her vagina.Spare, frank, and altogether original, "The Camera My Mother Gave Me" challenges us to think in new ways about the centrality and power of sexuality. It is an extraordinary investigation into the role sex plays in perception and our notions of ourselves--and into what happens when the erotic impulse meets the world of medicine.

Exploring the complexities of identity and the human experience, the narrative delves into the nuances of truth and deception. It invites readers to reflect on their own desires for permanence and the allure of childhood innocence. The theme of mental health is intricately woven throughout, challenging societal perceptions of sanity and self-acceptance. This thought-provoking journey encourages readers to confront their inner selves and the darker aspects of their nature.

Ein ganzes Buch über eine VAGINA? Ja. Ein ganzes Buch über das wohl am meisten begehrte und am wenigsten beschriebene Körperteil. Ein ganzes Buch über eine Vagina, die sich eines Tages schmerzend zu Wort meldet. Susanna Kaysen ist in den späten Vierzigern, als sie plötzlich stechende Schmerzen an intimster Stelle verspürt. Dieses Körperteil hat sich bisher - außer im Falle sexueller Erregung - relativ ruhig verhalten. Nun scheint es sich von seiner bisherigen, durchaus Freude bereitenden Bestimmung zu verabschieden, um Probleme zu machen. Die Ärzte wollen natürlich helfen, ebenso wie der Vulvologe und die Alternativologin: Vom Antibiotikum bis zum Teebad, von der Pilzsalbe bis zum Antidepressivum macht Susanna Kaysens Körper brav alle Behandlungen mit. Doch der unerträgliche Schmerz bleibt - und Susannas Freund geht. Ein außerordentlich persönlicher Bericht, der nicht nur den richtigen Ton trifft, sondern auch Gelegenheit gibt über ein Thema zu schmunzeln, das bisher eher selten Anlass zum Lachen bot.

Angela Praesent (1945–2009) war Verlagslektorin, Übersetzerin und Schriftstellerin.