The Break
By: Steven Paul Lansky
The Break is Steve Lansky’s harrowing and comic account of his descent into madness after he changed the medication he took to keep his schizophrenia in check. Written with a poet’s eye for detail and with great sensitivity and insight, it follows his quixotic quest to find love and literary success while trying to navigate a world that was not designed for people like him.
Praise
"This memoir, raw with sheer narrative power and brutally and searingly honest, will break your heart, I suspect, as it broke mine. So much struggle, so much hope and despair, so much love, so much life. . . . Life, life. The choices and sacrifices we make to endure it. Read this book, reader."
—Mikhail Iossel, author of Love Like Water, Love Like Fire
“In The Break, Steven Lansky takes us on yet another wild literary ride. Incisively self-reflective and told with skill, charm, and brutal honesty, it's a work quite unlike any other that I'm aware of in the literature of mental health.”
—Jeff Parker, author of Ovenman
“There is a great peace emanating from Steve Lansky’s pages. With patience and a craftsman’s care he gently leads us through worlds of pain and puzzlement.”
—Arthur Allen, author of Vaccine
“Sharing our stories is how we get better, as well as fighting ignorance and stigma. We need more narrative accounts like Steve's.”
—Mark Vonnegut, author of The Eden Express