LEADER 00000pam 2200337 i 4500 003 DLC 005 20200817075947.5 008 200402s2020 nyua 000 0aeng 010 2020000509 020 9781501199981|q(hardcover) 040 DLC|beng|erda|cDLC|dGCmBT|dUtOrBLW 042 pcc 043 n-us--- 092 BIO|bMATHEWS 100 1 Mathews, Dan,|eauthor. 245 10 Like crazy :|blife with my mother and her invisible friends /|cDan Mathews. 250 First Atria Books hardcover edition. 264 1 New York :|bAtria Books,|c2020. 300 244 pages :|billustrations ;|c23 cm 336 text|btxt|2rdacontent 337 unmediated|bn|2rdamedia 338 volume|bnc|2rdacarrier 520 "Dan Mathews knew that his eccentric mother, Perry Lawrence, was outspoken, foul-mouthed, and, at seventy- nine years old, unable to maintain her fiercely independent lifestyle-so he flew her across the country (with a gay man as her escort) to live with him in a dilapidated Victorian townhouse in Portsmouth, Virginia. What he didn't know was that she was schizophrenic. Over the next five years, Dan and Perry built a rollicking life together fueled by costume parties, experiments in drug use, and an unshakeable sense of humor as they faced down illness, natural disasters, and Perry's steady decline. With the help of an ever-expanding circle of friends- boyfriends new and old, strippers, DJs, gun nuts, Evangelical Christians, and everyone in between-they flipped the parent-child relationship on its head, with the globe-trotting animal rights activist finally learning to slow down and care for the woman who raised him. But it wasn't until after a kicking-and-screaming trip to the emergency room that Dan discovered that his mother's lifelong tendency to go it alone wasn't just a manifestation of her free spirit but was actually the inescapable element of a serious and undiagnosed disorder. Witty, emotionally powerful, and deeply moving, Like Crazy is a warm and engrossing memoir about mental illness, reinvention, and the remarkable power of community. Lovingly told, Mathews's memoir is also a profound meditation on the joys and pitfalls of caring for an aging family member and of the remarkable growth that takes place as a child steps into the role of the parent"-- |cProvided by publisher. 600 10 Mathews, Dan. 600 10 Mathews, Perry Lawrence|xMental health. 650 0 Schizophrenics|zUnited States|vBiography. 650 0 Schizophrenics|zUnited States|xFamily relationships. 650 0 Mothers and sons|zUnited States|vBiography.
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