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Asylum

by William Seabrook

A memoir of addiction and treatment in the early 1930s

Critically Recognized
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Awards & Recognition

  • Critical praise

    The Observer praised the memoir as an exceptionally honest and haunting account of mental health.

    Described as “perhaps the most honest and haunting accounts of the struggle for mental health in literature.”

AlbakiReads Editorial

A memoir of addiction and treatment in the early 1930s

William Seabrook’s memoir centers on an eight-month stay at a Westchester mental hospital, where he voluntarily sought treatment for acute alcoholism. His account connects personal experience with a view of psychiatric care in the early 1930s, before Alcoholics Anonymous and other modern recovery programs. The book’s scope is both autobiographical and historical: Seabrook examines his own struggle while recording treatment as it was encountered in that period. This edition also includes a graphic novel-style introduction by Joe Ollmann, adding a visual framing element to the memoir.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Those interested in memoirs about addiction and treatment
  • Readers exploring historical accounts of mental health care
  • Readers interested in early twentieth-century personal narratives

Themes

Alcoholism and recoveryMental health treatmentMemoir and self-examinationHistorical perspectives on addiction care

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

"Perhaps the most honest and haunting accounts of the struggle for mental health in literature." -- Observer
This dramatic memoir recounts an eight-month stay at a Westchester mental hospital in the early 1930s. William Seabrook, a renowned journalist and explorer, voluntarily committed himself to an asylum for treatment of acute alcoholism. His sincere, self-critical appraisal of his experiences offers a highly interesting look at addiction and treatment in the days before Alcoholics Anonymous and other modern programs.
"Very few people could be as honest as Seabrook is here," noted The New York Times, "and it is honesty plus the talent Seabrook has already had that makes a book of this sort first-rate." This edition of the soul-baring narrative features a new graphic novel-style introduction by Joe Ollmann, who also created the cover art.
"With zombies in vogue and his books coming back onto the market after decades out of print, maybe old Willie Seabrook, the lost king of the weird, can finally get the recognition and infamy he earned." ― Benjamin Welton, Vice.com

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Customer reviews

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AlbakiReads
Malaika Taylor

I highly recommend to for anyone looking for inner clarity

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Thomas DiMassa

Great service and fast service

Great shopping experience! The book arrived quickly, was well packaged, and matched the description perfectly. I would definitely shop with you again

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Olivia

Smooth.