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A review by acidmilkindustries
He Wanted the Moon: The Madness and Medical Genius of Dr. Perry Baird, and His Daughter's Quest to Know Him by Mimi Baird, Eve Claxton
4.0
Dr. Perry Baird's tale is unmistakably tragic. One of which is lived by many who find themselves ensnared in the still alarmingly archaic "institutions" of mental health.
While it is true that the core of this book is not so much about the treatment Dr. Perry Baird received, and substantially more so about his day-to-day life and the lense through which he viewed his reality, and a scant amount about his daughter, the author of this book, Mimi Baird, and her discovery of who he was as a human, father, and prominent doctor, one cannot help but draw parallels to the system of incarceration still in place for those who suffer mental illnesses of all varieties.
As for the content, I find myself feeling frustrated that the author admits in the prologue that she used, however well-intentioned, certain artistic liberties to try and fill in gaps in her father's manuscript. More egregiously, in my opinion, she admits an intentional blending of these liberties without using any means or methods to convey to the reader when such is happening.
Nevertheless, Dr. Perry Baird's manuscript, paired with medical records obtained from hospitals wherein he was institutionalized provide an astounding glimpse into the mind of an individual suffering from mania.
The book is dedicated at slightly over three fourths to the manuscript, and the remainder to Mimis attempt to separate the man from the myth and to gain answers to questions left unanswered, for far too long, about her father's absence.
This portion feels a bit flat, though it is definitely not the authors fault alone. Trying to piece together the life of a man that had been essentially given up on by those who knew him is no small feat.
The title feels a tad misleading, as the portion of print dedicated to hunt to learn whom Dr. Perry Baird was is small, it does not detract from the overall quality of the book.
If you enjoy medicine, mental health, or want to peer into a realm i.e., mental illness, that you are unfamiliar with then this may be a fine place for you to start.
While it is true that the core of this book is not so much about the treatment Dr. Perry Baird received, and substantially more so about his day-to-day life and the lense through which he viewed his reality, and a scant amount about his daughter, the author of this book, Mimi Baird, and her discovery of who he was as a human, father, and prominent doctor, one cannot help but draw parallels to the system of incarceration still in place for those who suffer mental illnesses of all varieties.
As for the content, I find myself feeling frustrated that the author admits in the prologue that she used, however well-intentioned, certain artistic liberties to try and fill in gaps in her father's manuscript. More egregiously, in my opinion, she admits an intentional blending of these liberties without using any means or methods to convey to the reader when such is happening.
Nevertheless, Dr. Perry Baird's manuscript, paired with medical records obtained from hospitals wherein he was institutionalized provide an astounding glimpse into the mind of an individual suffering from mania.
The book is dedicated at slightly over three fourths to the manuscript, and the remainder to Mimis attempt to separate the man from the myth and to gain answers to questions left unanswered, for far too long, about her father's absence.
This portion feels a bit flat, though it is definitely not the authors fault alone. Trying to piece together the life of a man that had been essentially given up on by those who knew him is no small feat.
The title feels a tad misleading, as the portion of print dedicated to hunt to learn whom Dr. Perry Baird was is small, it does not detract from the overall quality of the book.
If you enjoy medicine, mental health, or want to peer into a realm i.e., mental illness, that you are unfamiliar with then this may be a fine place for you to start.