Review of Hurry Down Sunshine by Michael Greenberg

Writing about mental illness isn't easy. And I'm guessing that when that mental illness strikes your own child, it's that much harder. In Hurry Down Sunshine, Michael Greenberg takes on his daughter Sally's descent into manic depression. At age 15, Sally is "struck," as Greenberg puts it. She goes to a locked mental ward in Manhattan, where she is treated for almost a month. Greenberg writes about the hospital and several of its patients with care and respect, while at the same time trying to make sense of seeing his daughter, once so vibrant, so ill.

When Sally comes out, Greenberg does his best to help her back toward health. He and his wife Pat, who is Sally's stepmother, struggle to keep Sally safe and on her medication. His ex-wife Robin and son Aaron also appear on the scene, and the family works -- not always smoothly-- to keep the family together and to keep Sally healthy. At the same time all this is happening, Greenberg is caring for one of his brothers, who is also mentally ill.

Greenberg does an excellent job of detailing Sally's illness and the strain it places on his marriage and on him specifically. What is clear from this memoir is Greenberg's utmost love for his daughter and his willingness to do anything to help-- and save-- her. He even takes some of Sally's medication because he wants to see the world as she saw it.

I found this book incredibly compelling and sped through it. Greenberg was able to express his pain and explain both the loss and the hope he felt, and I'm presuming, continues to feel. The book gives us a very clear account of manic depression, a disease that is not completely understood and that, based on Greenberg's account, is extremely frightening.

I highly recommend this book, not only for those interested in mental illness, but also for those interested in memoir-writing.

Just One Pink gives Hurry Down Sunshine an 8.5.