Mayhem
A Memoir
Published on 26. July 2018
Book
Paperback/Softback
224 pages
978-0-241-97706-4 (ISBN)
Description
A Sunday Times Book of the Year
'Riveting, clear-sighted and exceptionally articulate... Her literary and psychoanalytic fluency gives the book an impact that feels arrestingly honest... Heartbreaking' Daily Telegraph
'An unsparing account of a family destroyed by drugs. Unique and haunting' Sunday Times
'What gives this book its astonishing power is not the guilt, but the intelligence and literary skill' Guardian
'I write, knowing that writing at all may be seen as a betrayal of family; a shaming, exploitative act. Anyone reading this who thinks so, please know that I thought it before you'
For years Sigrid Rausing watched helplessly as her brother Hans and his wife Eva succumbed to drug addiction. It afflicted a terrible toll on their family, culminating in Eva's tragic early death. As this death led to inquest and media circus, the world looked on in horror, but few understood the suffering endured by the Rausing family.
In Mayhem, Sigrid explores the collateral damage addiction wreaks on loved ones. Telling her family's story, she examines painful and rarely discussed questions. What is it like to live with addiction in the family? How can you help without hurting the one you love? And what does it mean to survive another's addiction?
'Riveting, clear-sighted and exceptionally articulate... Her literary and psychoanalytic fluency gives the book an impact that feels arrestingly honest... Heartbreaking' Daily Telegraph
'An unsparing account of a family destroyed by drugs. Unique and haunting' Sunday Times
'What gives this book its astonishing power is not the guilt, but the intelligence and literary skill' Guardian
'I write, knowing that writing at all may be seen as a betrayal of family; a shaming, exploitative act. Anyone reading this who thinks so, please know that I thought it before you'
For years Sigrid Rausing watched helplessly as her brother Hans and his wife Eva succumbed to drug addiction. It afflicted a terrible toll on their family, culminating in Eva's tragic early death. As this death led to inquest and media circus, the world looked on in horror, but few understood the suffering endured by the Rausing family.
In Mayhem, Sigrid explores the collateral damage addiction wreaks on loved ones. Telling her family's story, she examines painful and rarely discussed questions. What is it like to live with addiction in the family? How can you help without hurting the one you love? And what does it mean to survive another's addiction?
Reviews / Votes
Fierce, lyrical, and lucid memoir -- Siri Hustvedt A profoundly articulate and harrowing memoir of a family grappling with addiction... I was impressed and moved -- A. M. Homes A short, intense and moving memoir... a poignant and at times harrowing account that testifies to the resilience of the human spirit * Tatler * Powerful and spare... her elisions and prevarications have a striking effect * The Observer * Such a unique and haunting story to tell * The Sunday Times * What gives this book its astonishing power is not the guilt, but the intelligence and literary skill. Beautifully structured... Rausing sets the scene with painterly delicacy and then steps back to analyse the implications of what she has revealed * The Guardian * A deeply felt memorial to a lost brother...a finely written memoir * Literary Review * Riveting, clear-sighted and exceptionally articulate...heartbreaking...her literary and psychoanalytic fluency gives the book an impact that feels arrestingly honest * Daily Telegraph * Touched by its bravery, sincerity and the frequent beauty of the writing * The Times * In this slim, stoic memoir... Rausing thoughtfully, painstakingly, works a deep groove into the stubborn surface of certain bedevilling questions: "How do you write about addiction?"... I nodded and sometimes cried. I wanted to invite the author over for tea * The Millions *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 198 mm
Width: 128 mm
Thickness: 17 mm
Weight
163 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-241-97706-4 (9780241977064)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Person
Sigrid Rausing is the editor of Granta magazine and the publisher of Granta Books. She is the author of two previous books: History, Memory, and Identity in Post-Soviet Estonia, and Everything is Wonderful, which was short-listed for the Royal Society of Literature Ondaatje Prize.
She is an Honorary Fellow of the London School of Economics and of St Antony's College, Oxford. She lives in London.
She is an Honorary Fellow of the London School of Economics and of St Antony's College, Oxford. She lives in London.