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Mental Illness and Your Town

Larry Hayes
Loving Healing Press (2009)
ISBN 9781932690767
Reviewed by Charline Ratcliff for RebeccasReads (08/10)


The writing of my review for “Mental Illness and Your Town” has taken me a little longer to put together than what I had originally anticipated. Truthfully I didn’t connect with the book as well as I had hoped and consequently I needed some time to completely process my thoughts before I committed them to paper.

What I did like: I definitely feel that the overall message contained within the pages of “Mental Illness and Your Town” is important. I’m neither a doctor nor a psychiatrist but I would agree that “mental illness” should encompass much more than just schizophrenia or delusional psychosis. I also agree that things like bi-polar disorder or depression should be classified as a lesser form of “mental illness.” During the past few decades it seems that depression has been regarded as “trivial.” Many of us have seen, or heard, about horrific aftermaths be they suicides or senseless killings. Neither of these can be construed as “trivial.” Finally, I applaud the author, Larry Hayes, for making the time to write this book in an attempt to educate, enlighten, and provide helpful suggestions to those who seek knowledge on this subject. “Mental Illness and Your Town” is a sincerely written book and it shows.

What I didn’t like: I had a difficult time reading this book because of how it was written. I understand this isn’t a fictional story however, I still prefer an easy to follow “flow.” The author’s experiences as well as those of his family members and others were mixed in helter-skelter with resource information, tips, suggestions, phone numbers, web-sites, et cetera. I think the message could have been better appreciated and/or understood if the book had been divided into two or possibly three parts. Had the author devoted the first part of “Mental Illness and Your Town” to his own personal story I feel the reader could have connected better with him. The second and/or third parts of the book could have been all of his thoughts, suggestions, and resources. I also feel this format, or something similar, would make it easier for the reader to find the information he or she was originally seeking once the book was finished. Plus, this layout would make it easier for them to use this book as a reference in future.

In summary, “Mental Illness and Your Town” is a sincere book with an important message plus, it’s a great compilation of suggestions and resources.