2 out of 4 stars
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There and Back There Again by Andrew Alsup presents a side of mental illness that most people will never see. Andrew is a self-described savant and victim of Asperger's syndrome.
What is a savant? A savant is a person who has significant mental disabilities and above average abilities in one specific area, like calculating days and dates of the calendar from the past or the future. Does this describe the author? He does seem to display significant mental disability. The first sections of his book are basically wild impassioned tirades, a virtual verbal onslaught of disconnected thoughts, feelings and observations. As for the superior abilities of a savant, I felt those were not evident.
When he describes himself as a victim of Asperger's, it seems as if he has some self-awareness of his inability to acknowledge reality. On the other hand, when he complains of the voices in his head, he seems to be unaware there could be a connection.
His personal experiences with hearing voices and the paranoia they incite are as difficult to read as they are to understand. He discusses several subjects like the Constitution, religion, sex, pets, and poetry in a disjointed and nonsensical way. It is challenging to ascertain his point. When he speaks of Poe and The Raven it seems that in his dissection of the poem he is making the poem his own. When he speaks of the Bible, he seems to be preaching.
It is difficult to differentiate the times he is talking to the voices in his head versus the times he is talking to his reading audience. It could be a fascinating book if there were some clarity on these types of issues. His thoughts seemed to stray from one thing to another. There did not seem to be any aim to the rambling. In a few instances, a subject was settled upon there did not seem to be a point made. It is possible the author could enlist the help of someone who could aid him articulate his feelings in a more understandable way. With work, this could be an intriguing study. People who hear voices are a rarity and most often connected to some terrible criminal activity in the public's mind. It would be helpful for people to see the pain and confusion associated with these voices.
I give this book 2 out of 4 stars. I did not find the book well-edited. The inconsistencies were many. The language was foul. I could only recommend this book to those who are intensely interested in mental health issues and how those issues affect this man in particular.
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There and Back There Again
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