---
product_id: 5374222
title: "Crazy: A Father's Search Through America's Mental Health Madness"
price: "¥4335"
currency: JPY
in_stock: true
reviews_count: 11
url: https://www.desertcart.jp/products/5374222-crazy-a-fathers-search-through-americas-mental-health-madness
store_origin: JP
region: Japan
---

# Crazy: A Father's Search Through America's Mental Health Madness

**Price:** ¥4335
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- **What is this?** Crazy: A Father's Search Through America's Mental Health Madness
- **How much does it cost?** ¥4335 with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship
- **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.jp](https://www.desertcart.jp/products/5374222-crazy-a-fathers-search-through-americas-mental-health-madness)

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## Description

“A magnificent gift to those of us who love someone who has a mental illness…Earley has used his considerable skills to meticulously research why the mental health system is so profoundly broken.”—Bebe Moore Campbell, author of 72 Hour Hold Former Washington Post reporter Pete Earley had written extensively about the criminal justice system. But it was only when his own son—in the throes of a manic episode—broke into a neighbor's house that he learned what happens to mentally ill people who break a law. This is the Earley family's compelling story, a troubling look at bureaucratic apathy and the countless thousands who suffer confinement instead of care, brutal conditions instead of treatment, in the “revolving doors” between hospital and jail. With mass deinstitutionalization, large numbers of state mental patients are homeless or in jail-an experience little better than the horrors of a century ago. Earley takes us directly into that experience—and into that of a father and award-winning journalist trying to fight for a better way.

Review: Please read if mental illness has impacted you or someone you are close to - I preface that this is not meant to be a hope-filled, happy-ending sort of text. This is a true account of what the mental health care system has been for dozens of individuals, both those with mental illness and those dedicated to their betterment and safety. This is not for the faint of heart, nor is it for those who want unto read something light and move on. This will stay with you and impact you in some way. Truly revolutionary. This is an important manifesto calling for action in the treatment of those who have been mistreated for centuries - those with mental illness. This was a combination of fact-based journalism, memoir, op-ed, and biography - wrapped in a narrative nonfiction bow. The writing was beautiful and tugged at emotions while also being an informative, complex informational text that makes one rethink the many highs and lows of the mental health movement. I am better for having read this and that is all I could ask. Thank you, Pete Earley, for sharing a story that didn’t have to be told - but made an impact in a way that motivates advocacy and compassion from those read it. Thank you Mike, for being a voice in change as well and allowing your story to be told.
Review: Incredibly eye-opening - Wow. This book - every single page - has been an amazing experience. I originally picked this up as a high school student who needed a "pulitzer prize winning non-fiction book" to read as an independent reading assignment. I was expecting myself to get caught in another period of laziness as I always did, where I simply spark-noted or shmooped the book, never gaining the actual experience of it. I was wrong. As soon as I read the first couple of chapters (I always have the intention of reading the full book, but many times I never get around to it) I was captivated, and knew I would read the entire thing. It was horrifying and shocking to me that this book was reporting things that were going on in the United States of America, where I lived. Of course I had heard of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder before, but this gave me another level of insight on not only the people affected by it, but the system which they have to deal with. I remember before reading this book, I would go out and see a homeless person talking to themselves, and I would be legitimately frightened, as it was something of the unknown. What was wrong with them? That was all I could think of. Nowadays in society everyone has this belief that "crazy" people are "crazy" as a result of some traumatic experience of the past, whether it was child abuse, drug abuse, or rape. When parents see a homeless person, they often say "that's what drugs do to you." This book shows how wrong these assumptions can be. Pete Earely has given me so much knowledge on mental health and the mental health system and I truly appreciate it. I have a completely different view of the issues presented in this book now. This is a great read, and everyone should read it. And I promise they won't regret it.

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| Best Sellers Rank | #194,485 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #49 in Popular Psychology Mental Illness Books #127 in Parent & Adult Child Relationships (Books) #177 in Medical Mental Illness |
| Customer Reviews | 4.7 out of 5 stars 918 Reviews |

## Images

![Crazy: A Father's Search Through America's Mental Health Madness - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61-J9CfYhZL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Please read if mental illness has impacted you or someone you are close to
*by B***K on June 6, 2023*

I preface that this is not meant to be a hope-filled, happy-ending sort of text. This is a true account of what the mental health care system has been for dozens of individuals, both those with mental illness and those dedicated to their betterment and safety. This is not for the faint of heart, nor is it for those who want unto read something light and move on. This will stay with you and impact you in some way. Truly revolutionary. This is an important manifesto calling for action in the treatment of those who have been mistreated for centuries - those with mental illness. This was a combination of fact-based journalism, memoir, op-ed, and biography - wrapped in a narrative nonfiction bow. The writing was beautiful and tugged at emotions while also being an informative, complex informational text that makes one rethink the many highs and lows of the mental health movement. I am better for having read this and that is all I could ask. Thank you, Pete Earley, for sharing a story that didn’t have to be told - but made an impact in a way that motivates advocacy and compassion from those read it. Thank you Mike, for being a voice in change as well and allowing your story to be told.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Incredibly eye-opening
*by J***N on January 1, 2017*

Wow. This book - every single page - has been an amazing experience. I originally picked this up as a high school student who needed a "pulitzer prize winning non-fiction book" to read as an independent reading assignment. I was expecting myself to get caught in another period of laziness as I always did, where I simply spark-noted or shmooped the book, never gaining the actual experience of it. I was wrong. As soon as I read the first couple of chapters (I always have the intention of reading the full book, but many times I never get around to it) I was captivated, and knew I would read the entire thing. It was horrifying and shocking to me that this book was reporting things that were going on in the United States of America, where I lived. Of course I had heard of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder before, but this gave me another level of insight on not only the people affected by it, but the system which they have to deal with. I remember before reading this book, I would go out and see a homeless person talking to themselves, and I would be legitimately frightened, as it was something of the unknown. What was wrong with them? That was all I could think of. Nowadays in society everyone has this belief that "crazy" people are "crazy" as a result of some traumatic experience of the past, whether it was child abuse, drug abuse, or rape. When parents see a homeless person, they often say "that's what drugs do to you." This book shows how wrong these assumptions can be. Pete Earely has given me so much knowledge on mental health and the mental health system and I truly appreciate it. I have a completely different view of the issues presented in this book now. This is a great read, and everyone should read it. And I promise they won't regret it.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Disturbing, frustrating and idiotic system of treatment
*by B***S on December 7, 2013*

Author Peter Earley's book "Crazy" tells two stories--that of his son, Mike, who had a bipolar episode in college and was arrested for breaking into a private home and damaging it, and that of his year-long investigation inside the Miami-Dade County jail in Miami. Earley uses his personal experience with his son and the experiences of those in the Miami-Dade County jail to illustrate how frustrating and idiotic the mental health laws are. He writes that the mentally ill used to be treated in state hospitals; now they are being arrested and the jails and prisons are the new asylums. Today, fewer than 55,000 of the mentally ill are treated in state hospitals. This is one-tenth the number treated in state hospitals in 1955. Earley says the deinstitutionalization of the mentally ill was an unplanned social disaster. He writes, "Deinstitutionalization was a cruel hoax and the wholesale closings of state hospitals was abandonment, not freedom, for the chronically mentally ill." An emergency room doctor at the Virginia hospital where Earley's son was taken said he couldn't treat him because he had not harmed himself or others. And, the irony of the law is that someone who has been determined to be delusional and psychotic must give their consent to be treated. As the doctor said, "It's not against the law to be crazy." Yet, if a physician didn't treat a patient with obvious physical injuries, the physician would be accused of negligence and cruelty. Early frustrations and helplessness as a parent of a mentally ill child mirrored that of thousands of others. Earley says most of the mentally ill had no concept of what they were doing when they committed crimes. It's in society's best interest to help them get treatment, not lock them in jail. Earley spends a lot of time addressing the issue of the civil rights of the mentally ill. Although 80 percent of the mentally ill can be helped with antipsychotic medications, civil rights laws are used to prevent patients from receiving help. The current system is heavily biased against intervention and treatment. As a result, many of the mentally ill live on the streets like animals. Yet, as one physician said, "I've never had one person whom I had helped say to me, 'Doc, I wish you had left me crazy on the streets." Earley's profiles of several mentally ill people who were in the Miami-Dade County jail are disturbing and frustrating. While his son had a positive outcome, the same can't be said for others. This is the type of book that will stick with you a while, particularly if you have a friend or family member who has a mental illness. The way we treat mental illness in the United States is a disgrace. This book should be required reading for all politicians and legislators.

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*Product available on Desertcart Japan*
*Store origin: JP*
*Last updated: 2026-10-07*