#23 [2024/CBR16] The Best Minds by Jonathan Rosen

I remember reading in my Intro to Psychology college text book that Schizophrenia is the "cancer of mental illnesses." Because Schizophrenia has reared its ugly head in my family, I wholeheartedly agree with that sentiment. Dealing with it is tragic and life altering. I feel like I'm always trying to figure out more about it, so I find myself reading books on the subject. A couple of years ago, I read Hidden Valley Road, a non-fiction book about a large family where over half the kids struggled with the disease. When I saw that Barack Obama had recommended The Best Minds: A Story of Friendship, Madness, and the Tragedy of Good Intentions (2023) by Jonathan Rosen, I knew I was going to read it.

Jonathan Rosen moved to New Rochelle, New York as a kid. It was in New Rochelle where Rosen met Michael Laudor, who lived around the corner. Both kids were smart and ambitious, and the two were often competitive with each other. They both did well in high school and went off to separate colleges. Michael Laudor went to Yale, where he graduated in only three years with all kinds of merits and awards. From there, Laudor got himself a prestigious consulting position and seemed to be winning at life. 

But it was during this time where Laudor began to get paranoid and delusional. Laudor ended up spending eight months at a New York-Presbyterian mental hospital where he was diagnosed with Schizophrenia. It was Laudor's father who talked Laudor into voluntarily committing himself, and Laudor seemed to improve under supervision and after trying a variety of medications.

When Laudor left the hospital, they recommended he get a low-stress job that he could fit into a routine that would help him stay well. Laudor had no interest in doing anything so menial, and he enrolled instead at Yale Law School. 

For awhile the story of Michael Laudor was one of triumph over tragedy. Laudor graduated from Yale (with help from friends and a very lenient school). He wrote an article about mental illness in the New York Times that garnered a lot of attention and prompted a book deal for Laudor. Ron Howard even bought the rights of Laudor's story to make into a movie. Michael Laudor was in a serious relationship with Caroline Costello, who went by Carrie. She was smart, dedicated, and very loyal to Michael. It seemed like he had everything.

However, the stress of the book deal and the movie weighed on Landor, and his mental health deteriorated. Without the supervision of the hospital he likely stopped taking his medication. Poor Carrie was standing by him, but it sounded like it could be very difficult--especially when his paranoid delusions made him not trust her. Finally, Michael Laudor stabbed and killed Carrie, before taking off to Cornell where the police found him. He didn't really understand that Carrie was dead. He thought he'd attacked a robot that was impersonating her. Laudor was found incapable of standing trial because of his mental illness, and he remains institutionalized to this day. The story of Laudor, what he could have been, the damage he did, and what became of him is a pretty harrowing and intense read.

Rosen also discusses some of the history, legalities, and perspectives of mental illness and how that's changed through the years. JFK closed down many mental hospitals in the 1960's in favor of "community medicine." The impetus for these closures is understandable because there was a lot of abuse and really bad conditions for the mentally ill. The problem is that there wasn't anything to take its place. Many people who really couldn't take care of themselves were basically thrown out on the street. The other problem is that many people with mental illness--especially Schizophrenia--actively avoid medication and other help from experts. It is a part of their illness that they do not trust them. But they cannot be forced to get help unless they are an imminent danger to themselves or others. People can be in horrible shape, but we can't do anything until they are actively suicidal or homicidal. There needs to be more of a safety net for the many people who need help but may not want it or don't know how to get it.

On the whole, I thought this book was well done. Whenever Rosen talked about Laudor, I couldn't put it down. I also thought knowing some of the history was necessary in order to understand why Laudor was able to go for so long without anyone stepping in. However, it did feel like Rosen went off on a number of tangents that were not really relevant and sometimes difficult to get through. I thought Rosen could have made some of his points much more succinctly. I wondered a number of times why he was writing about certain topics, and I often wished he would just get back to Laudor. Still recommended if you're interested in the subject because the good outweighs the bad.