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Already a member? Sign in . book Information Explore this item buying info customer reviews editorial reviews search inside Share your thoughts write a review write a So You'd Like to... guide e-mail a friend about this item Rate this item Rate this item Visit the DVD Store Girl, book prozac nation Interrupted DVD ~ Winona Ryder Spectacular Readers Never misplace your reading glasses again with book prozac nation the hip book prozac nation and stylish magnetic readers from CliC. Listmania!Understanding Those Important ...: A list by book prozac nation wfik, Lover of Troubled GirlfriendsAdd your List Ready to buy? Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering. A9.com users save 1.57% on Amazon. Learn how. MORE BUYING CHOICES 115 used & new from $3.73 Available for in-store pickup now from: $14.00 Price may vary based on availability Enter your ZIP Code Have one to sell? Don't have one?We'll set one up book prozac nation for you. Prozac Nation: Young and Depressed in America : A Memoirby Elizabeth Wurtzel, book prozac nation Riverhead Books "Some catastrophic situations invite clarity, explode in split moments: You smash your hand through a windowpane and then there is blood and shattered glass stained..." (more) SIPs: atypical depression CAPs: Bruce Springsteen, Central Park, Harvard Yard, Long Island, Bob Dylan (more) Search inside this book Share book prozac nation your own customer images List Price: $14.00 Price: $11.20 and eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. See details You Save: $2.80 (20%) Availability: Usually ships within 24 hours. Ships from and book prozac nation sold by Amazon.com. Want it delivered Wednesday, June 29? Choose One-Day book prozac nation Shipping at checkout. See details 115 book prozac nation used & new available from $3.73 Edition: Paperback Other Editions: List Price: Our Price: Other Offers: Hardcover $32.00 $21.76 7 used & new from $12.98 School & Library Binding $23.45 $23.45 18 used & new from $5.00 Better Together Buy this book with Bitch by ELIZABETH WURTZEL today! Total List Price: $28.95 Buy Together Today: $21.37 Customers who bought this book also bought Bitch : In Praise of Difficult Women by ELIZABETH WURTZEL More, book prozac nation Now, Again: A Memoir of Addiction by Elizabeth Wurtzel Girl, Interrupted (Vintage) by Susanna Kaysen The Bell Jar (Perennial Classic) by Sylvia Plath The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides Skin Game : A Memoir by Caroline KettlewellExplore Similar Items: in Books, in DVD, and in Music Editorial Reviews Amazon.comElizabeth Wurtzel writes with her finger in the faint pulse of a generation book prozac nation whose ruling icons are Kurt Cobain, Xanax, and pierced tongues. book prozac nation A memoir of her bouts with depression and skirmishes with drugs, Prozac Nation still manages to be a witty and sharp account of the psychopharmacology of an era.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.From Publishers WeeklyTwenty-six-year-old Wurtzel, a former critic of popular music for New York and the New Yorker, recounts in this book prozac nation luridly intimate memoir the 10 years of chronic, debilitating depression that preceded her treatment with Prozac in 1990. After her parents' acrimonious divorce, Wurtzel was raised by her mother on Manhattan's Upper West Side. The onset of puberty, she recalls, also book prozac nation marked the onset of recurrent bouts of acute depression, sending her spiraling into episodes of catatonic despair, masochism and hysterical crying. Here she unsparingly details her therapists, hospitalizations, binges of sex and drug use and the paralyzing spells of depression which afflicted her in high book prozac nation school and as a Harvard undergraduate and culminated in a suicide attempt and ultimate diagnosis of atypical depression, a severe, episodic psychological disorder. The title is misleading, for Wurtzel book prozac nation skimps on sociological analysis and remains too self-involved to justify her contention that book prozac nation depression is endemic to her generation. By turns emotionally powerful and tiresomely solipsistic, her book straddles the line between an absorbing self-portrait book prozac nation and a coy bid for public attention. First serial to Vogue, Esquire and Mouth2Mouth. Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. See all Editorial Reviews book prozac nation Product Details Paperback: 384 pages Publisher: Riverhead Books (September 1, 1997) Language: English ISBN: 1573225126 Product Dimensions: book prozac nation 8.2 x 5.1 x 0.9 inches Shipping Weight: 12.5 ounces. (View shipping rates and policies) Average Customer Review: based on 289 reviews. (Write a review) Amazon.com Sales Rank: #3,188 in Books (Publishers and authors: improve your sales) In-Print Editions: Hardcover | School Binding | All Editions Inside This Book New! Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages: Front Cover | book prozac nation Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover Search Inside This Book: Inside This Book (learn more) First Sentence: Some catastrophic situations invite clarity, explode in split moments: You smash your book prozac nation hand through a windowpane and then there is blood and book prozac nation shattered glass stained with red all over the place; you fall out a window and break some bones and scrape some skin. Read the first page Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more) atypical depression Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more) Bruce Springsteen, Central Park, Harvard Yard, Long Island, Bob Dylan, Adams House, Deep Ellum, book prozac nation Grateful Dead, Joni Mitchell, New Jersey, Jesus Christ, John Lennon, book prozac nation Kirkland Street, Anne Sexton, Matthews book prozac nation Hall, Comparative Literature, Noah Biddle, North Dallas, Piccadilly Circus, book prozac nation Butthole Surfers, Westwood Lodge New! Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages: Front Cover | Copyright | Table of book prozac nation Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover Search Inside This Book: Customers who viewed this book also viewed Radical Sanity : Commonsense Advice for Uncommon Women by ELIZABETH book prozac nation WURTZEL I Never Promised You a Rose Garden by Joanne Greenberg Prozac Diary by book prozac nation Lauren Slater Prozac Nation DVD ~ Erik Skjoldbjærg Girl, Interrupted DVD ~ James Mangold Sylvia DVD ~ Christine JeffsExplore Similar Items: in Books, in DVD, book prozac nation and in Music Spotlight Reviews Write an online review and share your thoughts with other customers. 35 of book prozac nation 43 people found the following review helpful: Disease, by-product, or ...?, March 9, 2001 Reviewer:Serdar S. Yegulalp "carbon-based book prozac nation unit" (Huntington, NY United States) book prozac nation - See all my reviews Clinical depression is a difficult topic. Only recently has it been examined as a disease -- i.e., something which can be clinically separate from the person himself. That people have been depressed in the past is no mystery. Winston Churchill comes to mind, surely not a man lacking for a purpose and a direction in his life -- two things which are often snidely recommended to depressed people as a way to get them to "snap out of it." Given that book prozac nation depression is at least partly chemical, and can often be treated well with certain drugs, it's questionable how useful this advice is. That doesn't stop Elizabeth Wurtzel from trying, however."Prozac Nation" smells of a project embarked upon by the writer to "snap out book prozac nation of it" -- something into which she invested her energy to book prozac nation keep from sliding back into book prozac nation the pit. Good for her, but the result is a turgid book prozac nation book that caters wildly book prozac nation to the (largely presumed) psychically flagellant fetishes of its audience.This book is not so much about depression as it is about the behavior that accompanies it. There's little or no attempt at genuine analysis; it's simply a relived wallowing of the experience. Rather than try to show how depression makes people do specific things, she attempts to force empathy from the readers by subjecting them to a verbal fusillade designed to reproduce the experience in them. The problem with this approach is that it doesn't always work unless you've been depressed yourself -- in which case it's less insightful and more a case of preaching to the choir. Worse, her book prozac nation fantasies about death and suicide are cast wholly in terms of media showoff -- she imagines herself profiled in "New York" magazine after she offs herself -- which in itself makes her motives for writing the book slightly fishy.It's the last problem which book prozac nation makes the book really fail on a basic conceptual level. book prozac nation Wurtzel isn't satisfied with simply portraying what happened to her -- she takes contradicting stances on it, pooh-poohing it as media-manufactured teen-angst B.S. gone haywire, and book prozac nation then book prozac nation defending it as a part of her identity. Which is it? Unless her identity IS media-manufatured teen-angst B.S., which is in itself ugly enough.I wanted to like this book. I really did. It's book prozac nation written with flair and energy, and book prozac nation it held my attention. But it book prozac nation is, in its own book prozac nation way, remarkably dishonest about depression: it assumes that the only thing worth talking about in depression is the depressive episodes themselves, and that people who parade their depression (except for Elizabeth Wurtzel, of course) are attention-getting phonies who need a kick in the pants. The final chapters are too book prozac nation little, too late in this regard: they muse about drug cocktails as being the book prozac nation Answer book prozac nation to a life which has for some people become unliveable. Nowhere does it cross her mind that her problem is no longer personal or medicinal, but social, and she stops short of writing something really interesting. I suspect that would have required another, better book. Was this review helpful to you? (Report this) 11 of 12 people found the following review helpful: One Person's Descent into Despair, June 19, 2004 Reviewer:CreepyT "CreepyTendencies" (Encino, CA United States) - See all my reviewsFirst of book prozac nation all, let me begin by stating that the title of this book can be a little misleading. This is, after all, a memoir, and should not be taken book prozac nation as an all-encompassing book prozac nation generalized statement as to the state of teenagers and young adults today. This is one woman's account of her bouts with depression. Furthermore, the majority of this book is not directly related to the drug Prozac itself, as the bulk of this memoir takes place during the mid-80's, when anti-depressants weren't nearly as prevalent as they are today. Thus, the book is more a reflection of the gradual shift towards the drug dependence of one single person than on the actual state of drug use itself. Though this book offers little insight book prozac nation into the malady and it's treatment, Elizabeth Wurtzel writes of her own personal experiences book prozac nation with depression throughout college in a somewhat book prozac nation compelling and intriguing way. The book doesn't set out to make any real mind-altering points, or change anyone's opinion in any way, it merely tells "only a small personal tale of one person's mental [anguish]."The author does, however, try to make it known that there were clear events in her life that led up to her feelings and emotions, as opposed to some sort book prozac nation of chemical imbalance. Eventually, these emotions took complete control over her mental state, and the author could no longer function as a normal, more rational person might. Though the narratives can get rather irritating book prozac nation at times, making Elizabeth Wurtzel out to be book prozac nation a whiny, overly-dramatic, spoiled college girl, the reader can't help but feel a little bit of compassion and sympathy for what the author experienced. Throughout all of this turmoil, Ms. book prozac nation Wurtzel did manage to get herself into book prozac nation and through college, winning many awards along book prozac nation the way. With an incredible support team of people who stood by her throughout an incredibly dramatic period of her life, she was able to overcome her depression. When things went well for her, she lived a normal, happy life. When things were book prozac nation on the downhill, the bouts of depression reared their ugly little heads. Though Prozac and lithium, and before that Mellaril, did provide some relief and assistance, it was, and is, ultimately, what goes on in the author's life that alters her state book prozac nation of book prozac nation mind.Overall, this was an interesting book to read. It isn't some great piece of literature that will be remembered for years to book prozac nation come, and book prozac nation it certainly isn't mind-altering in any way, shape, or form, but it does provide an interesting account of one person's descent into a suffocating, dismal way of life. Elizabeth Wurtzel has been compared to Sylvia Plath on more than one occasion. Though her book prozac nation prose isn't quite as sophisticated, book prozac nation and book prozac nation her narratives tend to be slightly more gratingly exasperating, I would tend to agree with that analogy. The film version, starring Cristina Ricci and Anne Heche was due out in theaters book prozac nation sometime in 2003, but that never came to fruition. It is currently slated for a straight to video release sometime in late 2004. Was this review helpful to you? (Report this) Customer Reviews Average Customer Review: Write an online review and share your thoughts with other customers. Have Pity on Me, June 27, 2005 Reviewer:Steven Tsola "Steven Tsola" (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviewsThat's about the only message Prozac Nation conveys. Elizabeth Wurtzel somehow deviates from the problems book prozac nation of book prozac nation depression vis a vis, and deviates to all sorts of tangents. Everything always leads back to her. I'm sorry, but she must have been PMSing something fierce to come book prozac nation up with this excrement. Sure she has a verbose lexicon, and knows how to arrange words fluidly to make it appear as book prozac nation if she's saying something meaningful, but as far as I'm concerned she fails miserably. I however am only reading this book because it's required for a college course. Would I recommend this for a peer? Simple and short, the answer is no. If you enjoy the mindless, self-indulgence of a rich Jewish girl who manages to hyperbolize every book prozac nation dramatic event in her book prozac nation life, then I recommend this book for you. If you have an book prozac nation IQ above that of an inanimate object, then don't even skim through the pages. Was this review helpful to you? (Report this) 1 of 4 people found the following review helpful: The book prozac nation problem is..., June book prozac nation 4, 2005 Reviewer:T. Burt "T" (Chicago) - See all my reviews People book prozac nation are too self-righteous. It's amusing to read such self-ivolved negative reviews daring to call Wurtzel narcissistic. Why don't you read the book and decide for yourself if you like it. It is obviously good enough to provoke strong emotions in its readers. Was this review helpful to you? (Report this) 3 of 3 people found the following review helpful: Prozac book prozac nation Nation, May 24, 2005 Reviewer:Erica Cresswell - See all my reviews I recently reviewed "Prozac Nation" on Amazon. I gave it two stars the first book prozac nation time and a really harsh review. I winced when I re-read my first review because book prozac nation I realized that I came across as arrogant and I tore up the book needlessly. The truth book prozac nation is that at points Wurtzel does come across as whiney. But if you read the afterword Wurtzel explains that that was part of her intention. She writes, "I wanted this book to dare to be completely self-indulgent [...] I wanted so very badly to write a book that felt as bad as it feels to feel this bad, to feel depressed". I did find the book repetitive and self-indulgent. More than once I was thinking to book prozac nation myself, "why can't this girl just get it together??? she's smart, why can't she just....". And that's exactly Wurtzel's point: you don't just snap out of depression. book prozac nation Recovering from depression takes time and work and it is damn frustrating. Her book too can be damn frustrating to read at times but that was her goal - she definitely book prozac nation accomplished it. Writing a book prozac nation memoir about depression is an exceedingly difficult task and I think Wurtzel should be commended for her efforts and her honesty. Tons of people loved this book and I figure there must be a reason they appreciate it so much. I personally didn't love the book but you might be one of those people who adore it. Give it a try and see for yourself. Was this review book prozac nation helpful to you? (Report this) 2 of 3 people found the following book prozac nation review helpful: What you should know about Depression, May 3, 2005 Reviewer:Chris (Florida) - See all my reviewsI don't know why Prozac Nation hasn't been a more notable book. Could be that this is a topic that so many wish not to hear of yet so many have their uneducated opinions on book prozac nation depression, what it is and how to treat and not treat it. This is Wurtzel's story. This is her story of the paralyzing effects of darkness that is inescapable. book prozac nation Depression creates depression and Wurtzel's world becomes more and more hopeless as she sees nothing she can do with what she is afflicted with. "Sometimes I wish I were an alcoholic so I could book prozac nation go to an AA meeting book prozac nation and I could do something about it." says book prozac nation Wurtzel. A desperate story but there is hope. Wurtzel finds that hope and here in this book is her journey from darkness. Was this book prozac nation review helpful to you? (Report this) See all 289 customer reviews... Listmania!Books for your edification: by biggin4livin, Factory EmployeeA Few Of My Fav Nonfiction Books: by book prozac nation Elizabeth Smart, Studentamazing books every girl should book prozac nation read: by girl_kills_boy, neurotic supergirl So You'd Like book prozac nation to...fill the hole in your soul: by starlet, inspired rockstarFind Comfort in Your Early Adulthood Angst: by sublimecynicism, English Major/ book prozac nation University of Massachusetts/Cool Feminist Chicklearn book prozac nation about awesome females: by Moira, feminist... 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Already a member? Sign in. DVD INFORMATION Explore This DVD buying info technical information editorial reviews customer reviews RATE book prozac nation THIS DVD I dislike it I love it! 1 2 3 book prozac nation 4 5 Edit your ratings Favorite Magazines! Explore our new Magazine Subscriptions store. Visit the Books Store Mr. book prozac nation Skin's Skincyclopedia book prozac nation : The A-to-Z Guide to Finding Your Favorite Actresses Naked by Mr. Skin Save 43% on Remington Shaver Don't miss out on this incredible price reduction on the Remington Titanium Ultra Men's Shaver, now only $39.99. So You'd Like to... tHe DvD's ThAt WiLl Be ReLeAsE...: A guide by Travis Wright, 13-year-old movie buyer and movie watcher Create your guide Sign in to book prozac nation turn on 1-Click ordering. A9.com users save 1.57% on Amazon. Learn how. Don't have one?We'll set one book prozac nation up for you. Prozac Nation see larger picture List Price: $29.99 Price: $20.99 and eligible for FREE Super book prozac nation Saver Shipping on orders over $25. See details. You Save: $9.00 (30%) Availability: This item book prozac nation will be released on July 5, 2005. You may order it now and we will ship it to book prozac nation you when it arrives. Edition: See more product details Customers who bought this DVD also bought: Closer book prozac nation (Superbit Edition) DVD ~ Natalie Portman When Will I Be Loved DVD ~ Neve book prozac nation Campbell The Door in the Floor DVD ~ Jeff Bridges Million Dollar Baby (Widescreen Edition) DVD ~ Clint Eastwood Explore Similar Items: 20 in DVD, 1 in Books, and 7 in Video Product Details Starring: Christina Ricci, Anne Heche, See more Director: Erik Skjoldbjærg Encoding: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada book prozac nation only. This DVD will probably NOT book prozac nation be viewable in other countries. Read more about DVD formats.) Format: Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen, Dolby Rated: Not for sale to persons under age 18. Studio: Miramax Home Entertainment DVD Release Date: July 5, 2005 Run Time: 95 From IMDb: Quotes & Trivia ASIN: B00094ASC2 Average Customer Review: Based on 14 reviews. Write a review. Amazon.com Sales Rank: #800 in book prozac nation DVD Click here for more technical details about this edition... Editorial Reviews Amazon.com Fans of Christina Ricci will note that the saucer-eyed actress takes a big leap from book prozac nation deadpan-child and grumpy-ingenue roles with Prozac Nation, an adaptation of Elizabeth Wurtzel's bestselling book. Ricci puts her all into playing Lizzie, a self-absorbed Ivy League writer wannabe who alienates friends and family book prozac nation with her out-of-control mood swings and other chemical imbalances. Ricci is committed and convincing, but nothing she does ameliorates Lizzie's exasperating personality; spending 90 minutes around this person is an eternity of tantrums. Around to provide audience stand-ins are Jason Biggs, Michelle Williams, and Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, all of whom disapprove of Lizzie's self-destructive behavior. Jessica Lange, professional book prozac nation as always, is Lizzie's brittle mother. If the movie really did capture the sense of the zeitgeist suggested by its grandiose title, or if it carried some book prozac nation intriguing stylistic urgency that book prozac nation carried us into its depressive labyrinth, perhaps Lizzie's journey would be palatable. But the long delay between Prozac Nation's shooting (in 2001) and its emergence on cable-TV and DVD is all too easy to understand. --Robert book prozac nation Horton Description Award winners Christina Ricci (CURSED, MONSTER) and Jessica Lange (BIG FISH, book prozac nation ROB ROY) star in this emotionally charged true story about a journey into excess! When talented young writer Elizabeth Wurtzel (Ricci) earns a scholarship to Harvard, she sees it as her book prozac nation chance to escape the pressures of book prozac nation her working-class background and concentrate on her true talent. But what starts book prozac nation out so promising leads to self-destructive behavior and paralyzing depression that reflects an entire generation's struggle to navigate the effects of divorce, drugs, sex, and high expectations. book prozac nation Based on the best-selling autobiographical novel, PROZAC NATION book prozac nation also stars Michelle Williams (THE STATION AGENT), Anne Heche (JOHN Q), Jason Biggs (JERSEY GIRL), and Jonathan Rhys-Meyers (BEND book prozac nation IT LIKE BECKHAM). Spotlight Reviews (What's this?) Write book prozac nation an online review and share your thoughts with other customers. 24 of 25 people found the following review helpful: Superb Ricci !: A Young Woman's Memoir of Days of Depression, January 12, 2004 Reviewer: T. Nakajima (Kyoto-shi, Kyoto-hu Japan) - See all my reviews This book prozac nation is a filmed adaptation of the book "Prozac Nation: Young and Depressed in America: A Memoir" written by Elizabeth Wurtzel, book prozac nation a former writer for "New York" and "New Yorker." When it was published about ten years ago, she was 26 years old, and in it she recounts the days of depression while she was in Harvard University. Elizabeth ('Lizzie') is played by Christina Ricci, and co-stars are -- Jessica Lange as her mother, Jason Biggs, Michelle Williams, book prozac nation Jonathan book prozac nation Rhys-Myers (all her friends), and Anne Heche as Doctor Sterling. And a cameo of one New York rock music icon (see below). It is directed by Erik Skjoldbjaerg, known for the original European book prozac nation "Insomnia."The story is, as you expect, slightly episodic. It is book prozac nation about Elizabeth who comes to Harvard in 1986. After her talent of writing is publicly recognized (she was awarded by the Rolling Stone magazine), she starts to experience acute depression. The film is about these days of the university life of Elizabeth, who, in spite of herself, book prozac nation hurts the book prozac nation people around her and herself again and again. Perhaps because of the nature of the film, "Prozac Nation" will devide the opinions among viewers. Some book prozac nation will find Elizabeth selfish while others relate to her. Whatever your reaction may be, it book prozac nation is hard for anyone to rationalize the complicated phychological aspects of humans' behaviors, and the book prozac nation film also shows that difficulity. If you remember Angelina Jolie's character in "Girl, Interrupted," book prozac nation I think you understand what I am saying. Why does she act like that? Why Lizzie keeps on hurting the feelings of the people around her? No easy answer can be given. But as far as Christina Ricci's acting goes, she is excellent. You know that from the first scene, in which Elizabeth stares vacantly in the air. Something is wrong, you instantly see, and with authentic touch from the superb Ricci. Her involvement in the film is a genuine one book prozac nation (she is also a co-producer of the film), and you can tell that she dedicated herself to be the character. And other actors are good (though book prozac nation I found Ms. Lange is a bit miscast, who book prozac nation could not simply look like Ricci's mother). book prozac nation Talented Michelle Williams plays here a rather book prozac nation one-dimentional role as Lizzie's roommate, but her good-natured personality comes onto the screen very naturally (which means, she is book prozac nation as charming as ever). And you may consider Jason Biggs as (again) Mr. Good-Guy, but his character shows slightly unexpected depth as the story goes on. Shame, he book prozac nation is also underrated. Oh, and you will see Lou Reed as himself (who happened to be the city where the shooting was done), who helps to creat a very touching moment of the book prozac nation film with Christina Ricci.So, you may say, Why three stars? OK, two reasons. One is that the director tends to use unnecessary flashy camera book prozac nation works -- speed-ups, or that kind of things -- book prozac nation which are totally irritating. When you have great acting of Ricci, you just don't need them. book prozac nation And the other is the story, which tries to swallow too many factors at once. book prozac nation Though the pains of Lizzie is realized well on the screen, many of her actions look too sudden, or disjointed. But here I may be too harsh, book prozac nation for the original book is a memoir, not a novel.The film had been completed in 2001, book prozac nation but few people have seen in it (I'm writing this in Jan. 2004). In Japan, where I live, they released it in the autumn of 2003. book prozac nation The delayed release might imply something bad about the film. Actually, it is not as bad as these facts would suggest. Only that "Prozac Nation" is not for everyone. But it is also true that it could have been better, and book prozac nation it IS good book prozac nation when it shows book prozac nation the actors doing what they can do. And Christina Ricci. Her fans should never miss it. --This text refers to the edition Was this review helpful to you? (Report this) 3 of 3 people found book prozac nation the following review helpful: Buy this movie, May 9, 2005 Reviewer: Richard L. Hubbell "sandsave" (Nashville) - See all my reviews Miss Ricci can do more book prozac nation with an expression than most actresses can with with a full-body contortion. This journey from heck to hell to heaven back to hell to, well, back to life is book prozac nation just plain dandy. If you like substance over fluff and do not need exploding helicopters book prozac nation or sociopaths with chainsaws, buy this movie. Was this review helpful to you? (Report this) All Customer Reviews Average Customer Review: Write an online review and share your thoughts with other customers. book is better than the movie, June 27, 2005 Reviewer: A. Kaplan - See all my reviews I read Prozac Nation about a year ago and by the time I got to the end of it I found myself with a book full of underlined paragraphs. The book was indeed very good, and truly depicted Elizabeth at her most vulnerable state. That being in a void book prozac nation of depression and knowing that the only thing responsible for it was herself. No sooner than finishing the book had my friend book prozac nation pulled out a japanese release of it on DVD. The more I watched the sicker I got. The movie turns Elizabeth's character into a "fated teen", displaying her as if the back of her hand was indefinately attached to her forehead. Simply overdramatic and very annoying. Now dont get me wrong, I book prozac nation love Christina Ricci. I loved her most in book prozac nation The Opposite of Sex, which was just another display of how amazing she can book prozac nation be on screen. It wasn't her performance in Prozac Nation that disappointed me, it was the overdramatics book prozac nation of it all that did. Was this review helpful to you? (Report this) 2 of 2 people found the following book prozac nation review helpful: This movie is education that all need to see, June 8, 2005 Reviewer: Robert K. Mertz (Leesburg, VA USA) - See all my reviews Fear of most was that this film would never be released on DVD. It's such a touchy subject.... and I think many people close their eyes to stuff like this because they don't want to believe that it exsists. Many people suffer with severe depression and this is a Prozac nation.... but so many people out there don't want to take the time to understand what these people are going through, so the comments are always made that only end up hurting the depressed person. I've been in Lizzie's (Ricci) shoes.... more than many can imagine..... book prozac nation and the words said to lizzie by her friends were just what was said to me time and time again.... and they only made things worse.... they didn't understand, thats true -- but they didnt take the time to understand.... and sometimes book prozac nation even made it look book prozac nation like the understood when they really didnt. I think book prozac nation that those people who are really depressed would benefit if the entire world watched this movie. This movie gives an excellent glimpse into book prozac nation what depressed people deal with. But dont let it worry you... the film is entertaining... it's enjoyable to watch but it will get book prozac nation to you at the same time... Ricci is certainly amazing in this film.... one of the best performances by any actress ever.... she IS the character.... she is really into it..... book prozac nation it's phenomenal. Buy this DVD... you need it.... and if you have a loved one in your family that deals with depression or another mental illness, you dont only need it but it's your duty to watch it.... Was this review helpful to you? (Report this) 1 of 2 people found the following review helpful: Amazing Film, Was drawn book prozac nation in by Ricci ., May 2, 2005 Reviewer: Vios "(<Vios>)" (New York) - See all my reviews I was scrolling through my options on my OnDemand starz . I was drawn book prozac nation in by the promise of seeing Ricci in another film. this movie was amazing, i am like in love with Ricci. In ways we can all relate to the caharacter that she played, ive heard that there is a book that this movie was made from book prozac nation but i have not read it. I just might.I am in no doubt that im going to buy this when it comes out on dvd .. Was this review helpful to you? (Report book prozac nation this) 1 of book prozac nation 44 people found the following review helpful: okay look, April 24, 2005 A Kid's Review I never book prozac nation saw this movie,but Christina Ricci rules/rocks so that means this movie is cool. Listen to me i know. Was this review helpful to you? (Report this) See all 14 book prozac nation customer reviews... 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Top of Page Advanced Search | Browse Genres | Top Sellers | New & Future book prozac nation Releases Build Your Collection | Movie book prozac nation Showtimes | Bargain Outlet | Used DVDs Amazon.com book prozac nation Home | Directory of book prozac nation All Stores Our International Sites: Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | Japan | France | China Contact Us | Help | Shopping Cart | Your Account | Sell Items | 1-Click Settings Investor Relations | Press Releases | Join Our Staff Conditions of Use | book prozac nation Privacy Notice © 1996-2005, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates Book Review: Prozac Nation Ms. Wurtzel, book prozac nation I probably wouldn't be writing this if book prozac nation it weren't for a school assignment. Sure, that book prozac nation sounds bad, but book prozac nation I don't mean it that way. Writing this has helped me examine my life, although it's only 18 years short, and realize book prozac nation that I'm a lot better off than I could be.Although book prozac nation I wish you didn't have to endure the pain and mental anguish you did, I am grateful you had the courage to write about it in Prozac Nation: Young and Depressed in America and inform the misled masses about mental illness and its inherent misperceptions.For the last six months I have been in therapy and using Zoloft to eradicate my depression. I'm not a crazy depressed person. I'm usually happy and funny and giggly. But then something just changed. I became quiet and cynical. Sarcasm wasn't just for laughs anymore. It was a way of life. I disliked everything, but the funny thing was, I didn't notice. My best book prozac nation friend and I were together every day, and she noticed that I was different."Alexa, what's wrong?" She would ask, or plead."Nothing, I'm great!" I'd say, not because I believed it, but because that is what book prozac nation I had to say. But the more she asked, the more I resisted and one time I mumbled, almost uncontrollably, "... but I wish I were dead." And book prozac nation she heard me. And this is why I went into therapy, because I love my best friend enough to listen to her. And I know she cared enough book prozac nation about me to tell me I needed help.En route to mental wellness, I made a couple of wrong turns. A doctor left book prozac nation me on 25 milligrams of Zoloft for a couple months. That is equivalent to one grain of salt in a gallon of water. I was happy for an hour, maybe. But I got book prozac nation a new doctor, because I book prozac nation had to be well. I didn't want to spend the rest of my life, however long or short it was, wondering when book prozac nation or if I would off myself. This is when I picked up Prozac Nation at a bookstore. It caught book prozac nation my eye, and I had a couple spare dollars. It was like salvation.Sure, that sounds cheesy - salvation - but if I had not read your memoir, I perhaps wouldn't have wanted to go on talking to an easily excited therapist who called my mother every time I sounded remotely self-abusive, or bothered to find a doctor who got me on the right dosage. I was acquainted with techniques of hurting oneself, but I was afraid to book prozac nation try. I am not sure whether it was fear that prevented me, or common sense, but reading about your experiences made feel that I could stay away from razors.Now, I'm almost better. My doctor says that I'm in "remission" book prozac nation and in nine months I'll be weaned off book prozac nation medications and left to fend for myself. I can't wait! But a new problem has evolved - the friend who noticed my problems now has her own that she book prozac nation stubbornly refuses to get help for. Counseling is as book prozac nation far as book prozac nation I have book prozac nation gotten book prozac nation her. Her mother is against medication. I've tried book prozac nation to explain that it's not a moral failing, it's not her fault that her brain is having a couple of off days in the book prozac nation chemistry department. But no luck. Prozac Nation gave me courage not to hurt myself, because I was not alone. Your book was so real and so dark that book prozac nation I felt the pain of the cuts, the sadness in the alcohol and the paranoia, even among book prozac nation close friends. I didn't have to cut, or drink, or be afraid, or cry anymore, or do a line of coke on an old Pogues CD; you did it for me. You stopped me in your experiences. You saved a life, by living yours.I'm going to send my friend a care package of books (Prozac Nation being the most important) that will help her realize she is not alone and that there is help, even if it doesn't come from me. I hope I can save her, just as you saved me. I can't thank you enough for having the courage to tell the brutal truth about depression.Thank you, Elizabeth. You are a vital part of this human race. If you hadn't been here first, I wouldn't be here now. The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis Review by Ashley book prozac nation G., New City, NY A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess Review by Scott S., Stroudsburg, PA Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy Review by Hibah H., Wichita, KS Amazon.com Teen Ink - PO Box book prozac nation 30, Newton, MA 02461 - book prozac nation (617) 964-6800 - editor@teenink.comPublished by The Young Authors Foundation, Inc. - A 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Copyright 2005 by Teen book prozac nation Ink, The 21st Century and The Young Authors Foundation, Inc. All rights reserved. This publication book prozac nation may not be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or book prozac nation by any means, without the written permission of the publisher: The Young Authors Foundation, Inc. Privacy Policy Site Index ELIZABETH WURTZEL: 'Prozac Nation' - BETWEEN THE LINES SHE book prozac nation has been compared to Sylvia Plath on more than one occasion, and when Elizabeth Wurtzel first released her debut memoirs, Prozac Nation , in 1994, she was unprepared for the flood of reaction that lapped at her feet. While critics termed her book prozac nation book "controversial", victims of depression thanked her for her brutally honesty and harrowing insight into the literary depths of despair that she book prozac nation had penned. Wurtzel has the agility and pace of a nosebleed techno beat, and an appetite for nightmare and psychosis that even our most prolific fictional horror genius' would be hard pressed to match. This damaged, yet courageous young woman belongs in a class of her own as she wades through book prozac nation fear and loathing to the light at the end of her own tunnel. The opening pages of Prozac Nation reads like a nihilists diary; it is filled with vulnerability, book prozac nation fear, the encroachment and book prozac nation scent of death and the realisation that for Wurtzel "life was one long distraction from the inevitable." Even book prozac nation at the tender age of 12, this loner of a child had pinpointed the moment when the crisis really began. December 5, 1978 is the book prozac nation date that this avatar of book prozac nation depression and damage will remember to her dying day. Even during her pubescent school years, Wurtzel stood out from the crowd. While the other girls in her year and potential prom queens primed themselves for dates, book prozac nation Wurtzel would book prozac nation sit and listen to the sonic angst of Lou Reed and The Velvet Underground while practising self-mutilation. With a razor blade in her hand book prozac nation she would carve the flesh on her legs "I did not, you see, want to kill myself. Not at that time, anyway," she writes. "But I wanted to know that if need be, if the desperation got so book prozac nation terribly bad, I could inflict harm on my body. And I could. Knowing this gave me book prozac nation a sense of peace and power, so I started cutting up my legs all the time. Hiding the scars from my mother became book prozac nation a sport of its own. I collected razor blades, I bought a Swiss army knife, I became fascinated with the different kinds of book prozac nation sharp edges and the different cutting sensations they produced. I tried out different shapes - book prozac nation squares, triangles, pentagons, book prozac nation even an awkwardly carved heart, with a stab wound at its centre, wanting to see if it hurt the way a real broken heart could hurt. I was amazed and pleased to find that it didn't." In later years, Wurtzel consumes drugs (ecstasy), attempts suicide, and in the remaining period, hides away from the world, safe in her peaceful slumber. Harvard, one of the most prestigious universities in the country, where Wurtzel book prozac nation studied, failed to cure her malaise. The abandonment and occasional reappearance of her father, also pushes her book prozac nation towards suicide again. At 19 years old, Wurtzel flees to the warmth of Dallas, Texas "home of brawny brothers and silicon sisters". book prozac nation Scooping the Rolling Stone College Journalism award for book prozac nation an essay she wrote on Lou Reed and roaming through the Deep Ellum book prozac nation Warehouse District watching Edie Brickell and The New Bohemians perform live, she appears book prozac nation on the mend, but it is only a matter of time before the darkness of depression takes hold once again. A stint at the Morning News only results in her mainlining speed, amphetamines and alcohol, and a trip to London is only a book prozac nation precursor for further suicide book prozac nation attempts. Dark chapter upon dark chapter and book prozac nation through shards of fatalism and cultural chaos, Wurtzel tries to book prozac nation make sense of the knife edge that she is walking. She envokes memories of Marianne Faithfull and a night spent with The Butthole Surfers. Elizabeth Wurtzel is courage book prozac nation incarnate, and for anybody who is searching for book prozac nation an answer to a nation's dependency book prozac nation on Prozac, and its continuing battle with depression, Prozac Nation will be an book prozac nation emblematic torch to light their way. Sylvia Plath has indeed found an apprentice in book prozac nation this brave young author. | BACK | Metapsychology Online Book Reviews - Prozac Nation book prozac nation | Browse subjects | Book search | Feedback Search or Browse over 2700 reviews in Metapsychology: Choose One Recent Reviews book prozac nation Addiction/Alcoholism Anxiety/Panic Art and Photography Audio Books Childhood Disorders Children and Teens Client Reviews Depression Ethics Fiction General Genetics Grief/Loss Medications Memoirs Mental Health Movies Personality Disorders Philosophical Psychoanalysis Psychology Psychotherapy Relationships Religion Self Help Sexuality Search Now: Send book prozac nation this page to a friend:Recipient's Email: Sender's Email: Welcome to MHN's unique book review site Metapsychology. We feature in-depth reviews of a wide range of books written by our reviewers from many backgrounds and perspectives. We update our front page frequently and add more book prozac nation than forty new reviews each month. Our editor is Christian Perring, PhD. To contact him, use the form available here. Can't book prozac nation remember our URL? Access our reviews directly via 'metapsychology.net' Newly released in paperback: Name All the Animals: A Memoir by Alison Smith The Man in My Basement: A Novel by Walter book prozac nation Mosley Love in the Asylum: A Novel by Lisa Carey book prozac nation How Images Think by Ron Burnett Olive's Ocean by Kevin Henkes Therapy for the Sane: How Philosophy Can Change Your Life by Lou Marinoff Self-Taught & Outsider Art: The Anthony Petullo Collection book prozac nation by Anthony Petullo Angelhead: My Brother's Descent into Madness by Greg Bottoms Dress Your Family in Corduroy book prozac nation and Denim by David Sedaris We receive a commission for books purchased through this site, which helps fund future reviews & Metapsychology's continuing growth. We thank you for your support! Join our e-mail list!: Metapsychology New Review Announcements: Sent out monthly, these announcements list our recent reviews. To subscribe, click book prozac nation here. Interested in becoming a book reviewer for Metapsychology? Currently, we especially need thoughtful reviewers for books in teen fiction, self-help and popular psychology. To apply, write to our editor. Prozac NationYoung and Depressed in Americaby Elizabeth WurtzelRiverhead Books, 1994Review by Christian Perring, Ph.D. on May 13th 2002Prozac Nation tells the story of Elizabeth Wurtzel’s childhood, her troubled book prozac nation relationship with her father who left her and her mother and refused to accept his responsibilities to his family, her move to Harvard, and her mental decline leading to several stays in hospital and a suicide attempt. Finally, after trying many different psychotherapists, book prozac nation psychiatrists, and medications, she tries Prozac and it helps her book prozac nation rise above her despair. In the Afterword to Prozac Nation, written for the paperback edition in 1995, book prozac nation Wurtzel asks the question that will book prozac nation have occurred to many of book prozac nation her readers. What on earth makes a woman in her mid-twenties, thus far of no particular outstanding accomplishment, have the audacity to write book prozac nation a three-hundred page volume about her own life and nothing more, as if anyone else would actually give a shit? (p. 354) She gives a long answer, the crux of which is: I wanted this book to dare to be completely self-indulgent, unhesitant, and forthright in its telling of what clinical depression feels like: book prozac nation I wanted so very badly to write a book that felt as bad as it feels to feel this bad, to feel depressed. I wanted to be completely true to the experience of depression—to the thing itself, and not to the mitigations of translating it. I wanted to portray myself in the midst of this mental crisis precisely as I was: difficult, demanding, impossible, unsatisfiable, self-centered, self-involved, and above all, self-indulgent. (p. 356) Wurtzel book prozac nation certainly succeeds in her aim to portray herself as capricious and self-preoccupied. Indeed, according to her own description, she seems so impulsive, self-preoccupied, needy in relationships, and manipulative that readers will probably wonder whether depression is indeed Wurtzel’s most basic problem. It’s very tempting to speculate that Wurtzel has book prozac nation just as much claim to a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder as she does to depression. Wurtzel says that her psychiatrists gave her a diagnosis of atypical depression, and DSM-IV-TR tells us that personality disorders may be more common in those with atypical depression. book prozac nation Of course, even if I were a psychiatrist, which I’m not, would be ridiculous to offer a diagnosis based on an autobiography. What is clear, however, is that Wurzel’s goal of telling some general truth about clinical depression is not accomplished. Reading Prozac book prozac nation Nation is a very different experience from reading other memoirs of depression such as Tracy Thompson’s The Beast and Martha Manning’s Undercurrents because Wurtzel manages to provoke such a mixture of conflicting feelings in her reader, while other authors of depression memoirs provoke far more consistent sympathy. By the end book prozac nation of the book, one feels far more sympathy for Wurtzel’s mother and her friends than one does for her. Normally, I count myself as able to identify and empathize with people who suffer from serious mental illnesses, but I have to confess that, given the way she describes herself, book prozac nation unless she has changed dramatically, I’d recommend her friends to run a mile rather than put up with her manipulation. Note that one gets a similar book prozac nation impression from Wurtzel’s second memoir, More, Now, Again, (reviewed in Metapsychology April 2002) in which she becomes addicted to Ritalin and cocaine, and spends most of her time lying and hiding her addiction from her friends, mother and publisher. In Prozac Nation, Wurtzel several times suggests that she was addicted to depression and makes clear that her self-defeating behavior was often willful. What makes it so hard to sympathize with her is that that her problem seems to be her personality, rather than some affliction she has to overcome. To be more precise, Wutzel describes herself sometimes as the agent of book prozac nation her predicament, and other times as the victim of it, and it’s unclear for the reader what reasons there are for book prozac nation these switches. She manipulates people close to her: for instance, she tells calls her therapist at all times of the day and night, and then tells her therapist that if she does not listen to her problems, her (Wurtzel’s) blood will be on her (the therapist’s) hands. Sometimes even her book prozac nation crying seems like a deliberate action. But at other times she feels immobile, and can’t get out of bed. Consider, for example, how she feels after her brief romance with book prozac nation a man called Rafe, during which she was miserable, clingy, and insecure, and she explicitly ignored his request that he spend time away from her, since he needed to be with his family, who had their own needs. I couldn’t move after Rafe left me. Really. I was stuck to my bed like a piece of chewing gum book prozac nation at the bottom of somebody’s shoe, branded with the underside, adhering to someone who didn’t want me, who kept stamping on me but still I wouldn’t move away. (250) Wurtzel’s alternating acceptance and denial of her agency bemuses the reader, and ultimately makes Wurtzel a less credible witness to her own mental states. Far from book prozac nation knowing exactly how it was for Wurtzel, even though it is clear that she was desperately unhappy for most of the time, readers will be confused and exhausted by her narrative. Far from undermining the work, these features are what make book prozac nation Prozac Nation so distinctive, standing book prozac nation out among other memoirs. It is a tour de force, and a powerful evocation of Wurtzel’s experience, although it’s not so clear whether that book prozac nation experience is depression, borderline personality book prozac nation disorder, or some other mental disorder. © 2002 Christian Perring. First Serial Rights. Christian Perring, Ph.D., is Chair of the Philosophy Department at Dowling College, Long Island. He is editor of Metapsychology Online Review. His main research is on philosophical issues in psychiatry. He is especially interested in exploring how philosophers can play a greater role in public life, and he is keen to help foster communication between philosophers, mental health professionals, and the general public. Copyright © CenterSite, LLC, 1995-2005 |