From Library Journal

"West, a psychologist, relates a deeply painful narrative of his battle with dissociative identity disorder (DID). He describes the horrors he endured, both mental and physical, as a child who was grossly abused by his mother, attributing the fragmentation of his adult life to these appalling experiences and telling how his long, happy marriage and family relationships were nearly ruined by the effects of DID. The book is not entirely dark; it provides hope and encouragement to DID victims and suggests how they can be helped through the support and understanding of others. It's also a practical guide for future clinicians, offering insight into a perplexing condition. West concludes with an epilog in which he lays out his theory that abused children can achieve a sense of wholeness through the understanding and acceptance of others and the reinvention of the self. Highly recommended for any public library."

From Publishers Weekly
February 1, 1999

"Unlike Flora Rheta Schreiber’s Sybil, which presented a fairly dispassionate and professional view of mulitple personality disorder, now called dissociative identity disorder (DID), West’s account is an intimate memoir of the pain and frustration he encountered before and after being diagnosed…Illustrations from his journal, in which all alters were allowed to write, and drawings done by his child personalities give weight and detail to West’s account…Readers who must cope with DID or other debilitating mental illnesses, either in themselves or friends and family, will appreciate West’s honesty and insight about the subject."

From Kirkus Reviews
January 15, 1999

"A singular first-person account of the much-debated condition now known as dissociative identity disorder (DID) formerly termed multiple personality disorder…Introductory thumbnail sketches of his 24 alters help the reader to keep straight this extensive cast of characters…Now a would-be novelist, West exercises his fledgling narrative skills here, not only relating his own strange tale briskly, but adopting an all-seeing eye for scenes where he was not present, e.g., his wife at a DID support meeting or with an admirer whose attentions threaten their marriage…For those who found Sybil or The Three Faces of Eve believable and engrossing, this account will be even more so. "
(Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.)

Return to Top Page