Strange Places

by Will Elliott

A darkly humorous, insightful and searingly honest first-hand account of a journey through schizophrenia from a prodigiously talented writer. In 2006 Will Elliott had his first novel the Pilo Family Circus published. It won five literary awards and great acclaim, nationally and internationally. What nobody knew was that the young author of that work of terrifying fantasy had recently recovered from a psychotic episode and been diagnosed as schizophrenic.Strange Places takes us on a journey through psychosis and out the other side, documenting the delusions, the drugs and the insights that recovery brings. A beautifully written memoir of a harrowing - and enlightening - time, from one of Australia's best young writers.

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction, Mental Health, Psychology, Biography, Autobiography, Mental Illness

185 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Will Elliott (born 1979) is an Australian fiction writer who lives in Brisbane, Queensland.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Petra X · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is certainly strange - watching the disintegration of a young man's personality is painful. I've known three people this has happened to, and shared a house with one. I'm all for the legalisation of marijuana but in the author's case and two of the three people I knew who became schizophrenic, marijuana was certainly a huge factor, although whether it was part of the problem, became part of a perceived solution as in self-medication or was no more significant than eating a lot of chocolate or drinking coffee, I don't know.

Its a difficult book to critique, it would be like critising someone's diary, I can't do that. The book is being inside Will's sometimes extremely exotic and psychotic florid world of schizophrenia. To critique it would be like giving a written appraisal of Mongolia when I'd only ever read a book about the country.

Books about madness and are always interesting to me. Just as we are supposed to share 97% of our DNA with apes, but we are nothing like alike, in the same way that crucial 3% makes us utterly unlike the insane. But with apes we can only watch and surmise what they think, with those whose see things from a different frame of reference, we can ask them and they can tell us. Will writes very well, beautifully-turned phrases describe his inner worlds and anguish. It was definitely an intesting reading experience. Up, that is, until the last few chapters which have nothing to do with schizophrenia and are all about Will Elliot making it as an author and are thoroughly boring and reduced a four-star book to three and a half stars.

Read 19 July 2010. Reread 2015.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book in attempt to understand a close friends illness with schizophrenia. I found it to be a very similar account to what my friend went through, the similarities were almost uncanny. I would recommend it to anyone trying to develope a better understanding of an otherwise very difficult condition to come to terms with.

As a close friend or family member you often seem to find yourself being well entwined in the delusional conspiracies of people suffering from this condition. It is absoloutly impossible to try and talk someone around thier perceptions and only seems to end up supporting and even fueling thier ideas. It is obviously a very bizzare and intense situation for the sufferer to experience, and is virtually unfathomable to the average person.

Having read alot of drug addiction memiors, I wanted to read something that was more of a tour of a mind tortured purely by its own invention rather than another woe is me account of self inflicted suffering. Elliotts account seems very honest, accurate, and detailed. Although he suffers from drug enduced psychosis onset by marijuana use, as my friend did, it is more of an account of the condition itself rather than a say no to drugs redemption story.

Although I find Elliotts writing style very bland, (I really struggled through what little I read of Pilos Family Circus) he still manages to pull off a decent account of a subject matter that is relatively uncovered in biographical literature, and as a result it is a worthy read.

[Rachel Mete · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️

I found this a hard read because the author generously takes you into his raw experiences of psychosis and recovery. I especially appreciated his descriptions of delusions, medication side-effects, negative symptoms and being in hospital.

An unexpected (for me) part of this memoir was the authors descriptions of becoming a writer, and the habits and time he had to put in place to realize his dream of becoming published. I found this particularly interesting, especially when juxtaposed with his recovery from psychosis.

I recommend this book - it is deep & reflective, holding a space that doesn’t sensationalize mental illness. It instead reminds the reader that mental illness can happen to any of us, and we never truly know what people around us are going through unless we ask and listen.

[Shelleyrae at Book'd Out · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting account of psychosis and how it develops and shapes a young man and his family. It is suc a rare perspective so in that instance it is compelling reading, however that same honesty can be a bit dry. I'd recomend to anyone who knows someone or does suffer from similar mental illness.

[Pewterbreath · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank godalmighty Elliot doesn't succumb to the tropes that tend to litter books about mental illness. He writes matter-of-factly, allowing us to see schizophrenia from within, without it turning into a series of self-help cliches. It's a book of finding stability rather than salvation, and for those of us who suffer mental illness that is the ultimate goal. I admire how well-written this is, showing disorder without the writing becoming disordered; showing despair rather than wallowing in it. It's the sort of thing that is much harder to get right than it seems. A worthy memoir.

[Johanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can only imagine how hard writing this book would have been. Hell, even surviving long enough to write this book is described as a struggle. I was so impressed by this book and the author’s candid portrayal of how he came to write this book, all I can do is to recommend that people read it.

Will Elliot, now a prominent Australian author, details his life before becoming a writer and through the onset of a life-long diagnosis of schizophrenia. The terror he feels when he realises that ‘they’ are watching him through hidden devices, and that the TV and radio have taken on new communicative powers in the form of hidden messages only he can decipher, is all documented through Will’s paranoid and heightened senses. The drug haze and depression that follows the heavy medication is scarcely described as being better than the periods of fanatical paranoia. The descriptions provided of Will’s periods of psychosis are shocking and boarder on unbelievable. At times Will’s life reads more like a horror novel than reality.

This is a very honest book about living with schizophrenia and becoming a writer. There is no romance, and no quick-fix in which the author miraculously recovers and shares his success with the world. Years are spent in depression, paranoia, and a mixture of both. I really cannot describe what a well-written and fascinating account of a young, emerging writer (who happens to be schizophrenic) Strange Places really is. Read it and decide for yourself.

[Erin Gray · Rating 2 out of 5]

Written by a young author who is a diagnosed schizophrenic and has been hospitalized several times after psychotic episodes. Part memoir, part diary, Elliott does his best to tell what he remembers of his reality including paranoia, delusions, visions, hallucinations, and suicidal tendencies. The peak inside this madness was raw and fascinating, and there is some interesting insight about treatment and the effects of pharmaceuticals. Thankfully, Elliott received treatment (and continues to). Although, Elliott never physically harms anyone else, this book shows the very real possibility for a delusional schizophrenic to become violent. Even though the subject matter was interesting, the book was just alright to me.

[Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very impressive book. I read Will Elliots first novel 'The Pilo Family Circus' and adored it so I was fascinated to learn of his schizophrenia and how he deals with it. This is an open, honest look at mental illness from a succeeded perspective. The book is intensely readable. We need more books like this so we can understand more about mental illness and see some stigmas removed.

[Jes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mag-f**ing-nificent. I had never heard of Will Elliott before I came across this book and I honestly don't understand why not. His writing style is so easy to read and the way he explains everything is just so unique and wonderful. I definitely think he is a wonderful writer and should have alot more praise.

[Initially NO · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is an engaging memoir, but fails to say what needs to be said. The best parts are the descriptions of times spent in trance states. The dull parts are the psychiatrisms Elliot subscribes to somewhat.

[Robyn Givney · Rating 4 out of 5]

very honest and to the point telling of the life leading up to his finding out he is a paranoid schizophrenic. very informative and a great view into the mind of people with this condition.

[Pisces · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nice cover but INEFFECTIVE at holding my attention for long. Needs a better ratio of sanity/insanity... if you know what I mean! ;-)

[Chantelle Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read!! Allows you to enter a mind of a schizophrenic, and envision what the world is like through their eyes. Very interesting!!