Making God Laugh: A Memoir of Psychiatry, Dublin, and the Electric Chair

by R.C. Goodwin

"On a bright June day in the late 1980s, I found myself strapped into an electric chair." So begins R.C. Goodwin's captivating memoir, which encompasses his life from growing up in the Midwest during the 1950s to his ivy-league foray at Yale, majoring in history, and on to studying medicine in Dublin. Returning to the U.S., he undertook a psychiatric career despite initial misgivings about the specialty. Practicing psychiatry in the suburbs, prisons, and at a major university, he embarked upon a journey in which his patients included corporate executives and serial killers, teenagers and centenarians, alcoholics and drug addicts, and those addicted to online pornography. We learn something of the side trips in this journey-the joy, pain, humor, frustration, angst, and unending surprises along the way-and how all this affected his personal life as he dealt with the same universal issues his patients try to deal with.

280 pages, Paperback

Published December 13, 2025

About the author

R.C. Goodwin has had 13 short stories published; 3 have won writing contests and 3 others were included in anthologies. His previous books are a prison-based collection of short stories, The STEPHEN HAWKING DEATH ROW FAN CLUB, and a novel, MODEL CHILD. His most recent book is memoir, MAKING GOD LAUGH. The title comes from a proverb: Do you know how to make God laugh? Tell Him your plans. His day job is psychiatry.

Reviews

[Cameron Ruiz · Rating 4 out of 5]

For someone who thought a memoir of his life would be boring, R.C Goodwin sure knows how to hook a reader right from the get-go. Despite not reaching huge fame or wealth, Goodwin has led a vastly interesting life so far, and writes about it with a wry sense of humor that will make readers laugh out loud. I haven't read his other published works yet, but I look forward to doing so. Making God Laugh caused me to take a look at my own life, and what changes I should make to reach the future I desire. I highly recommend this book.