An award-winning memoir and instant New York Times bestseller that goes far beyond its riveting medical mystery, Brain on Fire is the powerful account of one woman’s struggle to recapture her identity. When twenty-four-year-old Susannah Cahalan woke up alone in a hospital room, strapped to her bed and unable to move or speak, she had no memory of how she’d gotten there. Days earlier, she had been on the threshold of a new, adult life: at the beginning of her first serious relationship and a promising career at a major New York newspaper. Now she was labeled violent, psychotic, a flight risk. What happened?

In a swift and breathtaking narrative, Susannah tells the astonishing true story of her descent into madness, her family’s inspiring faith in her, and the lifesaving diagnosis that nearly didn’t happen. “A fascinating look at the disease that . . . could have cost this vibrant, vital young woman her life” (People), Brain on Fire is an unforgettable exploration of memory and identity, faith and love, and a profoundly compelling tale of survival and perseverance that is destined to become a classic.


本書為回憶錄，除獲大獎肯定之外，甫上市便成為《紐約時報》暢銷書。除了談及有趣的醫學秘辛之外，本書也描述了作者努力重拾自我的故事。當年，蘇珊娜‧卡賀蘭才 24 歲，她獨自在病房醒來，卻發現自己被綁在病床上，發不出聲音，身體也動不了，更記不得自己為何會在醫院。幾天前，她才剛迎接她的新生活：她開始認真談一段戀愛而且在紐約報業還有前程似錦的事業。而今人們卻說她患精神病，有暴力傾向，很可能會逃離病房。到底發生什麼事？　　

蘇珊娜以緊張刺激的節奏描述這段驚人的真實故事：她的精神病發作、家人對她不離不棄、奇蹟般的診斷救了她一命。《時人雜誌》：「這種病本來會讓精力充沛的蘇珊娜喪命，而她卻用非凡的眼光去看待這種病。」本書探索記憶和身分、信仰與愛的方式令人印象深刻，這是本扣人心弦的書，訴說了蘇珊娜在困境中努力求生的故事，絕對會成為經典之作。