Tom Powers / Michigan in Books Review of U.P. Reader #4

Review by Tom Powers, Michigan in Books

U. P. Reader, 4th Volume
Mikel B.Classen, editor

U.P. Reader Volume #4 released April 2020

This fourth annual showcase of the best short works by U. P. writers once again entertains, enlightens, and most importantly raises the awareness of the literary talent to be found north of Big Mac. The 45 pieces included here include U.P. history, poetry, short stories, reportage, humor, biographical essays, a U.P. notable booklist, and section of award-winning essays by young people.

I was delighted to see Larry Buege has once again climbed aboard his literary hobby horse and describes a homeowner’s confrontation with an infestation of the Amorous Spotted Slug (A.S.S.). Larry has been writing about A.S.S. in earlier U. P. Readers in a noble but fruitless effort to make these gastropod mollusks Michigan’s state slug. I would also like to encourage Buege to write about the whale sightings in Lake Superior and take up the equally important cause of naming a Michigan state whale.

There is a transcript of a talk by Karen Dionne, author of the “Marsh King’s Daughter,” in which she recounts her journey from being a moderately successful author of two environmental thrillers to the wildly popular author of the above book. Her talk also gives tips to would-be novelists and what she learned about writing that led to being a bestselling author. The Whiteout by Rich Hill tells the dramatic story of his friend Allen who went ice fishing on the great lake and couldn’t find his way to shore when a whiteout struck and died.

A most unexpected and fascinating piece by Deborah K. Frontiera tells the story of the formation of U. P. sandstone, most of which is told from the stone’s point of view. Over the course of a million years and tons of pressure, the deposited sand became sandstone. In the 1800s it was mined and shipped to Calumet where the stone was used to build St. Anne’s church. The sandstone has seen the church sold and turned into an antique shop. A few years later the building was bought with donations and with a state grant was beautifully restored and became the Keweenaw Heritage Center. Other works describe shipwrecks and heroic rescues, a tribute to a father, the descent of a mother into dementia, and the story of a U.P. deer camp.

There is a lot to enjoy in this fine collection of short works by a surprising abundance of very good writers found north of the Straits of Mackinac.

U.P. Reader: Bringing Upper Michigan Literature to the World, 4th Volume, Mikel B Classen editor. Upper Peninsula Publishers and Authors Association, 2020, $16.95 pb.

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Mental Health Survival Kit and Withdrawal from Psychiatric Drugs

978-1-61599-619-3
$22.95
A User's Guide
In stock
1
Product Details
UPC: 978-1615996193
Brand: Institute for Scientific Freedom
Binding: Paperback
Edition: 1st
Author: Peter C Gøtzsche
Pages: 222
Publication Date: 12/01/2021

This book can help people with mental health issues to survive and return to a normal life. Citizens believe, and the science shows, that medications for depression and psychosis and admission to a psychiatric ward are more often harmful than beneficial. Yet most patients take psychiatric drugs for years. Doctors have made hundreds of millions of patients dependent on psychiatric drugs without knowing how to help them taper off the drugs safely, which can be very difficult. The book explains in detail how harmful psychiatric drugs are and gives detailed advice about how to come off them.

You will learn:

  • why you should not see a psychiatrist if you have a mental health issue
  • that psychiatric drugs are addictive
  • that the biggest lie in psychiatry is the one about a chemical imbalance being the cause of psychiatric disorders
  • that psychiatric diagnoses are unscientific and that doctors disagree widely when making diagnoses
  • that psychiatric drugs can lead to permanent brain damage
  • that psychiatric drugs should never be stopped abruptly because withdrawal reactions can be dangerous
  • why psychotherapy and other psychosocial interventions should be preferred over drugs
  • why you should generally not believe what doctors tell you about psychiatric disorders and their treatment
  • why volunteers have found the book so important that they have translated it into French, Portuguese and Spanish

"Peter Gøtzsche's new book meets patients' need to get tools on how to deal with psychoactive drugs and, above all, not to start them. Gøtzsche is very clear about the role of GPs in medicalizing grief, misfortune, opposition, and bad luck." -- Dick Bijl, former GP, epidemiologist, and current president of the International Society of Drug Bulletins.

"Peter Gøtzsche has written a very personal account of his battle to get the institution of psychiatry to accept that its drugs are not the 'magic pills' they are made out to be. Every medical practitioner who prescribes them, and every person who takes them, should read this book and be warned." -- Niall McLaren, author of Anxiety: The Inside Story

"Peter Gøtzsche wrote this book to help people with mental health problems survive and return to a normal life. His book explains in detail how psychiatric drugs are harmful and people are told how they can safely withdraw from them." -- Fernando Freitas, PhD, Psychologist, National School of Public Health (ENSP/FIOCRUZ). Co-editor of Mad in Brazil

Learn more at www.scientificfreedom.dk

From the Institute for Scientific Freedom

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