My Lobotomy

MY LOBOTOMY: Howard Dully: Crown: 2007: Biography: 288 pages

This is a harrowing tale of a young man who at the age of 12 was given a lobotomy with an ice pick in a doctor's office. This is the story of his life as he remembers it, often a difficult task as he is uncertain how the operation affected his brain and memory. He suffered at the hands of an abusive step-mother and a disconnected father who were convinced by an unscrupulous doctor that a lobotomy would be the best solution to his behavior problems. The author goes on to describe his life since the lobotomy, stints in different youth homes, drug-use, jail, and then his journey up from the bottom. That journey included a college degree, a successful marriage, and now this book. Although his experiences entitle him to bitterness, he has let that go and is able to look dispassionately at his history, and to forgive those who wronged him.

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