Mad Woman: Trauma or Curse?

Renee shares some of her favorite mental health memoirs, and Mariquita interviews author Anamilia Salgado-Reyes, all in the pursuit of an answer to the age-old question: Are we crazy or just traumatized?

Renee’s Reading Nook: A Mental Health Memoir (0:21)

Instead of a long review of one book, Renee shares six mental health memoirs that have impressed her. From C-PTSD to depression, antisocial personality to anxiety disorders, this section covers a lot.

You Will Make Mistakes: Finding Home and Family in the Name My Mother Cursed Me (12:19)

Mariquita spoke with author Anamely Salgado Reyes about her debut novel, My Mother Cursed My Name. They discussed the legacy of trauma left by a family that did its best, what it means to feel isolated, how to define home, and how exactly to break a curse.

Books and resources mentioned:

Brainfire by Susannah Cahalan

What My Bones Know by Stephanie Foo

A Flat Place by Noreen Masud

Women’s Nonfiction Prize shortlist – Podcast with Sally and Renee

Death’s Valedictorian by Heather B. Armstrong

“Sociopath” by Patrick Gagne

Allie Brosh’s solutions and other questions

My Mother Cursed My Name by Anamely Salgado Reyes

Support the hosts and guests of this show:

Follow Renee: Instagram // The StoryGraph

Follow Ladybug: Instagram

Follow Anamely: Instagram

Today’s show is sponsored by Gretchen Sisson Abandonment: The Politics of Adoption and the Privilege of American Motherhood. Your support helps keep feminist media independent!

Get our weekly roundup of blog and podcast content delivered straight to your inbox every Friday here.

Check out our online community here!

This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral lands of the Dakota Nation.

Original music by @Agate Rose

To learn more about the Feminist Book Club, visit our website website, Subscribe to our emailschoose our Bookshop.org RecommendationsAnd follow us Instagram, Tik Tok, Facebook, Pinterest.