American Breakdown

April 1, 2023
A writer and social worker charts her harrowing descent into mysterious physical illness. What is now more popularly known as chronic fatigue syndrome was a complete anomaly to Lunden when, in 1989, at age 21, she became ill six months after relocating from Canada to Maine. Her symptoms included lassitude, exhaustion, headaches, and deep depression. A mononucleosis diagnosis brought little relief since her chronic weakness persisted so intensely that she could barely hold a pen to write in her diary. In 1988, the "wicked flu that never went away" received its official name: chronic fatigue syndrome. With limited resources for regular physician visits, the author became disheartened and even suicidal. At 26, Lunden discovered the biography of mid-19th-century diarist and social critic Alice James, sister to novelist Henry and psychologist William, who developed a fatigue that crippled most of her bodily systems. Lunden drew immediate correlations between James' debilitating medical ailment--first misclassified as hysteria, then neurasthenia--and her own ordeal. With a detective's persistence, the author began intensive research into potential causes, including chemical toxins and stress emergencies. She dug into the work of immunologists, toxicologists, and infectious disease specialists, past to present, who studied CFS, and her investigation broadened her perspective about not only overlooked medical ailments, but the current problematic state of American health care in general. Throughout, Lunden deftly interweaves her story with that of James. After producing such an exhaustive survey of disease and disorder, the author's cynicism is understandable, and she criticizes physicians who dismissed her with depression, just as James' doctors had mischaracterized her symptoms as female hysteria. Lunden shines a sobering light on CFS, its evolution and misinterpretations, and its increasing prevalence within the general population. Blending theory and memoir, the author personifies her struggle for wellness and its associated costs and consequences. An alarming chronicle of catastrophic chronic illness and a passionate plea for health care reform.

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Starred review from April 15, 2023
The woman who brought Jennifer Lunden back to life was diarist Alice James, the sister of two famous brothers, William, the psychologist, and Henry, the author. Lunden was 26 in 1994 when she first read a biography of Alice; she had been sick for five years. She was curious about Alice James and her condition because they had something in common, "We'd both been felled by a mysterious fatigue." The Alice James bio, Lunden writes, became her "treasure" as well as "my company, my work, my healing." This is both a tribute to Alice James and her resiliency and a memoir of how Lunden learned to cope with her situation. Why was Alice sick? Why was Lunden sick? James' doctors called her illness neurasthenia. When Lunden had similar devastating fatigue, she was told she had mononucleosis and that it would pass. But it didn't. Eventually, she was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome and multiple chemical sensitivity, two severe illnesses that have usually been associated with women and not taken seriously for years. This is an important book not only about perseverance and determination but also about practical things (such as paying for medical bills one can't afford), and especially about gender bias in health care.

COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.