In My Blood: Six Generations of Madness and Desire in an American Family

This is, without a doubt, one of the most fascinating books I've ever read. In digging into the past of his own family, John Sedgwick somehow ends up reaching out to anyone who has ever had any kind of struggle with mental or emotional problems. It reads like an exciting novel, and if you're anything like me, you will come to love some of these characters, and will remember them. I first read this book when it came out, and one of the characters (wrong term -- they are real people of course) stuck in my mind, I could not forget him. This led me to read the book again, years later.And when I did I discovered why it had stayed in my mind, as I have some of the same issues that plague the Sedgwick family. Believe me, the beautiful Edie is not the only memorable person in this family. This is a great book. Sedgwick proves himself a wonderful writer, with compassion, depth, and rigorous perception.

I have been fascinated with Edie Sedgwick for many moons now which is why I finally got this book. Having read  Edie: An American Biography  a million, billion times, I know the names of her family members well but knew next to nothing about them. This book did shed some light on their lives to a degree and it certainly shows a pattern of mental issues within the family.The book starts out documenting the life of the family patriarch, Judge Theodore Sedgwick (or the Judge as he is called). I found the chapters dealing with the Judge and his wife Pamela particularly interesting because both are mentioned in Edie. Much is made of the Judge's accomplishments but Pamela is mentioned only briefly as having "gone mad". The author did a fine job of piecing all the history together and even included correspondence between the Judge and Pamela and it is clear to see that she was unraveling before everyone's eyes. Her pleas to him to return home are heartbreaking. Even more heartbreaking is her decline and eventual suicide. The book goes on to document the Judge's children lives. One of the sons, Harry, also struggled with mental issues and ended up institutionalized for a time. Others stumbled and had issues but most did fairly well.While I did buy this book to learn more about Edie, I ended up being more interested in the author's father, Minturn Sedgwick. He too is in the Edie book but, naturally, he doesn't talk about himself. It was interesting to finally learn about his marriages, his life and how he dealt with Francis Sedgwick (Edie's father). It is fairly well documented that Francis Sedgwick had issues galore and this book does explore them. Francis' blind hatred for his stepmother, Gabriella, is shocking as is his anger over Groton (THE Sedgwick school) accepting a black student. One wonders how or why anyone dealt with him as he seems thoroughly unpleasant and simply exhausting.The book does have some low points, however. As mentioned, I have read the Edie book loads of time. I know it like I know the back of my hand. I was a bit disappointed when I read the chapters about Edie because it is basically the Edie book reworked. The author does in admit to using it as a source which is fine, but I was hoping he would have had access to new information or at least a new interview or two. He also got the date of Alice Sedgwick's (Edie's mother) death wrong. She died in 1988, but the author says she died in 1983. She also reportedly committed suicide. I was interested to see if the topic would be addressed but the author does not deal with this (perhaps because she married into the family). I also feel the book kind of puttered out towards the end. I know the point of book was to explore the mental issues of the Sedgwicks because the author was dealing with his own issues, but his own story kind of falls flat.Despite the low points, this book is compelling. I read the majority of it the day it arrived and have been re-reading it since. The author did a fairly good job of researching and bringing his ancestors to life. I also think John Sedgwick did a fantastic job with revealing the more unpleasant aspects of his family. Most people, especially ones from prominent families, wouldn't dare expose such things and I believe the author should be commended for it.

What you have here is a full genealogical tour of the Sedgwick family, from the boat that brought them to the shores of our American land of opportunity, to the wild diaspora of Sedgwicks into many careers and fates. These Sedgwicks, one after another, have bared the weight of Theodore, the federalist patriarch who built the "big house" in Stockbridge, MA, along with the insanity of his second wife, Pamela Dwight, who suffered from horrendous mental illness, mostly in the throes of depression. Kyra Sedgwick, the wonderful actress from The Closer has been quoted saying, "There's a lot of mental illness in my family." She should have added, "And it's been going on for centuries. We're exhausted." But this is the thing! They are not exhausted. What is uplifting in this tale is how so many of these Sedgwicks, even the ones given over to bi-polar disease, or general mania, or addiction, have succeeded, triumphantly, to make their marks in the arts, letters and business. John Sedgwick does not hide the family light under any bashful bushel: these are chosen WASPS who are to the Groton-Harvard-Manor born. But so many of them, well, simply went crazy, fell apart, landed in asylums, and who knows what else! The story begins with the author in a state of incredible despair and you do wonder when he will bring himself back to the story to explain what happened to him. He doesn't exactly get back to it. This makes sense. It took him a long time to write this book. Years of research. In the process, much changed. It is difficult for a writer to hang onto that original thrust that begins any project. As in life, there are detours galore that can bring a man far from his destination. But as no Sedgwick I have ever heard quoted has said, "Whatevs!" The ride there is quite informative and peeking into this sometimes brilliant, sometimes insane family is just, somehow, a cool/fun ride. One of the main non-breathing points of the story is the family pie, the graveyard where the dead Sedgwicks are buried in generational concentric circles. It is revisited, throughout, in the physical and the intellectual-emotional realm. It made this reader feel like it would be nice to know where he was going to land once everything was all over on this dirty earthly plain. Also, it gives a reason for anyone to visit Stockbridge, to take a visual bite out of this ambitious-crazy filled pie. Read IN MY BLOOD for fun and information. Then, head to the many other great books written by this articulate, sensitive, intelligent writer who, like the Sedgwicks before him, just makes the United States a bit more enjoyable to live in.

It's a LOT of info. to take in. Maybe it's the tiny print, but I think it will take my time reading this. Amazingly honest, and very detailed. The author did an amazing job with his genealogy research, and is honest about his own struggles. I thought there might be some photos, but there were none. The family tree that is included is astounding! It's a sad, yet very real story.

Interesting read.