Overview

Anna Lyndsey was living a normal life. She enjoyed her job; she was ambitious; she was falling in love. Then the unthinkable happened. It began with a burning sensation on her face when she was exposed to computer screens and fluorescent lighting. Then the burning spread and the problematic light sources proliferated. Now her extreme sensitivity to light in all forms means she must spend much of her life in total darkness. During the best times, she can venture cautiously outside at dusk and dawn, avoiding high-strength streetlamps. During the worst, she must spend months in a darkened room, listening to audiobooks, inventing word-games and fighting to keep despair at bay. Told with great beauty, humour and honesty, Girl in the Dark is the astonishing and uplifting account of Anna's descent into the depths of her extraordinary illness. It is the story of how, through her determination to make her impossible life possible and with the love of those around her, she has managed to find light in even the darkest of places.

Full Product Details

9781101890028

Table of Contents

Reviews

Absolutely stunning ... A gorgeous writer of rare honesty and wit. Boston Globe Melodic, penetrating... [ Girl in the Dark ] reveals the quiet, ingenious consciousness of a poet. Anna Lyndsey is both close observer and philosopher, capable of describing her world and also of pondering what it signifies. The New York Times Book Review What stays with the reader is[Lyndsey's] gutsiness, her imagination and fortitude. She doesn t give up, but keeps looking for ways to stay sharp. Minneapolis Star Tribune [ Girl in the Dark ] sparkles with dark humour and wonder at the world beautifully affecting A tribute to the power of humanity, generosity and endurance, Girl in the Dark is incredibly powerful stuff. The Guardian An extraordinary memoir Girl In The Dark is beautifully written. The author s intelligence shines on every page, and her will to survive (despite those black thoughts in her dark room) is inspiring. Daily Mail Deeply affecting ... Working gingerly with the array of metaphors that emerge from darkness and offering small, telling details, Lyndsey achieves a powerful assertion of self against the eclipse of all that she used to hold dear in the realm of light. Publishers Weekly The premise of Girl in the Dark seems lifted out of a Gothic novel: a woman whose flesh is burned by light is confined to a dark box of a room. But this story is so much more than a medical mystery or a nightmarishly true tale. I read this book, a memoir that reads like an epic poem, pen in hand, feverishly underlining sentence after sentence. Yes, life is suffering, but in the end, as Anna Lyndsey so aptly puts it, Words are wonderful. This book is a gift, a testament to the power of art as a saving grace. Susannah Cahalan, author of the New York Times -bestselling Brain on Fire In this astonishing memoir Anna Lyndsey takes us into the world of a rare and shocking illness, and we emerge awed by a shining love story. Anna writes with such honesty and grace and mischief about how her condition forces her to retreat into blackness yet we see that thisnew space she so bravely creates for herself is suffused with light. Sonali Deraniyagala, author of Wave, winner of the PEN/Ackerly Prize and finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award It takes courage to heal, to step outside and want to feel the full magnificence of the sun. Taking that journey with a writer of such rare gifts as Anna Lyndsey is pure pleasure. Christa Parravani, author of Her

Melodic, penetrating ... [ Girl in the Dark ] reveals the quiet, ingenious consciousness of a poet. Anna Lyndsey is both close observer and philosopher, capable of describing her world and also of pondering what it signifies. --The New York Times Book Review What stays with the reader is [Lyndsey's] gutsiness, her imagination and fortitude. She doesn't give up, but keeps looking for ways to stay sharp. --Minneapolis Star Tribune Deeply affecting ... Working gingerly with the array of metaphors that emerge from darkness and offering small, telling details, Lyndsey achieves a powerful assertion of self against the eclipse of all that she used to hold dear in the realm of light. --Publishers Weekly The premise of Girl in the Dark seems lifted out of a Gothic novel: a woman whose flesh is burned by light is confined to a dark box of a room. But this story is so much more than a medical mystery or a nightmarishly true tale. I read this book, a memoir that reads like an epic poem, pen in hand, feverishly underlining sentence after sentence. Yes, life is suffering, but in the end, as Anna Lyndsey so aptly puts it, 'Words are wonderful.' This book is a gift, a testament to the power of art as a saving grace. --Susannah Cahalan, author of the New York Times -bestselling Brain on Fire In this astonishing memoir Anna Lyndsey takes us into the world of a rare and shocking illness, and we emerge awed by a shining love story. Anna writes with such honesty and grace and mischief about how her condition forces her to retreat into blackness--yet we see that this new space she so bravely creates for herself is suffused with light. --Sonali Deraniyagala, author of Wave, winner of the PEN/Ackerly Prize and finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award It takes courage to heal, to step outside and want to feel the full magnificence of the sun. Taking that journey with a writer of such rare gifts as Anna Lyndsey is pure pleasure. --Christa Parravani, author of Her

Author Information

Anna Lyndsey is a pen name. Lyndsey worked for several years in London as a civil servant until she became ill. She now lives in Hampshire, England.

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