Islands of Mania

Yohanna Abdullah

Paperback, 94 pages

9781543759211

This book was one of the titles selected for the Read Well Mental Health Book Club 2024.

When Alysha Nassir, a writer and a mother of two young children, discovers her husband's affair with his colleague, her entire world comes crashing down. As she loses her grasp on reality, she finds herself transported to an other-worldly realm, where her inner demons are unleashed in a nightmare that would last for years. She goes in and out of mental hospitals as she grapples with her crumbling marriage, issues with her mother-in-law, and her parents' own marital struggles.

Islands of Mania is a journey into the mind experiencing the highs and lows of bipolar disorder. It is a raw and unforgettable account about how mental illness devastates and yet, suffuses light into the mundane world. It is also an inspiring tale of hope, love, and faith.

Wardah Mini review:

In this heartfelt and lucid exploration of slipping out and back into peace, seasoned writer Yohanna Abdullah expands her literary repertoire to dissect in third-person the internal logic of mania. Good fiction writing is about the authentic exploration of the human experience in all its variety and complexity, while at the same time being familiar; we recognise the humanity. This is a story you will not soon forget.