Wish I Could Be There: Notes from a Phobic Life

In addition to being the son of famous New Yorker editor William Shawn and brother of the distinguished playwright and actor Wallace Shawn, Allen Shawn is agoraphobic-he is afraid of both public spaces and isolation. Wish I Could Be There gracefully captures both of these extraordinary realities, blending memoir and scientific inquiry in an utterly engrossing quest to understand the mysteries of the human mind. Droll, probing, and honest, Shawn explores the many ways we all become who we are, whether through upbringing, genes, or our own choices, creating "an eloquent meditation upon the mysteries of personality and family"* and the struggle to face one's demons.

Author: Allen Shawn
Publisher: Penguin Books
Published: 02/01/2008
Pages: 288
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.43lbs
Size: 7.36h x 5.80w x 0.51d
ISBN: 9780143113072

Review Citation(s):
New York Times Book Review 02/17/2008 pg. 24

About the Author
Allen Shawn is the author of the critically acclaimed Wish I Could Be There and Arnold Schoenberg's Journey. He is a composer and pianist, and has written for the Atlantic Monthly, the Times Literary Supplement, the New York Times Magazine, and other publications. He lives in Vermont and is on the faculty of Bennington College.