The Flock: The Autobiography of a Multiple Personality

Interesting read told by therapist treating multiple personality.

This is a very readable account of Multiple Personality. Narrated by a single member of The Flock and supplemented by notes and diary entries of The Flock's therapist, it never gets confusing, as narratives of Multiplicty can. Ms Casey is a very good writer, and the feelings and motivations of several members of The Flock are presented. There is also no graphic depiction of the abuse that caused Joan Frances Casey to shatter. It is dealt with matter-of-factly and rather distantly. The author focuses instead on The Flock's adult life. It's a good book, non-triggering and safe but also quite interesting and informative.

Beautifully told, this well-written and fascinating book is a must for anyone interested in DID or really any of the illnesses that have been confused with that disorder for years. The writing is eloquent, yet the images of this book are striking (something like McCrae's "Bark of the Dogwood," or those in "Sybil.) If you have to choose one book on this illness, choose this one.

I found this book to be comforting in a way that only people with DID/MPD can understand. Of course no one wants anyone to suffer with such an illness, however when you also suffer from the illness a book with this much sensitivity and courage is amazing. The author never needed to go into graphic detail of her abuse, that made this book safe for me. Her story gave me hope in my journey to recovery. I reccomend this book!!!

Joan Frances Casey managed to account for and explain all twenty-four entities. She provided a clear and coherent picture for those who do not understand or wish to learn about MPD. She also provided a companion to those struggling with their own entities. Many books have tried to document real and fictional MPD cases but failed to really be coherent in accounting for the personalities. This is an excellent book, and one worth reading several times over.

This book has been criticized (in the MPD community) as being unrealistic in the context of The Flock's treatment (essentially she was reparented). Nonetheless I think it's valuable to read for many reasons. Besides, who wouldn't want to be reparented? (sure seems to work quicker!) The author's choice of de-emphasizing the abuse descriptions (there are no graphic descriptions of abuse in this book) provides us with the rare opportunity to focus on the treatment and the growth of the Flock over time. I also very much appreciated the less than optimal description of the integrated person - Joan Casey needed post-integration therapy to deal with some of your run of the mill issues of self-worth and destructive relationship patterns. (This is very real life! Integration is usually not the END and you live happily ever after. I was very happy to see this discussed and resolved so favorably in the end.)