The Wing of Madness: The Life and Work of RD Laing by Daniel Burston

When we last heard of R.D. Laing (1927-1989), he was said to be arriving at lectures addled with hashish and brandy, and promoting rebirthing techniques to treat prenatal psychological trauma. Reflecting on this spectacle that Laing left the world, we are apt to forget that he was one of the most influential and controversial psychiatrists of the 20th century, whose books sold in the millions in more than 20 languages. Even at the height of his power, however, Ronald Laing was a mystery, a man of many contradictions, and it is this mystery that The Wing of Madness explores, searching out both the story of Laing’s life and the significance of his work.