Running with scissors

Author: (USA) Bruce Baum
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-11-01
Features: Bestselling book named by The New York Times; Bestselling book named by Entertainment Weekly; Bestselling book named by ELLE; When you're lonely, you need to vent, no matter who gets hurt. Running with scissors—it's a hint, a symbol. It's also a metaphor, a typical, American metaphor, with the subtext being: Are you in pain? Are you lonely? Then vent without hesitation! Swing the scissors, run wild, no matter who gets hurt. Running with Scissors is one of the most popular memory literature books in the USA right now, ranking as a bestseller in the USA in 2003, a bestseller by The New York Times, a bestseller by Entertainment Weekly, a bestseller by ELLE, and almost every page evokes an instinctive reaction: laughter, shuddering, nausea, and amusement. Running with scissors—it's a hint, a symbol. It's also a metaphor, a typical, American metaphor, with the subtext being: Are you in pain? Are you lonely? Then vent without hesitation! Swing the scissors, run wild, no matter who gets hurt. All lonely people crave to vent but are afraid to do so. The brave ones among them should hold scissors and run and run; they should run with their heads held high, with their arms flapping like wings, shouting and roaring, eyes bloodshot, like wild beasts! The characters in this book are such scissors-holders. They endure different forms of loneliness and confusion, varying degrees of loss and bewilderment. Among them are a mad psychologist with bizarre behavior, his eccentric family and patients; a fantasy-filled "lesbian" poet, a famous university professor who drinks excessively and is perpetually melancholic; a male homosexual who lives with others, a middle-aged woman who likes dog food and is rigidly traditional; a teenage girl who lives with an elderly tennis player for money and what she calls love; a feminist who worships her father and is an absolute womanist; and the author of this book—a regular boy with a homosexual inclination, yearning for freedom but forced to endure various trials. All these characters share a common trait: they crave understanding due to emotional loneliness, dream of freedom due to life's oppression, and long for light due to their dim future. No matter the cost, a person must break free from the state of emotional and spiritual loneliness as early as possible. This is the core theme of the book.