Reviewed by Romuald Dzemo for Readers' Favorite
As Happy As I Can Stand: The Third Edition of Hatching Charlie by Charles C McCormack is a beautifully written book with strong psychological themes. In this autobiographical narrative, the author looks back at his life, at a family that suffered its own kind of struggles, at the challenges posed by racism orchestrated by the KKK, then the experience of being sent off to a boarding school in France. The author writes with unusual honesty, unveiling dread truths about his childhood to readers and the influence that a troubled childhood had on his life, but this book also explores the reality of mental illness in his family. This is the story of a man who evolved into one of the best in psychotherapy.

I loved this book and the unmistakably clear voice of the narrative, a voice that is gripping and that reverberates in the hearts of readers as they listen to stories rendered strangely familiar. In the heart of this book is a succinct documentation of Charles C McCormack’s search for meaning and happiness, a journey that eventually took him into a practice that put him directly in contact with human misery. Readers will experience McCormack’s life behind the psychiatric screens with his patients and his own self-analysis. What makes this story unique is that it presents a protagonist that is flawed and that struggles to help others in their brokenness. The effect of being in contact with the fragility of human life is beautifully captured in this book. As Happy As I Can Stand is written in crisp prose and the evocative language, coupled with the strong themes and the unique storytelling skills, make for an enjoyable read. ( )

McCormack was asked two questions by his children that unerringly targeted issues he had struggled with his entire life: "Who are you?" and "What is life about?" As Happy As I Can Stand,, his attempt to respond, rocketed him down a wormhole through time, his past made present. He re-lives the disruptions of military family life, family violence, the racism of the Jim Crowe South, and the tidal wave of fear and confusion when exiled to a boarding school in France as a child.
With unalloyed frankness, McCormack, an award-winning psychotherapist, author, and lecturer, takes us into the mental illness in his own family, and the destructive influence of his cratered childhood upon his adulthood. During this journey, we go behind the scenes of psychiatric treatment, including a vivid portrayal of McCormack’s experience in psychoanalysis and as a psychiatric social worker in a locked-door inpatient treatment unit. There, we become engulfed in penetrating horror and self-doubt when confronted with the suicide of several patients, as well as the profound sense of fulfillment experienced when able to help those who had been unable to help themselves.
In his striving for happiness and meaning, McCormack arrives at the realization that there was an enduring block to his happiness and that it resided within himself. Rejecting this self-limiting fate, he pecks away at the shells that confine him like a Russian nesting doll and discovers first-hand the hidden power of incomplete mourning to constrict him like English ivy strangles a tree. In this moving account of the healer's journey, there is wisdom about life, love, and relationships that will bring tears to your eyes and a smile to your face. ( )

Midwest Book Review: November 2018
https://www.amazon.com/Hatching-Charlie-Quest-Happiness-Meaning/dp/1987751337/re...

Hatching Charlie: As Happy As I Can Stand, is a passionate memoir designed to educate and inspire, following Charles C. McCormack's journey through life and events that range from encounters with family violence and racism in the Jim Crow South to the spillover from early encounters with violence, adult confrontations and mishaps, and an emerging quest for a purpose-driven life.

The first thing to note about McCormack's memoir is that it holds more psychological self-inspection than most. It's not just the story of one man's journey through life and its many changes: Charles C. McCormack brings readers into his heart, revealing connections between events and the actual process of personal transformation: "I was starting to understand that if I sat with my uncomfortable feelings, rather than abort them through drugs or action, the feelings themselves would become a gateway to myself. In the years to come, I was to learn that boredom and floundering are often calls to creativity and constitute a fertile soil from which inspiration can bloom."

One of the story's many themes becomes evident early on as new generations arrive and affect the narrator's course in life: "Isn’t it amazing how values change, often in perfect tandem with self-interest?"

From early days of changes and attempts to balance professionalism with fun to the author's attempts to break free from traditional therapist/patient routines to achieve more meaningful dialogue and interactions, readers follow a life journey that delves into personal and professional anxiety, offers surreal moments spiced with self-assessments ("Having my assessment of the situation so c
Diane Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Mid-West Book Reviewoncisely confirmed, including that the thought of fleeing wasn’t beyond the pale, made me laugh—animosity was indeed loose in the room, it hadn’t simply been a construction of my anxiety ridden mind."), and most of all, cover McCormack's realization that it's within his power and abilities to cultivate a good life against all odds.

Nary a life experience is left unexplored; from family violence and heartbreak to divorce, mental illness, and broader philosophical reflections on the nature of adversity: "Is the success of this family in growing authentic and resilient relationships despite or because of the trials and tribulations we’ve navigated together?"

Hatching Charlie is a moving, multifaceted exploration of the human condition through one man's volatile, changing life experiences. It is especially recommended for autobiography readers who appreciate blends of adventure and self-inspection that leads from youth to later years, embracing a sense of growth and evolution that's clearly tracked in the story of Charlie's 'hatching' process and emergence into a positive state of being. ( )