A brilliant, quirky reflection on the relationship between creativity and madness In this bold and deeply researched blend of memoir, essay, literary analysis, psychological reflection, and intellectual sleuth story, Montero draws on psychology, neuroscience, literature, and the testimonies and biographies of authors and artists to weave a fascinating narrative on the connection between creativity and mental instability. With narrative élan, Montero paints a fascinating fresco of the ways in which the brain works, breaking down all the aspects that influence creativity and miraculously reassembling them before the reader's eyes over three hundred gripping pages. Like a masterfully plotted detective story, each clue leads readers one step closer to new definitions of the creative act, and of what is and is not "normal". The Danger to be Sane is a moving and inspirational homage to minds and lives that are outside of the mean.