Rachel Aviv is a staff writer at ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'' who wrote the book ''Strangers to Ourselves: Unsettled Minds and the Stories That Make Us'' in 2022. She frequently writes about psychiatry and ''Tablet'' called her "

Janet Malcolm Janet Clara Malcolm (born Jana Klara Wienerová; July 8, 1934 – June 16, 2021) was an American writer, journalist on staff at ''The New Yorker'' magazine, and collagist. She was the author of '' Psychoanalysis: The Impossible Profession'' (198 ...

’s successor".

Early life

Aviv was raised in Eastern Michigan. Her parents are divorced. When she was six, she was admitted to the

Children's Hospital of Michigan Children's Hospital of Michigan (CHM) is a for-profit, pediatric acute care hospital located in Detroit, Michigan. The hospital has 227 beds and is affiliated with both the Wayne State University School of Medicine and the Michigan State Universit ...

where she received six weeks of treatment for

anorexia nervosa Anorexia nervosa, often referred to simply as anorexia, is an eating disorder characterized by low weight, food restriction, body image disturbance, fear of gaining weight, and an overpowering desire to be thin. ''Anorexia'' is a term of Gr ...

. She writes about the experience in the first chapter of her book ''Strangers to Ourselves''. She was thought to be the youngest anorexia patient in the country. Her symptoms subsided after several months. She attended the private school Cranbrook-Kingswood, where she was co-captain of the girl's tennis team. She graduated from

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

in 2004.

Career

Aviv won a 2020

Whiting Award The Whiting Award is an American award presented annually to ten emerging writers in fiction, nonfiction, poetry and plays. The award is sponsored by the Mrs. Giles Whiting Foundation Mrs. (American English) or Mrs (British English; standard E ...

in creative non-fiction and a 2010

Rona Jaffe Foundation Writers' Award The Rona Jaffe Foundation Writers' Award was an award given annually to beginning women writers. Established in 1995 by American author Rona Jaffe, the Foundation offers grants to writers of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. The award was ...

. She has investigated

Teen Challenge Global Teen Challenge is a network of Christian faith-based corporations intended to provide rehabilitation services to people struggling with addiction. It was founded by David Wilkerson in 1961. The global headquarters is in Columbus, Georgia, U ...

, guardianship abuse, and

family court Family courts were originally created to be a Court of Equity convened to decide matters and make orders in relation to family law, including custody of children, and could disregard certain legal requirements as long as the petitioner/plaintif ...

s. In 2022, her book ''Strangers to Ourselves: Unsettled Minds and the Stories That Make Us'' was published by

Farrar, Straus and Giroux Farrar, Straus and Giroux (FSG) is an American book publishing company, founded in 1946 by Roger Williams Straus Jr. and John C. Farrar. FSG is known for publishing literary books, and its authors have won numerous awards, including Pulitzer ...

. ''Strangers to Ourselves'' was selected for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''s "10 Best Books of 2022" list. The book was a finalist for the 2023

National Book Critics Circle Award for Criticism The National Book Critics Circle Award for Criticism, established in 1975, is an annual American literary award presented by the National Book Critics Circle The National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) is an American nonprofit organization ( 501(c) ...

Bibliography

References

External links

National Book Festival Author Talk: Rachel Aviv
, August 29, 2022 American women writers Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Brown University alumni {{US-writer-stub