Psychiatric Tales draws on Darryl Cunninghams time working in a psychiatric ward to give a reasoned and sympathetic look into the world of mental illness In each chapter, Cunningham explores a different mental health problem, using evocative imagery to describe the experience of mental illness, both from the point of view of those beset by illness and their friends and relatives As Cunningham reveals this human experience, he also shows how societys perceptions of and reactions to mental illness perpetuate needless stigma, for example, the myth that schizophrenic people are more likely to commit crimes than nonschizophrenic people Psychiatric Tales is a groundbreaking graphic work it deftly demythologizes and destigmatizes the disorders that 26 2 percent of American adults live with every day Concluding with a reflection on how mental illness has affected his own life, Darryl Cunninghams Psychiatric Tales is a moving, engaging examination of what is, at its root, the human condition Darryl Cunningham is the creator of the Web comics SuperSam and JohnoftheNight and The Streets of San Diablo He is a prolific cartoonist, sculptor, and photographer, and lives in Leeds, England This is his first book