Running with Scissors

The actual tale of Running with Scissors tells of a youngster who was abandoned by his poet mother (who had an intense crush on Anne Sexton) and reared by her unconventional doctor, who happened to look a lot like Santa Claus. At the age of twelve, Burroughs so found himself living with the strange family of the doctor in the middle of Victorian filth and becoming friends with a pedophile who lived in the rear shed. The account of a childhood spent as an outlaw, where laws were nonexistent, the Christmas tree was lit year-round, Valium was downed like candy, and an electroshock machine was always available for amusement when things became boring. The hilarious, terrifying, and best-selling story of a regular youngster surviving the most incredible conditions.