New Book: "Making God Laugh: A Memoir of Psychiatry, Dublin and the Electric Chair"

The Life and Times of a Connecticut Psychiatrist

SOUTH WINDSOR, Conn., Nov. 10, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- A new book by a Connecticut psychiatrist starts off this way: "On a bright day in the late 1980s, I found myself strapped into an electric chair."

In this captivating memoir, "Making God Laugh," award-winning author R.C. Goodwin discusses growing up in the Midwest, attending Yale, and studying medicine in Dublin. Returning to the U.S., he became a psychiatrist – with misgivings. ("Making God Laugh: A Memoir of Psychiatry, Dublin and the Electric Chair," Secret Harbor Press, 2025)

The book's title comes from a proverb: Do you know how to make God laugh? Tell Him your plans. 

Practicing psychiatry in prisons, nursing homes, substance abuse treatment facilities, and at a major university, Goodwin embarked on a journey in which his patients included executives and serial killers, teenagers and centenarians, alcoholics, and drug and online pornography addicts.

"I wanted people to learn something about psychiatric training, and the gratifications and frustrations of psychiatric practice as well as how all this may affect a psychiatrist's personal life," said Goodwin. 

Praise for the Book
"…A perceptive and frequently entertaining look at the life of a psychiatrist." -- Kirkus Reviews

"In Goodwin's recollection of the uncertainties of his early career path, followed by twists and turns in his unique quest for meaning, there is resonance and intrigue." –Jennifer Top, TulipTree Publishing

"Making God Laugh offers a morbid, interesting hook … loaded with life thereafter -- and Goodwin sure does know how to write." – Mark Wish, editor, Coolest American Stories 

About the Author
R.C. Goodwin has worked as a psychiatrist and consulted for the Connecticut Department of Correction, nursing homes, a substance abuse facility, and a major university mental health clinic. Goodwin's debut book, The Stephen Hawking Death Row Fan Club, was named one of Kirkus Reviews' Best Indie Books of 2015. His novel, Model Child, was published in 2018. He lives in Connecticut, and is a member of the Connecticut Authors & Publishers Association and the Writers Guild of America.
Website:https://www.rcgoodwin.net 

Publishing Information
"Making God Laugh: A Memoir of Psychiatry, Dublin and the Electric Chair"
March 11, 2025, Secret Harbor Press, Charleston S.C.
Price: $16.95 paperback
265 pages
ISBN: 978-1-7331439-7-4 (paperback)
978-1-7331439-8-1 (e-book)
Amazon:https://tinyurl.com/3yextt5h

PR Contact: Andrew Blum, AJB Communications
ajbcomms@gmail.com, 917-783-1680

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-book-making-god-laugh-a-memoir-of-psychiatry-dublin-and-the-electric-chair-302610500.html

SOURCE R.C. Goodwin