Hey, it's NPR's Book of the Day. I'm Andrew Limbong. There's a really important question

in today's interview that I think should probably be more present in nonfiction book interviews.

NPR's Michelle Martin asks the guest straight up, why should I trust you? The context makes sense.

The writer Patrick Gagney has written a memoir titled

Sociopath about being a sociopath and the perception of sociopathy in today's culture.

And in this interview, she copps to having a pretty complicated relationship with the truth,

and she shares some really emotionally open facts about herself.

But listen to her answer to Michelle's question and decide for yourself how much of her story

you want to accept.

That's after the break.

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Be honest. How many times have you called somebody a sociopath or heard somebody else use that word?

To refer to somebody who just doesn't seem to care about what they do or how other people feel.

But have you ever met somebody like that?

This author says you have and she says she knows because she is one. And not only that, she says she's researched the condition and has worked as a therapist who treats people with this condition. And she says it's not what you think. Patrick Gagney is the author of Sociopath, a memoir, and she's with us now to tell us more. Welcome. Thank you so much for joining us. Thanks for having me.

So let me start with the obvious question. Then I'm going to ask you to tell me why it isn't as obvious as we might think.

What does it mean to be a sociopath? Well, it's very different from what it means to be a psychopath.

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