| Author/Contributor(s): | Sherman, Suzanne |
| Publisher: | She Writes Press |
| Date: | 9/29/2026 |
| Binding: | Paperback |
| Condition: | NEW |
When Suzanne Sherman is four years old, her musically gifted thirty-year-old mother is struck by sudden-onset schizophrenia. In dual timelines—a primary narrative and the two weeks following her mother's suicide—the memoir traces Suzanne's life over the next fourteen years, as the family bears the ripple effects: divorce, her mother's suicide attempt, hospitalizations, Suzanne’s sister’s institutionalization, and her own choice to leave home at fourteen.
As she grows older, Suzanne forms a friendship with her mother, sharing values, confidences, and a love of music and poetry. But only a year after leaving Los Angeles for college, excited for her future, Suzanne learns that her mother has died by suicide.
Nearly a decade later, something shifts. Suzanne asks her conflict-avoidant father to finally put a headstone on her mother’s grave, a request that leads the family to face their sorrow together for the first time. An extraordinary sign from her mother follows, affirming the enduring presence of her love—and for the first time, grief makes room for acceptance.
Living in the Long Shadow explores Sherman’s journey of emotional survival, offering hope, insight, and a deepened compassion for people living with mental illness and those who love them.