The Inherited Mind: A Story of Family, Hope, and the Genetics of Mental Illness

For Longman, a foreign correspondent for ABC News, the relationship between mental illness, genetics, and environment is an important and personal question which he uses to explore the legacy of mental illness in his family. His father, an artist, had schizophrenia and ended his life when Longman was nine years old; Longman’s mother was unstable throughout his adolescence. Growing up in this environment with a family history of depression and self-harm, Longman’s own depression seemed inevitable, but he wanted to understand his father as a person and how others in his situation have coped. Intertwining the science of the genetic and epigenetic bases of depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia with personal stories of people with generational mental illness, this book is an empathetic, sensitive examination of the challenges and strength of individuals struggling with their mental health. Longman is self-deprecating about his scientific knowledge, which makes this accessible work read like a memoir, not a popular science book.