He Came In With It

A PORTRAIT OF MOTHERHOOD AND MADNESS

paperback to be released July 15 2021
by Turner Publishing Company

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In an idyllic Los Angeles neighborhood, where generations of families enjoy deep roots in old homes, the O’Rourke family fits right in. Miriam and Craig are both artists and their four children carry on the legacy. When their teenage son, Nick, is diagnosed with schizophrenia, a tumultuous decade ensues in which the family careens permanently off the conventional course. Like the ten Biblical plagues, they are hit by one catastrophe after another, violence, evictions, arrests, a suicide attempt, a near-drowning…even cancer and a brain tumor…play against the backdrop of a wild teenage bacchanal of artmaking and drugs. With no time for hand-wringing, Miriam advances, convinced she can fix everything, while a devastated Craig retreats to their property in rural Washington State as home becomes a battlefield. 

It is while cleaning out a closet, that Miriam discovers a cache of drawings and journals written by Nick throughout his spiral into schizophrenia. She begins a solitary forensic journey into the lonely labyrinth of his mind. This is the story of how mental illness unspools an entire family. As Miriam fights to reclaim her son from the ruthless, invisible enemy, we are given an unflinching view into a world few could imagine. It exposes the shocking shortfalls of our mental health system, the destructive impact of stigma, shame and isolation, and, finally, the falsity of the notion of a perfect family. Throughout the book, it is the family’s ability to find humor in the absurdities of this life that saves them. It is a parable that illustrates the true definition of a good life, allowing for the blemishes and mistakes that are part of the universal human condition. He Came In With It is the legacy of, and for, her son Nick.

This book will resonate with all mothers, it is the universal condition, amplified. A story about what it means to persist in a life where all the rules have suddenly changed, He Came in With It is a clarion call to new understanding and compassion about mental illness. Through its honest and raw depiction of one family, it asks us to change the way we regard mental illness and contend with the chaos that is our mental health system. It makes sense of the impossible by making it relatable. This book will open your heart and your eyes.

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Advance Praise

“Miriam Feldman is the one you want as your mentor, your guide. Not only does she have the sharp eye of the artist, she is also in possession of a remarkable sense of humor which has served her in good stead through the challenges of living with her son’s disability…I hope you will give this remarkable book your consideration.”

- Janet Fitch, author of White Oleander and Paint it Black

“Read it straight through until 1am! I don’t even know where to begin - it’s amazing that you got through all that. It is so compelling!!!! I couldn’t stop reading! And along your incredible story, the lack of a cohesive mental health care system is glaring.”

- PATRICIA HEATON, actress

“I read your manuscript—it gripped me so much I stayed up very late to finish it. Congratulations on having written such a compelling, moving story. Your voice comes through loud and clear—your anguish, your humor, your passionate love for Nick, your girls, your husband, and your awesome friends. God, what a row you've hoed, woman. I look forward to expressing my admiration for you in person. It was an honor to read it. I salute you!”

- jenny Allen, author of Would Everyone Please Stop, writer for New Yorker, N.Y. Times

“It is absolutely brilliant and full of humanity and (thankfully) hope. Reading it has made me love you and your family so much and agonize with you through these Job-like trials you have suffered. And Nick! What a brilliant and fascinating and deeply tortured human being he is. My heart aches for him and the pain he endures daily.”

- POLLY DRAPER, ACTOR, WRITER, DIRECTOR

“He Came in With It blew my mind. It is an unflinching portrait of an artistic family rocked by mental illness and brought back together by love. This book is a brave undertaking and an incredibly important story that Miriam Feldman has gifted the world.”

- Nat Wolff, actor, Paper Towns and The Fault in our Stars

“A master storyteller, Miriam Feldman reveals the terrible toll schizophrenia inflicts on a loving family and exposes the frustrating deficiencies in our inadequate mental health care system. Ultimately, this book is a testament to the enduring power of a mother’s love and the family bond born from facing hardships that is certain to inspire. From one parent of an adult son with a serious mental illness to another - bravo - bravo!” 

 -Pete Earley, author of CRAZY: A Father’s Search Through America’s Mental Health Madness, finalist 2007 Pulitzer Prize.

“Captivating, moving, and masterfully wrought, Miriam Feldman’s story invites us inside the most intimate of worlds:  a family’s heart and soul.  While our journey is not without discomfort, it is also full of humor, joy, love, and inspiration. I marvel at the resiliency of the human spirit revealed in this brilliant memoir; He Came In With It is a redemption story for the ages."

-  Garth Stein, New York Times Bestselling author of The Art of Racing in the Rain

“Miriam Feldman’s He Came in With It blazes open the heart of motherhood with devastating honesty and dazzling beauty. This book is about what lives between a mother and son who struggle to navigate mental illness. Turns out what lives there is heart and art, messy, chaotic, traumatic and breathtakingly beautiful. I would follow Miriam anywhere. She is a heart warrior and an art mother who shows us how to endure, and thrive.”

- Lidia Yuknavitch, national bestselling author of The Chronology of Water, The Book of Joan and The Small Backs of Children

“At its heart, Miriam Feldman’s stunning memoir is a war story. One of indefatigable heroism... artfully told with raw and unmitigated honesty. At once heartbreaking, cathartic and startlingly funny, He Came in With It thoroughly redefines our conception of unconditional love.”

- Tony Shalhoub

“A compelling and moving account of a mother's coming to terms with her son's schizophrenia, at times hopeful about her son and at times despairing. No one understands as well as a fellow sufferer and this book will be a source of understanding, strength and hope for the families of a person with schizophrenia. A really powerful book.”

- Elyn Saks, Professor of Law, Psychology, and Psychiatry and the Behavioral Sciences at the University of Southern California and author of the best-selling autobiography The Center Cannot Hold.

“We watched Miriam become a Five Star General, in a war against an insidious adversary which threatened to claim the life of her Beautiful Boy. She shows us the way through an unimaginable terror to the light of hope. She’s our Hero.”

- LaTanya and Samuel L. Jackson, actors

For publicity inquires, please contact Kathleen Timberlake, Marketing Coordinator at Turner Publishing Company.