Overview

All Kait Leddy had ever wanted was a little sister. When Kyleigh was born, they were inseparable; Kait would protect her, include her, cuddle and comfort her, and, to Kyleigh, her big sister was her whole world. As they grew, however, and as Kait entered adolescence, her personality began to change. She was lashing out emotionally and physically, and losing touch with reality in certain ways. The family struggled to keep this side of Kait private--at school and in her social life, she was still the gorgeous, effervescent life of the party with a modeling career ahead of her and big dreams. But slowly, things began to shatter, and Kyleigh could only watch in horror as her perfect sibling's world collapsed around her. Kait was institutionalized with what would eventually be diagnosed as schizophrenia, leaving Kyleigh and their mother to handle the burden, shame, and guilt alone. Then, in January 2014, Kait disappeared. Though they never found her body, security footage showed her making her way onto a big bridge over a river, where it is presumed that she jumped. Kyleigh is left wondering: What could she have done differently? How could this shining light be gone? And how will she find peace without her sister to guide her way there?

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9780358581826

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Reviews

Exceptionally thoughtful and insightful --Booklist Online Leddy seeks courageously to break the stigma and silence that still surround schizophrenia and similar disorders while paying tribute to the woman whose life so profoundly transformed her own. A moving and deeply felt memoir about family and mental illness.--Kirkus Reviews The Perfect Other is a stunning mosaic--an impassioned and poetic examination into the impossible why? of mental illness. The book, like its subject, is achingly alive: a harrowing but life-affirming odyssey of what it takes to care for someone who is slipping away. Ultimately this is a paean to sisterhood and the excruciating joy of loving someone 'other.' -- Susannah Cahalan, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Brain on Fire and The Great Pretender Too often, people living with mental illness and their loved ones suffer in silence. Sharing heartfelt memories and scientific research, Kyleigh Leddy breaks that silence to shine a light on the stigma surrounding mental health and schizophrenia. This deeply personal memoir will give readers greater empathy and understanding in supporting those who are oftentimes misunderstood. -Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and founder of Lean In and Option B The Perfect Other reminds us all of the power of our only cradle-to-grave relationships--our siblings--as well as the powerlessness we feel when our brothers or sisters are not well. The book is a triumph--a testament to the healing power of telling the stories of those we love. ---Meg Jay, PhD, author of Supernormal: The Secret World of the Family Hero --No Source

The Perfect Other is a stunning mosaic--an impassioned and poetic examination into the impossible why? of mental illness. The book, like its subject, is achingly alive: a harrowing but life-affirming odyssey of what it takes to care for someone who is slipping away. Ultimately this is a paean to sisterhood and the excruciating joy of loving someone 'other.' -- Susannah Cahalan, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Brain on Fire and The Great Pretender Too often, people living with mental illness and their loved ones suffer in silence. Sharing heartfelt memories and scientific research, Kyleigh Leddy breaks that silence to shine a light on the stigma surrounding mental health and schizophrenia. This deeply personal memoir will give readers greater empathy and understanding in supporting those who are oftentimes misunderstood. -Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and founder of Lean In and Option B The Perfect Other reminds us all of the power of our only cradle-to-grave relationships--our siblings--as well as the powerlessness we feel when our brothers or sisters are not well. The book is a triumph--a testament to the healing power of telling the stories of those we love. ---Meg Jay, PhD, author of Supernormal: The Secret World of the Family Hero --No Source

Author Information

KYLEIGH LEDDY is a graduate of Boston College and is currently pursuing an MSW at Columbia University in advanced clinical practice and public policy. In 2019, she won the New York Times Modern Love college essay contest for an essay about grieving her sister, Kait. Her work has appeared in the New York Times and Parents, as well as other publications. She is based in New York City, and this is her first book. KYLEIGH LEDDY is a graduate of Boston College and is currently pursuing an MSW at Columbia University in advanced clinical practice and public policy. In 2019, she won the New York Times Modern Love college essay contest for an essay about grieving her sister, Kait. Her work has appeared in the New York Times and Parents, as well as other publications. She is based in New York City, and this is her first book.

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