Reviewed by Amy Raines for Readers' Favorite

Losing Dad, Paranoid Schizophrenia: A Family’s Search for Hope is written by Amanda LaPera. LaPera’s father was diagnosed with cancer. After going through the surgery, he left his family in search of a more divine purpose. He sends postcards from some of the places he visits and agrees to baptize Amanda and her son at her home. But he cancels, as if sensing that she had planned to get him the help he needed. Her father was suffering from a late onset of Schizophrenia that drew him away from the family and to other countries, behaving in ways that were not in his normal character, including his callous comments about the deaths of his parents. Still, the family held out hope that he would come home and get the help he needed for his mental illness.

Losing Dad, Paranoid Schizophrenia is a sad journey that explains how the onset of mental illness is not always during the earlier years of life. Amanda LaPera has shown a great amount of bravery in sharing the ordeal she and her family faced while trying to find a way to help her father through his mental illness. The astounding patience, compassion, love, commitment to family, and willpower LaPera has shown while coping with such an issue is remarkable. I recommend Losing Dad, Paranoid Schizophrenia to anyone who faces mental illness or knows someone who does. This book will inspire and encourage loved ones not to give up hope even when getting help seems all but impossible.