Hidden Valley Road is the story of the Galvins, a family with 12 baby boom kids, six of whom ended up with a diagnosis with schizophrenia by young adulthood. Robert Kolker is an adept writer, piecing together a narrative that reads like fiction but is meticulously researched, based on hundreds of interviews with many Galvin family members. Most of the book focuses on the family dynamics, including trauma and heartbreak but also hope and love. Interspersed are chapters that look at the development schizophrenia treatment and research during the Galvins' lifetime, and how the family's contributions played a major part in identifying new paths forward.

My own family situation is only somewhat related and much less extreme by comparison, with one half-sibling who suffered from severe mental illness. Even so, beyond just appreciating the writing, I found this book helped me think about myself and my own family in new ways, by clearly illustrating different ways that relatives navigate and cope with these situations.