When Sophie walked through my front door that night, I could not believe my eyes. She was a frail, filthy, and hunched-over eighty-year-old woman. What possibly could have happened to her? Sophie's story is one of jealous, vindictive siblings, an abusive husband, and a sexual assault that resulted in a pregnancy, a kidnapping, and bitter, unforgiving children. She was left out in the cold by a deceiving judge and then by a group of lost souls that she devoted her life to serving. As much as I felt we were getting to know Sophie, and it was starting to feel like she was just another one of our "crazy" relatives, there was still so much that we didn't know about her. After more than two years, how was it possible that she was still very much The Stranger In My Recliner? "The Stranger in My Recliner is riveting, a book that captures the reader's attention not just by its fascinating story, but by the light it shines on society's ignorance about mental illness. As I read the book, I kept asking myself, "What would I have done?" and more importantly, "What more can we do for all the other Sophie's out there?" The author tells this true, gut-wrenching story directly from her heart, and in doing so brings many issues surrounding mental illness in today's world out into the open for discussion, examination, and hopefully for some change." -Peg DeGrassa Senior Editor, Delco News Network "After a devastating divorce and while in the hospital for two months with congestive heart failure, I became homeless. My life was changed irrevocably-overnight. Upon my release, I was moved into a shelter. If anyone reading this thinks, 'Gee, that will never happen to me. I'll never become homeless, ' they need to think again. Doreen is right. Homelessness can happen to anybody. This book is timely and important." -Mary Wallace Violist, Tampa Bay Symphony