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A memoir by Glenn Close's sister Jessie about the challenges of living with severe bipolar disorder, with chapters by Glenn Close

The Close sisters are descended from very prominent and wealthy ancestors. When the Close sisters were very young, their parents joined a cult called the MRA, or Moral Rearmament. The family was suddenly uprooted to a cult school in Switzerland and, ultimately, to the Belgian Congo where their father became a surgeon in the war-ravaged republic and ultimately the personal physician to President Mobutu. Shortly after the girls returned to the United States for boarding school, Jessie first started to exhibit symptoms of severe bipolar disorder. She would later learn that this ran in the family, a well-kept secret. Jessie embarked on a series of destructive marriages as the condition worsened. Glenn was always by her side throughout. Jessie's mental illness was passed on to her son, Calen. It wasn't until Calen entered McLean's psychiatric hospital that Jessie herself was diagnosed. Fifteen years and twelve years of sobriety later, Jessie is a stable and productive member of society. Glenn continues to be the major support in Jessie's life.

In Resilience, the sisters share their story of triumphing over Jessie's illness. The book is written in Jessie's voice, with running commentary and an epilogue written by Glenn.

Jessie Close is an internationally recognized speaker, author, poet, and advocate for mental health reform. She is the author of The Warping of Al and she writes a regular blog for Bring Change 2 Mind, an anti-stigma organization that her sister, Glenn, created at her request. She lives with bipolar disorder in the foothills of the Tobacco Root Mountains outside Bozeman, Montana, with her service dog, Snitz, and three other dogs.

Glenn Close is best known for her many Oscar-nominated roles in film, including the psychotic mistress in Fatal Attraction and in an Emmy-winning role on FX's Damages. In her career she has been Oscar-nominated five times, won three Tony awards, an Obie, three Emmys, two Golden Globes, and a Screen Actors Guild Award.

Pete Earley, a former reporter for the Washington Post, is the author of several works of nonfiction, including the bestsellers The Hot House and Family of Spies, and the multi-award-winning Circumstantial Evidence. According to Washingtonian magazine, he is one of ten journalist/authors in America who have the power to introduce new ideas and give them currency. Earley is also the author of three New York Times bestsellers and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.