The Gorilla and The BirdThe Gorilla and The BirdThe Gorilla and The BirdThe Gorilla and The Bird
  • The Gloss +
    • The Gloss: A Book Club
    • Blog
    • Book Reviews
    • Meet the Team
      • The Gloss Staff
      • The Gloss Hosts
      • The Gloss Bloggers
    • Press
    • for The Gloss
  • How it Works +
    • How it Works
    • Gloss Membership
    • Book Vote
    • Q&A
    • Starting your own Chapter
  • Virtual +
    • Meet the Author
    • Virtual Events
  • Books +
    • Our Books
    • Book Vote
    • Book Store
    • Book Reviews
  • Book Clubs +
    • All Clubs
    • Australasia
    • Europe
    • Canada
    • United States
    • United Kingdom
    • Rest of the World
  • Shop
  • Login
Hi !
Pay as you go
Gloss Membership Pass →

Awards & Achievements

Tote Bag

Level 1:
  • Gained 0 for "-"
This badge is manually awarded.
356
  • Support →
The Gorilla and The Bird Book Cover The Gorilla and The Bird
Zack McDermott

Zack McDermott, a 26-year-old Brooklyn public defender, woke up one morning convinced he was being filmed, Truman Show-style, as part of an audition for a TV pilot. Every passerby was an actor; every car would magically stop for him; everything he saw was a cue from “The Producer” to help inspire the performance of a lifetime. After a manic spree around Manhattan, Zack, who is bipolar, was arrested on a subway platform and admitted to Bellevue Hospital.

So begins the story of Zack’s freefall into psychosis and his desperate, poignant, often darkly funny struggle to claw his way back to sanity. It’s a journey that will take him from New York City back to his Kansas roots and to the one person who might be able to save him, his tough, big-hearted Midwestern mother, nicknamed the Bird, whose fierce and steadfast love is the light in Zack’s dark world.

Before his odyssey is over, Zack will be tackled by guards in mental wards, run naked through cornfields, receive secret messages from the TV, befriend a former Navy Seal and his talking stuffed monkey, and see the Virgin Mary in the whorls of his own back hair. But with the Bird’s help, he just might have a shot at pulling through, starting over, and maybe even meeting a woman who can love him back, bipolar and all.

Written with raw emotional power, humor, and tenderness, GORILLA AND THE BIRD is a bravely honest account of a young man’s unraveling and the relationship that saves him.

  • Buy This Book!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

An olive branch to start a conversation.

Subscribe

Sign up with your email address to receive news and updates & the latest goss from The Gloss

Subscribe Now →

We respect your privacy. We will never sell your information.

  • Book Reviews
  • Questions & Answers
  • Press
  • Media Kit
  • Welcome to The Gloss
  • How it Works
  • News & Interviews
  • Meet The Author
  • Contact Us
  • Bookclubs United States
  • Bookclubs Canada
  • Bookclubs United Kingdom
  • Bookclubs Europe
  • Bookclubs Australasia
  • Meet the team
  • Meet the bloggers
  • Questions & Answers
  • Testimonials
  • Get involved
  • Careers

Contact • Support • Terms & Conditions

© Copyright All Rights Reserved The Gloss