Word Salad, the first of a trilogy, is a realistic novel set in a housing program for the homeless mentally ill. Within this setting, a story emerges of the infliction of mental illness through government hubris and experimentation, and the escape of one of the victims. This is not the only tale, and the lives of many people are intertwined to illuminate the tragedies, blessings, and epiphanies in the lives of the shared community of the program's clients, staff, and the neighbors and volunteers who surround them.