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Honor Roll titles

Cover for Queens of Geek
March 31, 2017

Review: Queens of Geek by Jen Wilde

Queens of Geek is an authentic and refreshing portrayal of an autistic and anxious girl.

Cover for What I Couldn’t Tell You
February 3, 2017

Review: What I Couldn’t Tell You by Faye Bird

All the way through the book, I felt that something was slightly off with the portrayal of Tessie’s selective mutism, but in a way that made it hard to pin down.

January 6, 2017

Hypermobility and Representation

It’s clear that many people, including pre-diagnosis me, don’t know much about hypermobility; this only makes the need for representation more necessary.

Cover for Our Chemical Hearts
November 18, 2016

Review: Our Chemical Hearts by Krystal Sutherland

The characterization and descriptions of Grace do disabled readers a disservice in more ways than one.

Cover for Skim
November 4, 2016

Review: Skim by Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki

Skim does a good job of showing misguided attempts to help those with depression, and lets the reader see the absurdity for themselves.

Cover for Other Broken Things
August 5, 2016

Review: Other Broken Things by C. Desir

Any time I pick up a book about addiction and recovery, I do so with equal parts hope and trepidation. Despite our differences, I understood Natalie fully and completely from the get-go.

Cover for Crazy
June 3, 2016

Review: Crazy by Amy Reed

I appreciated the nuance present in both Izzy’s portrayal as an undiagnosed teen with bipolar disorder and in the reactions of those around her.

Cover for When We Collided
April 15, 2016

Review: When We Collided by Emery Lord

Vivi’s struggle with bipolar disorder was portrayed accurately and compassionately, and I would highly recommend the book for readers who want to understand the illness better.

Discussion: Magical Disabilities
March 23, 2016

Discussion: Magical Disabilities

When we talk about disability and sci-fi/fantasy, the first thing many will think of is the magical disability trope. But what does this trope entail and imply? And how can you subvert it?

Cover for The Shattering
March 21, 2016

Review: The Shattering by Karen Healey

Keri’s anxiety seems more of a framing device than anything else; The Shattering doesn’t contain as thorough a portrayal of anxiety as I’d hoped for, though its representations of other kinds of diversity more than make up for that.

Cover for The Rest of Us Just Live Here
March 20, 2016

Review: The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness

Despite reservations about the ending, I would recommend The Rest of Us Just Live Here; it’s a welcome addition to YA novels involving OCD and anxiety.

Cover for Symptoms of Being Human
February 5, 2016

Review: Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin

A well-researched exploration of how mental illness can interact with queer identity, especially for those just discovering themselves during a volatile time of life and those with less well understood identities.

Cover for The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer
November 1, 2015

Review: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer and The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

The Mara Dyer trilogy remains one of the best fictional depictions of PTSD that I have come across. That just makes it more disappointing when the series badly misses the mark on other issues.

Cover for Cover for CHIME
October 31, 2015

Review: Chime by Franny Billingsley

In no way is Briony’s depression the whole point of this novel—however, it is an important piece, and it is portrayed excellently. Chime was one of the most cathartic reading experiences of my life.

Cover for Cover for ROMANCING THE DARK IN THE CITY OF LIGHT
October 16, 2015

Review: Romancing the Dark in the City of Light by Ann Jacobus

Jacobus nailed the struggle with addiction, she nailed physical limitations, she nailed alcoholic and disability-related depression, she nailed the chaos of the active alcoholic, and she nailed the hopelessness and despair that can come from all of it.

Cover for Cover for YOUR VOICE IS ALL I HEAR
October 2, 2015

Review: Your Voice Is All I Hear by Leah Scheier

Your Voice is All I Hear will familiarize readers with common symptoms, while normalizing schizophrenia as an illness like any other; however, it is obvious that this book’s target audience is not those with schizophrenia themselves.

Cover for Cover for BRILLIANT
September 18, 2015

Review: Brilliant by Roddy Doyle

Despite good ideas and wonderful writing, Brilliant falls flat when it comes to having any constructive meaning regarding depression.

Photo of Jackie Morse Kessler
May 24, 2015

Interview with Jackie Morse Kessler about the Riders of the Apocalypse series

After the first two books in Jackie Morse Kessler’s Riders of the Apocalypse series — Hunger, about a girl with anorexia, and Rage, about a girl with depression — were so positively reviewed on the blog, we were incredibly excited to invite the author over for a joint interview.

Cover for Rage
May 24, 2015

Review: Rage by Jackie Morse Kessler

I highly recommend Rage for anyone with depression, who wants to learn about depression, or anyone who just enjoys a good story. It’s moving, it’s clever, and despite its fantasy elements it’s incredibly realistic.

Cover for Hunger
May 24, 2015

Review: Hunger by Jackie Morse Kessler

Hunger sings with authenticity. Lisabeth’s anorexia is visceral, bordering on uncomfortable, exactly as it should.

May 23, 2015

Discussion: Romanticizing Mental Illness

Romanticization is a common element of mental illness narratives, including many in the YA category; what kind of message does that send?

Photo of Corey Ann Haydu
May 22, 2015

Interview with Corey Ann Haydu about OCD Love Story

A Q&A with author Corey Ann Haydu about the origins of OCD Love Story and the many and varied ways anxiety can manifest.

Cover for OCD Love Story
May 22, 2015

Review: OCD Love Story by Corey Ann Haydu

Some people call OCD a doubting disease. Corey Ann Haydu infuses her story with the back-and-forth, pulsing presence of this doubt, resulting in a first-person, insider’s account of what the condition feels like for many.

May 21, 2015

Discussion: Stigmatizing Treatment of Mental Illness in Fiction

Many characters who may be mentally ill reject treatment out of hand, considering therapy a waste of time and suspecting medication will turn them into a zombie. Why are these narratives so popular? What are the alternatives?

Photo of Cindy Rodriguez
May 20, 2015

Interview with Cindy L. Rodriguez about When Reason Breaks

After our rave review of Cindy Rodriguez’s debut When Reason Breaks — about two very different girls who are both dealing with depression — we were excited to invite both reviewer and author to the website this week to discuss the book further.