Book Review - Little & Lion

 📖Recommend for Grades 10 and up📖

Little & Lion

by Brandy Colbert

Suzette returns home to L.A. after spending the year at boarding school in New England. Between the fact that L.A. is where her friends and family are and an incident that occurred right before heading home, she isn't sure she wants to return to boarding school in the fall. Her stepbrother Lionel also needs her support, having been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Things get complicated when Suzette finds herself not only crushing on her old friend Emil but on this new girl she met. This girl is the same one who Lionel is also crushing on.

Little and Lion is an excellent portrayal of how mental health often affects a person's living life and their loved ones. This book covers many aspects of diversity regarding race, religion, ability, and sexual orientation. While's mental illness is a significant plot point, the other is Suzette coming to terms with her sexual identity. The story's main plot takes place over the summer, but there are flashback chapters included that are important to the story.

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Book Review - Just Our Luck

 📖Recommend for Grades 9 and up📖

Just Our Luck

by Julia Walton

Leo's anxiety causes him to get into a fight at school. As a result, his dad orders him to take a self-defense class at a local gym. Evey works at the gym, where Leo is taking the class. He has been told to stay away from her since her family supposedly cursed his family. Realizing he doesn't want to be in self-defense, Evey tells Leo she will switch him to hot yoga that meets at the same time. There is a catch, as Evey needs Leo to help her with a revenge project. The pair end up spending time together, curse or no curse.

While Leo's mental illness plays a role in this story, there is so much more to it. Through Leo's perspective, the story is told via a journal he has to keep for his hot yoga class. There is bullying that occurs in the book. Still, Leo doesn't let that stop him from following his passions which include knitting and photography.  

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Book Review - Let’s Call It A Doomsday

 📖Recommend for Grades 9 and up📖

Let’s Call It A Doomsday

by Katie Henry

Ellis Kimball is a preparer; for the end of the world, that is. Her anxiety doesn't help the situation. When leaving therapy one day, she meets Hannah Marks in the waiting room. Hannah informs Ellis that they were destined to meet because Ellis fears the end of the world, and Hannah knows when it's going to happen. As doomsday draws near, the search for answers seems to lead to more questions.

Though maybe a tad longer than needed, this is an intriguing read with an excellent portrayal of mental illness. Ellis and Hannah are both white, but the rest of the cast is more racially diverse. While about the potential end of the world, there is some humor in the story and moving moments. 

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Book Review - A Danger to Herself and Others

 📖Recommend for Grades 10 and up📖

A Danger to Herself and Others

by Alyssa B. Sheinmel

Hannah has found herself institutionalized after her summer program roommate falls out of their dorm room window. Nobody knows what happened that night, but she is considered “a danger to herself and others.” Hannah is determined to do what she has to return home. After all, she says what happened wasn’t her fault. Enter Lucy, she may have her baggage of her own, but she also may be the only person who can help Hannah work through everything that’s happened.

 If you’ve ever heard the term unreliable narrator before and didn’t get what it meant, this book will help you understand that. We are getting the story from Hannah’s point of view and how she perceives everything that happened. Hannah has lives life with at least one mental illness though we are never told what exactly it is. While the ending could have been better, the overall story is intriguing and will leave readers guessing how it all plays out.

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E-book

With bonus titles in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month

• A Heart in a Body in the World by Deb Caletti
• Darius the Great Is Not Okay by Adib Khorram
• Say What You Will by Cammie McGovern
• Words on Bathroom Walls by Julia Walton
• My Heart and Other Black Holes by Jasmine Warga
• Highly Illogical Behavior by John Corey Whaley
• Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia
• Also available on Hoopla

Book Theme Graphic - Mental Health: Break the Stigma

Book Review - Eliza and Her Monsters

📖Recommend for Grades 9 and up📖

Eliza and Her Monsters

by Francesca Zappia

            Eliza Mirk is the weird, shy, unpopular girl at school Online though she is LadyConstellation the creator of the popular webcomic Monstrous Sea. Her online identity is a secret, known only to her parents, twin brothers, and two best friends) Max and Emmy (who also happen to live online. When asked to show new student Wallace around the school, Eliza has no interest, but things get complicated when she learns he is a fan, and he sees her artwork thinking she too is a fan. As the pair grow close Eliza learns that life offline may not be so bad.

            A beautifully written story about a teen who just so happens to be living her life with a mental illness. While Eliza’s depression and anxiety may not seem clear at first to those with little knowledge of the subjects, there is a point in the book where it becomes more visible. Teens (with or without their own mental illness) will likely relate to Eliza’s frustration with her parents' lack of understanding of her comic and desire for her to spend more time in the real world. 

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Book Review - Life Inside My Mind

📖Recommend for Grades 9 and up📖

Life Inside My Mind

ed. by Jessica Burkhart

“A mental illness is a condition that affects a person's thinking, feeling or mood. Such conditions may affect someone's ability to relate to others and function each day. Each person will have different experiences, even people with the same diagnosis.”

https://www.nami.org/learn-more/mental-health-conditions

            Nobody is immune to mental illnesses. In this anthology authors share their experiences with various mental health including, but not limited to, depression, anxiety, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). These experiences are either with their own mental illness(es) or that of a family member or friend. Each person’s story is different, even those who live life with the same diagnosis.

            Each contributor does a wonderful job sharing their story. Different stories will have different effects on each reader. Just like how no two people experience mental health the same way, no two readers will experience each essay the same way.

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Book Review - Speechless

📖Recommend for Grades 6 and up📖

Speechless

by Adam P. Schmitt

            Having to attend your cousin’s wake sucks enough and wearing too small pants doesn’t help. Jimmy doesn’t think it can get worse, but then he finds out he has to give a eulogy at the funeral the next day. On top of hating giving speeches, Jimmy isn’t sure how to write about his cousin that he really didn’t like all that much, to begin with.

            Jimmy’s story takes place over a period of two days with flashbacks of insights into his life with his cousin Patrick. Patrick has a mental illness, which isn’t addressed as his parents seem in denial of it. This book is an intriguing look at how those with mental illness, particularly those who aren’t getting help for it, can affect those around them. It is also about Jimmy’s growth and understanding of Patrick in this short period of time.

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Book Review - Darius the Great Is Not Okay

📖Recommend for Grades 7 and up📖

Darius the Great Is Not Okay

by Adib Khorram

            Darius Kellner is a bi-racial (his mother is Persian and his father white), clinically depressed, bullied teen who only has one friend. Also, unlike his little sister, only understands a few words in Farsi making it difficult to communicate with his maternal family in Iran. Upon learning that his grandfather is dying, Darius, his sister, and their parents travel to Iran to spend time with him. While at first unsure about the trip, Darius finds his idea of it changing upon meeting his grandparent’s neighbor Sohrab, who also helps him grow during his time in Iran.

            A truly moving and wonderful story, readers will enjoy getting some insight into Persian culture through the eyes of a character who isn’t fully part of it. At times readers may be bothered by Darius’ behavior but most of it is understandable. His depression is a part of his story (there is a big stigma against mental illness in Iran) but not his whole story. The supporting characters wonderfully help shape Darius and his journey throughout the book.

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Book Review - A Heart in the Body in the World

📖Recommend for Grades 9 and up📖

A Heart in the Body in the World

by Deb Caletti

            One moment Annabelle is getting a burger, the next she is running with no destination in mind. A little less than a year ago something tragic happened in her life, something involving The Taker. While getting her burger, something triggers her which caused her to run. Realizing the running helped her with dealing, Annabelle decides to run from Seattle to Washington D.C. With the help of her brother and two friends back home and her grandfather following along in his RV, Annabelle goes on a captivating journey both physically and mentally.

            Alternating between the present time and flashes to the past leading up to the traumatic event, this book will have you turning the page to find out what happened then and what happens next. For some readers, this may be a book they need if they are in a situation similar to Annabelle’s prior to the event that took place. While Annabelle’s journey of running across the country can come across as unrealistic (though it has been done by adults) it doesn’t take away from the wonderful premise of this story. 

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Book Review - Perfect Escape

📖Recommend for Grades 9 and up📖

Perfect Escape

by Jennifer Brown

            All of Kendra’s life seems to revolve around and be influenced by, her older brother Grayson due to his OCD and other “issues”. Living in Grayson’s shadow has caused Kendra to strive to be perfect in her parent’s eyes. Grayson’s return from a trip to a facility to help “fix” him coincides with Kendra finding herself in the middle of a spontaneous road trip to run away from their problems and to visit Zoey who had to move away because of Grayson. Their journey doesn’t go smoothly and involves a few gross motels, picking up a stranger with a baby on the side of the road, and Zoey coming to terms with what she is really running away from.

            A humorous and heartwarming road trip story about self-realization and sibling bonding. Readers will struggle with sympathizing with Kendra having to deal with Grayson’s mental illness, but also with Grayson having to be the one living with them. We don’t get to see much of Grayson beyond his OCD which may cause frustration, but as this story is ultimately Kendra’s many should be able to look past.

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Book Review - (Don’t) Call Me Crazy

📖Recommend for Grades 7 and up📖

(Don’t) Call Me Crazy

edited by Kelly Jensen

            There are numerous people today who live life with one or more mental illnesses. Authors and celebrities are no exception. Through various essays, people such as Kristen Bell, Adam Silvera, Libba Bray, Nancy Kerrigan, and MILCK share their personal stories about mental health. Topics such as autism, bipolar disorder, body dysmorphia, depression, and healing are discussed.

A wonderful collection though every story may not be for everyone. Mental Health is not something to be ashamed of and it is wonderful to see so many authors and other celebrities share their stories. The editor wisely adds resources at the end of the book for those who find themselves needing them. There is also a list of books and films where the characters deal with a mental illness.

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Book Review - Words on Bathroom Walls

📖Recommend for Grades 10 and up📖

Words on Bathroom Walls

by Julia Walton

Adam Petrazelli refuses to answer his therapists’ questions. Instead, he writes down his answers and feelings in a journal for his therapists to read during their sessions. He is seeing the therapists to be monitored while being a part of a new drug trial for his Schizophrenia. Over the ten months of the trial, Adam shares his ups and downs of starting over in a new school with the secret of his mental illness, living with a stepfather who now seems afraid of him, and seeing all his “imaginary friends”.

A wonderful and intriguing story about living life with a mental illness. Adam is a delightful character, as are many of the supporting ones. As Adam attends a Catholic HS some readers may find some parts a little too heavy on religion but that should not deter one from reading this story.       

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