Tag: Mental health (Page 5 of 6)

Book Review: Things I Didn’t Say

August 27, 2016 / Madison Dearnaley / 0 Comments

The Things I Didn’t Say – Kylie Fornasier – Penguin Australia – Published 2 May 2016

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Synopsis

I hate the label Selective Mutism – as if I choose not to speak, like a child who refuses to eat broccoli. I’ve used up every dandelion wish since I was ten wishing for the power to speak whenever I want to. I’m starting to wonder if there are enough dandelions.

After losing her best friend that night, Piper Rhodes changes schools, determined that her final year will be different. She will be different. Then she meets West: school captain, star soccer player, the boy everyone talks about. Despite her fear of losing everything all over again, Piper falls in love – and West with her – without Piper ever speaking one word to him. But will it last?

My thoughts

I really enjoyed Things I Didn’t Say. It is a beautiful and compelling story about romance, falling in love, social anxiety, best friends, new friends, family, standing up against bullying and looking forward to the future.

It’s funny, from the front cover I assumed this story would be darker, sadder, that some horrible tragedy had befallen the main character. And yet that is exactly what Piper fights against in people’s ideas of her Selective Mutism, which is connected to anxiety rather than a traumatic event. And so this is an uplifting story. It is set in the Blue Mountains, Australia, and of course I loved the familiar landscape and Aussie references.

Book Review: Play On

August 7, 2016 / Madison Dearnaley / 0 Comments

Play On – Michelle Smith – Lewis Creek #1 – Spencer Hill Contemporary – Published 21 April 2015

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Synopsis

In the small town of Lewis Creek, baseball is everything.

Especially for all-star pitcher Austin Braxton, who has a one-way ticket out of town with his scholarship to a top university. All that stands between him and a new start is one final season. But when Austin starts flunking Chemistry, his picture-perfect future is in jeopardy. A failing grade means zero playing time, and zero playing time means no scholarship.

Enter Marisa Marlowe, the new girl in town who gets a job at his momma’s flower shop. Not only is Marisa some home-schooled super-genius, she’s also a baseball fanatic and more than willing to help Austin study. As the two grow closer, there’s something about Marisa that makes Austin want more than just baseball and out of Lewis Creek—he wants a future with her. But Marisa has a past that still haunts her, one that she ran all the way to South Carolina to escape.

As Austin starts to peel back the layers of Marisa’s pain, it forces him to look beyond the facade of himself and everyone he thought he knew in his town. What he sees instead is that in a small town like Lewis Creek, maybe baseball isn’t everything—maybe it is just the thing that ties them all together.

My thoughts

I absolutely love books that combine sweet romance with a story of determination, perseverance through hardship and the strength of family and friendship. Play On combines all this backed with the wonderful setting of small town, Southern USA and baseball.

Austin has just one season left. One season of playing high school baseball as the starting pitcher before heading off to college, one season left of school to keep his grades high enough to keep playing and one season left of soaking in the moments that come with spending time with his best friends before they all leave town and never look back.

Book Review: The Memory Book

July 25, 2016 / Madison Dearnaley / 0 Comments

The Memory Book – Lara Avery – Poppy – Published 5 July 2016

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Synopsis

Sammie was always a girl with a plan: graduate at the top of her class and get out of her small town as soon as humanly possible. Nothing will stand in her way–not even a rare genetic disorder the doctors say will slowly start to steal her memories and then her health. What she needs is a new plan.

So the Memory Book is born: Sammie’s notes to her future self, a document of moments great and small. It’s where she’ll record every perfect detail of her first date with longtime crush, Stuart–a brilliant young writer who is home for the summer. And where she’ll admit how much she’s missed her childhood best friend, Cooper, and even take some of the blame for the fight that ended their friendship.

Through a mix of heartfelt journal entries, mementos, and guest posts from friends and family, readers will fall in love with Sammie, a brave and remarkable girl who learns to live and love life fully, even though it’s not the life she planned.

My thoughts

The Memory Book is an incredibly sad and touching story of a girl’s determination to hold onto her future and her memories. Family, friendship, romance and self discovery in the midst of loosing yourself.

Sammie has been diagnosed with Niemann-Pick Type C, a long and complicated word that means Sammie will slowly lose her memories. In an attempt to hold onto herself she creates a memory book to record all the important things her future self will need to know to continue her life and move on to college.

This whole book is written as journal entries in Sammie’s memory book. But these are no ordinary teen girl diary entries, instead they are fun, touching and confronting retellings of various events, important things she thinks her future self should know. Some entries are simple reminders. Some are written by other characters. Some are letters to others, and some are clear retellings, as if we are right there as it happened.

Book Review: 738 Days

July 17, 2016 / Madison Dearnaley / 0 Comments

738 Days – Stacey Kade – Forge Books – Published 7 June 2016

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Synopsis

At fifteen, Amanda Grace was abducted on her way home from school. 738 days later, she escaped. Her 20/20 interview is what everyone remembers—Amanda describing the room where she was kept, the torn poster of TV heartthrob Chase Henry on the wall. It reminded her of home and gave her the strength to keep fighting.

Now, years later, Amanda is struggling to live normally. Her friends have gone on to college, while she battles PTSD. She’s not getting any better, and she fears that if something doesn’t change soon she never will.

Six years ago, Chase Henry defied astronomical odds, won a coveted role on a new TV show, and was elevated to super-stardom. With it, came drugs, alcohol, arrests, and crazy spending sprees. Now he’s sober and a Hollywood pariah, washed up at twenty-four.

To revamp his image, Chase’s publicist comes up with a plan: surprise Amanda Grace with the chance to meet her hero, followed by a visit to the set of Chase’s new movie. The meeting is a disaster, but out of mutual desperation, Amanda and Chase strike a deal. What starts as a simple arrangement, though, rapidly becomes more complicated when they realize they need each other in more ways than one. But when the past resurfaces in a new threat, will they stand together or fall apart?

My thoughts

The first half of 738 Days could have been a young adult contemporary/thriller, with plenty of heartbreak and family complications, but the second half was definitely new adult romance. I loved the story, love the characters (really, really loved both Chase and Amanda), and loved the mix of movie-star madness with the total heartbreaking reality of Amanda’s story of survival.

Amanda was kidnapped when she was sixteen and spent 738 horrible days as a prisoner and victim of abuse. Now, two years after her rescue, she is sick of being the shaking, terrified victim hiding in her closet. So when an unexpected visit from actor Chase Henry sends her running (literally) for her wardrobe, she takes up Chase’s offer to work together, to help him with his publicity and to hopefully spark her bravery so she can start living her life again and prevent her family from falling completely apart. Amanda doesn’t expect to fall for Chase, nor to finally feel something good, but can’t help her new-found feelings as she gets to know Chase as more than just an out-of-luck actor.

Book Review: How It Feels To Fly

May 11, 2016 / Madison Dearnaley / 2 Comments

How It Feels To Fly – Kathryn Holmes – HarperTeen – Published 14 June 2016

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Synopsis

A struggle with body dysmorphia forces one girl to decide if letting go of her insecurity also means turning her back on her dreams.

Sam has always known she’d be a professional dancer—but that was before her body betrayed her, developing unmanageable curves in all the wrong places. Lately, the girl staring back at Sam in the mirror is unrecognizable. Dieting doesn’t work, ignoring the whispers is pointless, and her overbearing mother just makes it worse.

Following a series of crippling anxiety attacks, Sam is sent to a treatment camp for teens struggling with mental and emotional obstacles. Forced to open up to complete strangers, Sam must get through the program if she wants to attend a crucial ballet intensive later in the summer. It seems hopeless until she starts confiding in a camp counselor who sparks a confidence she was sure she’d never feel again. But when she’s faced with disappointing setbacks, will Sam succumb to the insecurity that imprisons her?

My thoughts

I’m not sure how to review this book. Not because I’m in any doubt about how powerful and all-round fantastic it is, but because hits hard on some big issues. Reading it was challenging and confronting. It deals with serious topics, from body image, anxiety and therapy, to bullying, self perception and relationships, both good and bad.

I was immediately drawn into Sam’s world. She narrates the story and it gives readers the perfect insight into her head and thoughts. She struggles with a nasty, little voice constantly telling her that she’s no good, too fat and will never achieve her dream of becoming a professional ballerina. The majority of this book takes place at a summer camp for teens who are elite performers and athletes with anxiety issues. None of them want to be there and certainly don’t want to identify with the others. It takes some rocky starts and shouting matches for this loveable group to learn to work together. Continue reading

Book Review: Girl Against The Universe

April 26, 2016 / Madison Dearnaley / 0 Comments

Girl Against the Universe – Paula Stokes – HarperTeen – Published 17 May 2016

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Synopsis

Maguire is bad luck.

No matter how many charms she buys off the internet or good luck rituals she performs each morning, horrible things happen when Maguire is around. Like that time the rollercoaster jumped off its tracks. Or the time the house next door caught on fire. Or that time her brother, father, and uncle were all killed in a car crash—and Maguire walked away with barely a scratch.

It’s safest for Maguire to hide out in her room, where she can cause less damage and avoid meeting new people who she could hurt. But then she meets Jordy, an aspiring tennis star. Jordy is confident, talented, and lucky, and he’s convinced he can help Maguire break her unlucky streak. Maguire knows that the best thing she can do for Jordy is to stay away. But it turns out staying away is harder than she thought.

From author Paula Stokes comes a funny and poignant novel about accepting the past, embracing the future, and learning to make your own luck.

My thoughts

I thought this would be light and fluffy, about a girl whose bad luck involves paper cuts and missing the bus. But Maguire doesn’t dare go near any sort of public transport and tries to avoid people altogether after a series of severe accidents that have killed her family and injured her friends, leaving her without a scratch. This book is more about mental health than little incidents, yet still retains a sense of playfulness. It’s a romance, sports book and serious contemporary all rolled into one.

Maguire’s grief over the family she has lost and the rituals she uses to keep the people around her safe dominate her life. The book starts with Maguire in her first therapy session and a large portion of the book focuses on her setting tasks to overcome the belief that she is cursed and the reason so many bad things happen around her. It’s after each therapy session that she meets the guy waiting to go next. He forges a connection with her even when Maguire constantly rebuffs him. But she can’t deny being drawn to Jordy, who is balancing his own set of troubles but always has time for Maguire. Continue reading

Book Review: 100 Days Of Cake

April 16, 2016 / Madison Dearnaley / 0 Comments

100 Days of Cake – Shari Goldhagen – Atheneum Books for Young Readers – Published 17 May 2016

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Synopsis

Get well soon isn’t going to cut it in this quirky and poignant debut novel about a girl, her depression, an aggressive amount of baked goods, and the struggle to simply stay afloat in an unpredictable, bittersweet life.

There are only three things that can get seventeen-year-old Molly Byrne out of bed these days: her job at FishTopia, the promise of endless episodes of Golden Girls, and some delicious lo mien. You see, for the past two years, Molly’s been struggling with something more than your usual teenage angst. Her shrink, Dr. Brooks isn’t helping much, and neither is her mom who is convinced that baking the perfect cake will cure Molly of her depression—as if cake can magically make her rejoin the swim team, get along with her promiscuous sister, or care about the SATs.

Um, no. Never going to happen.

But Molly plays along, stomaching her mother’s failed culinary experiments, because, whatever—as long as it makes someone happy, right? Besides, as far as Molly’s concerned, hanging out with Alex at the rundown exotic fish store makes life tolerable enough. Even if he does ask her out every…single…day. But—sarcastic drum roll, please—nothing can stay the same forever. When Molly finds out FishTopia is turning into a bleak country diner, her whole life seems to fall apart at once. Soon she has to figure out what—if anything—is worth fighting for.

My thoughts

I have one word for you. Cake. Because from that delicious, albeit a little squashed, cake on the front cover, to the cake-patterned title page to the chapter titles, this book made me crave cake so very much. But 100 Days of Cake is not all light, fluffy mocha-cream icing. No, under that layer of sweet goodness is a heartfelt story of family, resilience and one girl’s determination to be well, despite everything that is thrown her way.

100 Days of Cake challenges readers to consider the way in which mental health impacts not only the survivor but those around them, especially their family and friends. The fallout and the effort to face each day effects everyone. It’s a team effort, and this is slowly revealed to both the reader and to Molly as she learns to reach out to others and to let the people around her reach out to her. Continue reading

Book List: Mental Health in Young Adult Fiction

March 21, 2016 / Madison Dearnaley / 0 Comments

Mental Health in Young Adult Fiction

Mental health is an important issue, and it is equally important that is it discussed. All teens need to be able to relate to characters in YA fiction and what better way to de-stigmatise mental health than being open and honest about it. Here is a short list of wonderful young adult novels that feature characters, either main or supporting, with mental health conditions. Click on the covers for more information.

That Night – Amy Giles – HarperTeen – Published 23 October 2018

Everything changed that night. Families. The way people looked at and treated you. You. A year ago Jess lost her brother in a shooting that shattered her world. Now her mother hardly gets out of bed and Jess needs to find a job to pay the bills. Lucas took up boxing after his brother sacrificed himself to save Lucas. But the boxing sometimes can’t control his panic attacks that seem to be increasing in frequency or the consuming guilt. Lucas and Jess are now tied together by tragedy, but when they start working together they find that shared memories might make for a wonderful friendship and even romance.

A Heart In A Body In the World – Deb Caletti – Simon Pulse – Published 18 September 2018

After everything that happened, everything that has been taken from her, Annabelle isn’t sure what to do. What can she do? So she runs. One night just takes off and starts running. She doesn’t have a plan, doesn’t expect her younger brother to create a route for her from Washington State to Washington DC. Doesn’t expect her mother to agree. Doesn’t expect her Grandpa Ed to travel with her in his RV as her support team. She also never expected to become an unwitting activist with a message to share. All Annabelle knows to do is to put one foot in front of the other – because after you’ve lost everything, what else can you do.

When Elephants Fly – Nancy Richardson Fischer – Harlequin Teen – Published September 4 2018

Lily is working off a tight plan to control the likelihood of her developing schizophrenia. The genetic odds are not in her favour but by living carefully she hopes to avoid following the same journey her mother took. But, when on assignment for her journalism internship, she witnesses an elephant reject her calf and Lily can’t help but see the parallels between their stories. Lily must decide if it is worth risking everything she has worked so hard to control to try and save the life of the elephant she is quickly coming to love.

Book Review: My Kind of Crazy

March 15, 2016 / Madison Dearnaley / 0 Comments

My Kind of Crazy – Robin Reul – Soucebooks Fire – Published 5 April 2016

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Synopsis

Despite the best of intentions, seventeen-year old, wisecracking Hank Kirby can’t quite seem to catch a break. It’s not that he means to screw things up all the time, it just happens. A lot. Case in point: his attempt to ask out the girl he likes literally goes up in flames when he spells “Prom” in sparklers on her lawn…and nearly burns down her house.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, Peyton Breedlove, a brooding loner and budding pyromaniac, witnesses the whole thing. Much to Hank’s dismay, Peyton takes an interest in him—and his “work.” The two are thrust into an unusual friendship, but their boundaries are tested when Hank learns that Peyton is hiding some dark secrets, secrets that may change everything he thought he knew about Peyton.

My thoughts

My Kind of Crazy is weirdly addictive, sad and way more confronting than I could have imagined. I instantly loved that cover, and I expected a story that was light, with plenty of fun pranks and daredevil schemes. Instead, My Kind of Crazy is far darker, with a mix of sad backstories and characters with serious troubles. It’s dark, deep and just a little seedy, but perhaps also more indicative of real life.

Both Peyton and Hank have troubled home lives. Hank’s brother and mother were killed in a car crash, leaving Hank with his alcoholic father and his father’s girlfriend, who works as a stripper. As the book is narrated by Hank, the reader is only privy to what Hank sees of Peyton’s life, but this includes a mother who never seems to be around, her mother’s abusive, live-in boyfriend, and her own tendency to light things on fire. Hank finds Peyton’s pyromaniac behaviours both intriguing and scary, and Peyton is drawn to Hank when she witnesses Hank accidentally setting her neighbour’s front yard on fire. Not one of Hank’s smartest moments, but one that will certainly alter his final year of high school. Continue reading

Book Review: Essential Maps For The Lost

March 5, 2016 / Madison Dearnaley / 0 Comments

Essential Maps for the Lost

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Synopsis

Sometimes people want to be lost. Madison—Mads to everyone who knows her—is trying her best to escape herself during one last summer away from a mother who needs more from her than she can give, and from a future that has been decided by everyone but her.

Sometimes the lost do the unimaginable, like the woman, the body, Mads collides with in the middle of the water on a traumatic morning that changes everything.

And sometimes the lost are the ones left behind, like the son of the woman in the water, Billy Youngwolf Floyd. Billy is struggling to find his way through each day in the shadow of grief. His one comfort is the map he carries in his pocket, out of his favorite book The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler.

When three lives (and one special, shared book) collide, strange things happen. Things like questions and coincidences and secrets, lots of secrets. Things like falling in love. But can two lost people telling so many lies find their way through tragedy to each other…and to solid ground?

My thoughts

This is a raw and revealing tale of survival and resilience, of searching for sunlight and chasing your dreams.

Right from the start the reader is warned that the story between Madison Murray (Mads) and Billy Youngwolf Floyd will be horrible but also beautiful. Readers are told to hang on through the tough bits and wait for the good. Well, this is great advice. There are plenty of hard bits in this story. One minute everything is going along smoothly, sunshine and puppy dogs, kisses and smiles and then suddenly everything spirals downwards, only to jump back again. This certainly is a book that drags you right along through the characters’ emotional turmoil.

Mads is up against a ticking clock. She has this one last summer before she must return home to her (slightly unstable) mother who needs her (and loves her), the (in-danger-of-crumbling) real-estate business she will share with her mother, and her endless future of house-showings and signed deals. She must pass her real-estate licensing course, forget about the college applications she never sent, and cope with the despair she feels over the looming deadline to her life. When Mads bumps into the body of Anna Youngwolf Floyd while swimming one morning, Mads’ path is irrevocably altered. Her obsession with Anna, who she was and why she came to be in the lake, brings her into the orbit of Anna’s son Billy. They connect through a series of unlikely yet not-coincidental meetings, but their story is not to be a smooth journey. Continue reading

Tag: Mental health (Page 5 of 6)

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