I’m a teacher turned author. I’ve spent hours in middle and high schools watching students struggle because they couldn’t get the support they need. And hours listening to the experiences of child and adult victims my husband brought home from work. When we as a society begin to treat mental illness as simply illness, we’ll be on the right track to giving our society the support it needs.
There’s something about the paranormal slant of this book that allows it to highlight so much of the journey from ignoring the past and moving forward, to re-remembering the past and learning to accept it and move forward with it rather than running away from the events that shape us.
Brilliant writing. Great for anyone who has gone into a new situation feeling completely out of place. Deals with PTSD/Repressed memories in such a thoughtful way.
A modern ghost story about trauma and survival, Watch Over Me is the much-anticipated new novel from the Printz Award-winning author of We Are Okay
"Gripping; an emotion-packed must-read." -Kirkus, starred review "A painfully compelling gem from a masterful creator." -Booklist, starred review "Moving, unsettling, and full of atmospheric beauty." -SLJ, starred review
Mila is used to being alone.
Maybe that's why she said yes. Yes to a second chance in this remote place, among the flowers and the fog and the crash of waves far below.
First, and very selfishly, I specialized in middle east studies in college, so I loved every piece of this story that takes place in Iran. My other favorite thing is that Darius suffers from clinical depression and it’s not due to an accident or past trauma, it’s simply how his body functions. This book showcases so well that mental illness is like any other illness—and it’s done by using the blocks that so many people on medications face from people who don’t understand this basic principle.
Darius Kellner speaks better Klingon than Farsi, and he knows more about Hobbit social cues than Persian ones. He's a Fractional Persian - half, his mum's side - and his first-ever trip to Iran is about to change his life. Darius has never really fit in at home, and he's sure things are going to be the same in Iran. His clinical depression doesn't exactly help matters, and trying to explain his medication to his grandparents only makes things harder. Then Darius meets Sohrab, the boy next door, and everything changes. Soon, they're spending their days together, playing soccer, eating…
Feral Maril & Her Little Brother Carol
by
Leslie Tall Manning,
Winner of the Literary Titan Book Award
Bright but unassuming Marilyn Jones has some grown-up decisions to make, especially after Mama goes to prison for drugs and larceny. With no one to take care of them, Marilyn and her younger, mentally challenged brother, Carol, get tossed into the foster care…
Does John Green need me to recommend his book? No, he does not. However. I’ve talked to so many teens about this book who have said – He gets how my brain works and that’s a fabulous thing. As a parent, I loved this inside into how my oldest was struggling, and as a human, I loved what I learned. There’s no glorification of her mental health, nor is it used to aid another character in their own story. Turtles All the Way Down is brutally honest about the mistakes and ups and downs that come from having any type of illness.
The critically acclaimed, instant #1 bestseller by John Green, author of The Anthropocene Reviewed and The Fault in Our Stars
"A tender story about learning to cope when the world feels out of control." -People
"A sometimes heartbreaking, always illuminating, glimpse into how it feels to live with mental illness." - NPR
John Green, the award-winning, international bestselling author of The Anthropocene Reviewed, returns with a story of shattering, unflinching clarity in this brilliant novel of love, resilience, and the power of lifelong friendship.
Aza Holmes never intended to pursue the disappearance of fugitive billionaire Russell Pickett, but there's a…
This is a lesser-known book, and I wish more teens had it in their library. There is no shirking behind any kind of veil or safety as Vincent weaves his way through his suicidal ideations, finds friendships, and navigates his health back to safety. This is a quiet novel that’s brutally honest about how one continues on when they’re not sure why they should.
Bonus for animal lovers as Vincent spends a lot of time at the local animal shelter.
Vincent has spent his entire life being shuffled from one foster home to the next. His grades suck. Making friends? Out of the question thanks to his nervous breakdowns and unpredictable moods. Still, Vince thought when Maggie Atkins took him in, he might've finally found a place to get his life--and his issues--in order. When Maggie dies, it all falls apart. A year ago, Vince watched a girl leap to her death off a bridge. He's starting to think she had the right idea. Through a pro-suicide forum, Vince meets others with the same debate regarding death: cancer-ridden Casper would…
When I teach writers about how seemingly simple scenes can hold huge tension, I talk about the opening of Wintergirls. Huge emotion and many pages dedicated to only a few minutes within Lia’s day. It’s heartbreaking and honest but so full of hope. This also showcases how hard it is to find that hope when an illness has taken over your thoughts and when grief clouds everything else. The language of this book is a masterclass in emotion and showcases so well what it’s like when your life is consumed by an eating disorder.
"Dead girl walking," the boys say in the halls. "Tell us your secret," the girls whisper, one toilet to another. I am that girl. I am the space between my thighs, daylight shining through. I am the bones they want, wired on a porcelain frame.
Lia and Cassie are best friends, wintergirls frozen in matchstick bodies, competitors in a deadly contest to see who can be the skinniest. But what comes after size zero and size double-zero? When Cassie succumbs to the demons within, Lia feels she is being haunted by her friend's restless spirit.
I wrote Stronger Than You Know because we don’t talk often enough about what happens after the rescue. At fifteen, Joy has been “rescued” from her abusive mother and is desperately struggling to find a new normal in a house and family that feel too perfect to be real. My inspiration came from the heartbreaking cases my husband brought home from his job as a prosecutor and victim’s advocate. The trauma isn’t over when the trauma ends—healing takes time, no matter how ideal the new situation is.
Finalist for the 2023 California Book Award, and the 2023 Northern California Book Award.
Eighteen-year-old Del is in a healthier place than she was a year and a half ago. She’s sober, getting treatment for her depression and anxiety, and volunteering at a suicide prevention hotline. Her own suicide attempt…
Quinton Wyatt's summer break before high school should be nothing but wall-to-wall fun. Instead, his best friend has stopped talking to him; his fiendish older sister has filled his head with tales of a sadistic high school ritual called "The Freshman Stomp"; and his divorced father has started dating the…
