(Don't) Call Me Crazy

Starred review from August 1, 2018

Gr 7 Up-Opening up about mental health is difficult but necessary, asserts the editor of this thought-provoking anthology. Libba Bray personifies her obsessive-compulsive disorder and anxiety, while Stephanie Kuehn describes life with misophonia. Adam Silvera dispels the myth that successful or cheerful individuals don't experience depression; Emery Lord seethes at the ignorant remarks about suicide she overhears at a Vincent van Gogh exhibit. Contributors also examine gender, sexuality, and ethnicity, as in Hannah Bae's exploration of her Korean family's reluctance to seek help for her mother's schizophrenia. The rare lackluster entry never detracts from the whole. As in Jensen's Here We Are: Feminism for the Real World, illustrations and a peppy design enhance this scrapbooklike volume. VERDICT Misconceptions about mental health still abound, making this honest yet hopeful title a vital selection for libraries.-Mahnaz Dar, School Library Journal

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2018
A lively, compelling anthology about mental health by over 30 contributors from a variety of backgrounds.The essays in this collection about mental health are accompanied by graphics, a list of novels to explore, and photographs, among other formats. Recurring themes include paying attention to the power of language and labels, the necessity of support and community, and the importance of normalizing conversations about mental health issues. Essays are mostly brief, highly personal accounts that discuss individual experiences with various conditions ranging from depression and bipolar disorder to trichotillomania and misophonia. Adam Silvera explains why he writes sad stories for teens and the meaning behind his Happiness Goes On tattoo. Libba Bray offers insights in the form of a dialogue among herself, her OCD, and her anxiety while seated on an airplane. The entries from artists, actors, journalists, authors, poets, illustrators, musicians, athletes, and bloggers offer inspiration and guidance both by example and through more explicit advice, with contributors representing different genders, ethnicities, and sexual orientations. While the loose structure disorients at times, making some entries feel randomly thrown together, the raw, informal approach to the subject matter will highly appeal to young people who crave understanding and validation. A valuable addition to library collections and for use by school counselors.This highly readable and vital collection demonstrates the multiplicity of ways that mental health impacts individuals. (resources, contributor bios) (Nonfiction. 13-18)

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September 1, 2018
Grades 9-12 Jensen (Here We Are: Feminism for the Real World?, 2017) gathers together another varied, empowering collection of personal essays, poetry, artwork, and comics about the many ways people experience mental illness. Confessional and conversational, the contributions cover a wide array of conditions, treatments, and ways to manage symptoms, and while it can occasionally be a mixed bag, the best contributions are deeply resonant. Shaun David Hutchinson emphasizes that Depression . . . may live in your skin, but it does not control you; Emery Lord recounts visiting a Van Gogh exhibit during a depressive episode in a stirring, sharply funny essay; Hannah Bae describes how her troubled homelife contributed to her own disordered thinking; and Monique Bedard offers a moving prose poem about the pernicious, lasting effects of the systemic abuse of Native women. With this diverse array of contributors offering a stunning wealth of perspectives on mental health, teens looking for solidarity, comfort, or information will certainly be able to find something that speaks to them. Resources and further reading make this inviting, much-needed resource even richer.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)