Have a Nice Day

Starred review from September 1, 2012
Biting wit makes this quest for suburban normalcy in the face of depression and anxiety both laugh-out-loud funny and immensely intelligent. In Get Well Soon (2007), Anna spent three weeks in a mental hospital, unwillingly. Now she faces her first three weeks back at home--Dad retaining his "classically trained dick" attitude, Mom riddled with "wuss issues"--and back at school. She's insecure about where she's been and fears the in-class panic attacks and bowel symptoms that plagued her earlier. She postpones writing to hospital romance Justin, unsure what to say. Instead, Anna focuses on art class, funky clothing and her peers in outpatient therapy. Her first-person narration brims with humor and raunchiness: "The dark wood that made up the library's decor screamed 1976 academia, but the dainty sentiment of 'EB sucks cock' scratched into the wood brought a modern feel." As life improves, she questions sharply which aspects of treatment--or life--are really helping. Anna finds Holden Caulfield (Halpern employs layered and alluring Catcher in the Rye references); boys find her. Characters and observations are impressively original. The only staleness is relentless textual insistence that Anna's weight loss--born of "crappy mental hospital cafeteria food, depression, [and] anxiety"--is crucial to, and the same thing as, her recovery. Aside from the too-anxious-to-eat valorization, fresh as a daisy and sharp as a tack. (Fiction. 12-17)

COPYRIGHT(2012) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

October 1, 2012

Gr 9 Up-This sequel to Get Well Soon (Feiwel & Friends, 2007) begins minutes after the first book ends. Anna Bloom has just returned home after spending three weeks at a mental hospital for depression. The first book detailed her time in the hospital and was written as letters from Anna to her best friend, Tracy. This book is narrated by Anna. She tells what happens as she returns to school and discusses the family dynamics as her parents' marriage falls apart. Readers finally get to meet Tracy as well as Anna's other school friends. Anna is nervous about how everyone will treat her now that she has a history. Her return to school ends up being a nonevent. She has lost weight during her hospitalization, and as the story unfolds, her worry and panic attacks begin to subside. She really does heal and learn to accept herself and the flaws of her family members and friends. This book stands alone as the many references to Anna's stay in the psych ward and the people she met there are well explained. The teen is honest about her feelings and uses strong and raw language to express herself. Her voice can be annoying with her constant complaining about her condition and the way her parents handle her problems and theirs, so this novel is not for everyone. However, there will be an audience of teen girls who clamor for stories about characters with issues like Anna's.-Elizabeth Kahn, Patrick F. Taylor Science & Technology Academy, Jefferson, LA

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 1, 2012
Grades 8-12 In this sequel to Get Well Soon (2007), Anna Bloom is newly released from her three-week stint at Lakeland ( Lake Shit ), a Chicago mental-health facility where she was treated for depression and panic attacks. As if reentry isn't difficult enough, her passive mom and absentee, disconnected dad are separating. Despite a tough home situation (and other sucky things like IBS and group therapy), Anna is starting to feel normal, as she solidifies friendships and views artsy boy Tucker as a potential love interest. Anna's sarcastic voice is sharp as ever, and those who followed her through treatment will be anxiousand pleasedto see where she is at today.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)