Mental Health – Page 9 – My Good Reads

‘The One Memory of Flora Banks’ – Emily Barr

The One Memory of Flora Banks

If our memories shape us, what do those people who have lost the ability to make memories do? The artwork on the cover hints at the idea that memory can be fractured, and we rely on all the pieces coming together to create a whole. Due for release in early January 2017, I was excited to receive an ARC of this novel from NetGalley – and having finished my read I really hope the rest of 2017 is as good!

Our narrator, Flora, is what could be deemed an unreliable narrator, though this is because she has lost the ability to create short-term memories after an incident that occurred when she was ten years old. Flora is quite childlike, which may be because her retained memories come from before this age. Living with her parents in Penzance, Flora seems to accept that she will never leave her family home and that everyone knows who she is even though she can’t remember them.

When I first started reading I found the style of the book quite abrupt. It gave the merest hint of what Flora’s daily life would be like, and it was more than a little disconcerting.

There were a few things that niggled me as I was reading – namely, the idea that Drake’s kiss was the one thing that Flora could remember – but things all made a lot more sense as I neared the conclusion of her story.

As I read the novel, I was struck by the strength of character that Flora shows. I will certainly take from this read the idea that we all need, no matter our age, to give time to think about ourselves and what is important to us.

A huge thank you to the publishers, Philomel books, and NetGalley for allowing me to read this before publication.

‘Cuckoo’ – Keren David

Cuckoo

As a child soap star, Jake is used to everyone knowing his name and following his every move. One day his character goes up to his bedroom and, six months later, still hasn’t been seen or heard from. Nobody is quite sure what is happening, but then real life takes over and becomes far more dramatic than any story-line Jake has been involved in previously.

Told in an interesting format, we are given the script for a project that Jake decides to post on YouTube in order to give his view of events. As the main protagonist in the story, we’re never certain to what extent Jake is biased in his account, and the comments from other characters does suggest strongly that there is more to the story than Jake is telling us.

The novel focuses on Jake’s deteriorating relationship with his family and shows the ease with which somebody can lose their comfortable life. We are shown Jake dealing with life on the streets, but he falls on his feet and ends up becoming friends with an elderly recluse who just happened to be a great actress.

If I’m entirely honest, this felt rather disjointed and like there was too much going on at one time. Though I enjoyed the general idea, I do wish that David had resisted the urge to give Jake the Hollywood-ending.

‘The Masked Truth’ – Kelly Armstrong

I found the start of this really got me hooked.

We watch Riley as she prepares to start her impromptu evening baby-sitting…only to end up cowering under the bed with her young charge as the adults are murdered.

The action then moves on to show Riley has become seen as quite the hero, though she feels guilt about her role in events, and is encouraged to take part in a group therapy weekend.

Involvement in this event is, perhaps naturally, something she is not keen to participate in. What follows is, honestly, beyond belief and though it was interesting enough as I was reading it will not – I’m pretty certain – be that memorable.

It’s giving nothing away to reveal that once the weekend starts – and the teens involved are without phones or any other means to communicate with the outside world – we learn that they are taken captive. Naturally, given the subject, there’s some violence, and the focus on Max and his schizophrenia might be hard for some to read.

Just when you think you’re keeping up with events, you start to realise that we’re always one step behind!

‘The Yellow Room’ – Jess Vallance

Having read ‘Birdy’ it came as little surprise to me that in ‘The Yellow Room’ Vallance creates another set of dysfunctional characters, who form unhealthy obsessions.

When sixteen year old Anna receives a letter from her father’s girlfriend, asking that they meet because he has died we are given some clues about the type of relationship Anna has with her family. It did strike me as strange that this issue wasn’t discussed by Anna with anyone, and that Anna received such important news from someone she had never met.

Against her better judgement Anna meets Edie, and is immediately drawn to her. Edie is the mother-figure that Anna desperately craves, and the bond they form is unnaturally close.

As the story progresses we are given some clues as to how this story might resolve. By the time we start to piece some of these ideas together it is, just as it is for Anna, too late to do anything but see them through to their natural conclusion.

Tautly written, and quite unnerving, this is a dark story that I didn’t particularly like but couldn’t put down.

‘Highly Illogical Behaviour’ – John Corey Whaley

I picked this one up, not quite sure what to expect, and I think I can safely say it’s one of my favourite reads in a while.

When we first hear about Solomon it’s hard to know what to make of him. He’s sixteen and ever since the day he jumped in a fountain outside school he has not left his house. His panic attacks have led to severe agoraphobia and this is one of those conditions that is so hard to imagine. Loving the outdoors as I do, I can’t understand how things could be so bad that you shut yourself away from this experience in an attempt to keep yourself safe. The terrible effects of mental health issues not being discussed/addressed are all too evident here, and the ease with which Solomon disappears from the lives of his peers is telling.

Coming at the story from this viewpoint, I found myself quite irritated by the character of Lisa initially. A very determined young woman, Lisa resolves to befriend Solomon and ‘save’ him in order to write up her experience and get a scholarship to a psychology programme. It all feels very wrong, and I spent a lot of the first part of the novel almost hoping nothing would come of it as I was so concerned about the message this would send.

Thankfully, Whaley prevents this becoming mawkish with his portrayal of Sol who has to go down as one of the characters I would most like to know in real life. He’s all too aware of his limitations, is a complete geek with a very wicked sense of humour and shows himself to be a totally genuine character. I watched with admiration as he battles his fears while finding friendship, and even when things take a difficult turn Sol remains true to himself in a way that I felt was quite inspirational.

My response to Sol was, no doubt, helped by the character of Clark, Lisa’s boyfriend. Though he seemed to be added in as a third wheel initially, his role in the development of the story was pivotal. He, again, was a genuine character whom I came to admire tremendously. His friendship with Sol was touching, without having to be labelled in the way it seemed to be heading at one point.
In spite of my reservations about Lisa initially, she shows the capacity for development and growth that I think is so important to see. Sure she gets things wrong – horribly so – but she comes to acknowledge this and shows herself to be capable of doing what is necessary to rectify these problems.

As you can see, this was a book I thoroughly adored.

‘The Movie Version’ – Emma Wunsch

The Movie Version

Due for publication in October 2016, I thank publishers Amulet and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. Described as ‘a whip-smart, heart-wrenching debut YA novel about first love, first loss, and filmmaking’ this strikes me as the kind of novel that will divide opinion.

In ‘The Movie Version’ we are introduced to Amelia and her family. She is obsessed with movies, and in her life elder brother Toby is the archetypal star. Everything revolves around her popular, smart brother and Amelia seems to accept her role as ‘second-best’ without question.

After returning from a summer away working, Amelia can’t help but notice that her brother has changed. He’s always been a little erratic, but Amelia is concerned by his outbursts and lack of personal hygiene. Initially she puts Toby’s changed behaviour down to a summer of smoking pot – and she covers for his slip-ups without question, because that’s what she’s always done – but when he is found in a state of extreme anxiety it is clear that something is not right.

Slowly it becomes clear that Toby is actually suffering with schizophrenia. His illness impacts on family life in ways that they cannot imagine, and it is all too apparent that Amelia has hidden behind her brother for so long that she has not really pushed herself to develop personally.

Initially I found the constant film referencing a little self-congratulatory, but I know this will appeal to some readers. Amelia veered between sensitivity towards her brother and genuinely offensive – perhaps this is realistic, but I wonder if her attitude will make it harder for some readers to really empathise with her.

‘Born Scared’ – Kevin Brooks

Born Scared

Due for publication in early September 2016, this is the first offering by Kevin Brooks since he won the Carnegie Medal in 2014 with the highly topical The Bunker Diary.

Brooks has always been one of those writers that I’ve admired for tackling that which is not obvious. He finds the unusual in every one of his characters, and sometimes it is more successful than others. In this instance, though there are things I would have liked to have further detail about I have to say that I was absorbed throughout the time I was reading this.

From the opening pages we are told that Elliot is scared of everything. There is no obvious explanation for this, and nobody seems able to help him. He survives because of his daily dose of medication – but even that experience creates fear. I think there is a part of Elliot that many people will identify with, though his anxiety is extreme and he appears to be resigned to allowing others to manage his environment as best they can.

While Elliot’s experiences would be interesting, they wouldn’t keep us engaged for the whole novel. So we find Elliot in the awful position on Christmas Eve of only having two pills left and, with an awful snow storm on the way, plans are made for his mother to collect his prescription.

It may seem a farcical situation, but Elliot’s mother gets caught up in events that nobody could predict. When she does not return at the expected time, Elliot is forced into the truly terrifying situation of having to step outside his own home and go to find her.

Telling you what happens to Elliot from this point on would be unfair. Suffice to say, Brooks describes the terror Elliot feels with sensitivity. It was thoroughly absorbing to read. I’d have liked a little more detail in places, but I could not wait to finish it once it became clear how the various characters were linked.

A huge thank you to Egmont publishing and NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

‘Nothing Tastes As Good’ – Claire Hennessy

Nothing Tastes as Good

Released in July 2016, this novel by Claire Hennessy has come in for criticism with some reviewers who dislike the sentiments expressed about body image and size. Perhaps I’m missing something, but the blurb hints strongly at the nature of the illness our main character, Annabel, has been living with. I think it’s unnecessarily provocative to seize on the thoughts and ideas she has (which are the product of her illness) and to see them as representative of the author’s views. Indeed, in response to me asking Claire Hennessy on Goodreads what she felt about those readers who had been critical of this novel she had this to say:

Hennessy quote

Annabel, our main character, is dead. As a ghost desperate for further contact with her family she is asked to complete an assignment. Her assignment involves helping someone she used to go to school with – Julia. Initially, Annabel is not told how she has to help Julia and it was a little confusing trying to work out just how the girls were linked and what Annabel would be required to do.

What I loved from the start was the way Hennessy portrayed the character of Annabel. Comments about her personal health and circumstances, and her comments about Julia and other girls she has met, suggest that Annabel is not quite as healthy and strong-minded as she believes herself to be. The gradual revelation of the extent to which Annabel and those around her have been affected by her anorexia was powerful.

Although Annabel is the main character, Julia’s role in the novel is equally important. Through Julia, Hennessy sensitively explores a number of issues that impact on many teenage girls today.

This is, in my view, a brave book and one that I feel any teenager – or adult working with teenagers – should be encouraged to read.

‘Detached’ – Christina Kilbourne

I think the first thing that I have to say is that any book that gets teenagers to think about mental health issues is a good thing, particularly one that is so unflinching in the way it explores one of the things that scares adults most – suicide.

Sixteen-year-old Anna is a talented artist but since her grandparents died in a car crash caused by a drunk driver she feels detached from those around her. On the surface she seems to be coping, but inwardly her thoughts increasingly turn to suicide.

I found it hard to believe that someone of Anna’s age would attempt suicide five times and nobody would actually recognise there was anything wrong. That aside, I did find myself keen to keep reading and see whether Anna would get the help she so obviously needed.

As well as watching Anna research how to kill herself, we watch how she fails time after time. Her survival instinct is strong, and it’s fairly apparent that she is living with depression. The experience of her Grandmother didn’t come as much as a surprise. We also see Anna coping with a period in treatment/therapy, and feeling fairly positive about the future at the end of the novel.

Ultimately, I felt that the book suffered from trying to cover too many aspects of the issue. I think this is a good starting point, but the issue is far more complex than we are led to believe here.

‘All The Bright Places’ – Jennifer Niven

Published in 2015, ‘All The Bright Places’ strikes me as one of those books that, once found, will be held dear in the hearts of its readers.

Please don’t be under any illusions; this is a book that deals with raw emotions and the focus on mental health/bereavement may be quite challenging for some. However, I think this is an important book as many teenagers and young adults will live through such events. How can they ever hope to navigate their way through these emotions and experiences if they are sheltered from them?

When we meet Violet Markey she is living with the fact that she survived the crash that killed her sister. She feels guilty. This goes some way to explaining why, when we first meet her, she is sitting at the top of her school’s bell tower trying to find the courage to get down. Her rescuer is Theodore Finch, a boy reviled by many of his classmates simply because he doesn’t conform to their label. Thus begins a beautiful friendship.

This book makes no secret of the fact that Finch and Violet are struggling to live with some pretty nasty demons. Yet, together, they seem to lift one another.
Though you sense where this ends, I was in no way prepared for the emotional impact of the story. Niven does not shy away from the details that we may prefer not to know.

This is fascinating to read. I found it hard as an adult to sit back and watch these fragile teenagers dealing with what was thrown at them. The anger I felt towards Finch’s family took me by surprise. As a young adult I think I would have loved this book; as an adult I’m trying to encourage my own teenager to read it and hoping the film will be released soon.