Mini Reviews: Mental Health Edition (Girl In Pieces and Made You Up)
Mental illness is a contemporary issue that I’m found very interesting to read about as it hasn’t been brought to attention as often as I would like. Statistics say that at least 20% of adults are affected by mental illnesses every year. Anxiety disorders are the most common, then depression.
The two books I am reviewing today are amazing books on
mental illness that have portrayed it so beautifully and that I have learnt so
much from. I wish more books like this were written and I hope that by me
talking about these books, you are encouraged to read them!
GIRL IN PIECES BY
KATHLEEN GLASGOW
I had heard a lot about this book going into it. I had very
high expectations for it and thought it to be like one of my favourite mental
health books (and favourite books of all time!) All The Bright Places to find
it wasn’t. That did make me feel a little let down but nonetheless, I did
really enjoy the book!
The idea was so important and I am so grateful to Glasgow
for having written a book like this, for all the girls out there who might be
in the same position as the main character, Charlie. The writing was beautiful
and heart wrenching and it was quite vivid in its description. I liked how
Glasgow didn’t shy away from telling the truth. She unflinching and unrelenting
in her recount and it created such an epic read.
The only reason I feel I was let down was because I couldn’t
relate. I had not been in a situation similar to Charlie so I found it hard to
connect with her and the other characters. I found because I wasn’t able to
connect, I wasn’t able to enjoy the book as much as others had. I couldn’t feel
deeply for the characters and at times, got a little bored because of how dry
the plot became.
However, I know other people absolutely adore this book,
especially if they could relate with Charlie. The only thing stopping me from
giving the book five stars is the fact that I couldn’t connect, which is no way
the fault of Glasgow or Charlie.
This is such a wonderful read and I hope you do pick it up
because I learnt so much about it and it gave me hope!
OVERALL RATING:
★★★★
MADE YOU UP BY
FRANCESCA ZAPPIA
What a beautiful book!
This had me hooked from the very first page and I managed to
read it in one day, within the duration of 4 to 5 hours! It was funny,
romantic, tense and mysterious.
I didn’t know anything about schizophrenia before this book
so it was really great to learn so much! The idea was a new one and it was so
well done.
I adored the characters. They were funny and real and I felt
like I knew them in real life! They just bounced off the pages for me. (Also,
can we talk about how cute Miles and Alex are? Yeah, okay, thanks!)
I wasn’t the biggest fan of the plot because I got confused
and it distracted from her mental illness, which I feel could have been the
bigger focus of the book, it was still highly entertaining and it had me
wondering what was real and what was not.
All in all, I adored this book and I highly suggest you read
it! More people need to be reading and fangirling over this book!
OVERALL RATING:
★★★★
Thanks to Harper Collins
Australia for sending me these two books. However, all thoughts and opinions
are my own and this is an honest review.
I hope you do pick these beautiful books up sometime or at least add them onto your TBR! And I hope you enjoyed reading my post and visit my blog again soon!
What is a good mental illness book you recommend I read? I'm always open to suggestions!
6 happy thoughts
Ahhh I haven't read these two yet! But I've wanted to read Girl in Pieces since forever, though the subject matter is very heavy and I'm not sure I want to be sad or heartbroken at this point of the... er, year, haha. Maybe one day, though.
ReplyDeleteAnd that cover for Made You Up is just gorgeous. You take such great pics, Anisha!
Thank you so much Reg! Also I found Girl In Pieces actually wasn't as heavy as I expected it to be! AND YES THE COVER FOR MADE YOU UP IS GORGEOUS!
DeleteI am glad to see that you enjoyed Made You Up. I had been wanting to check it out for a while but I still haven't. I actually started the book a few years ago and couldn't get into it though I want to give it another shot.
ReplyDeleteKrystianna @ Downright Dystopian
It's really awesome, you'll love it!
DeleteI loved Made You Up as well! <3 but I've been told the portrayal of mental illness was a bit sketchy and incomplete... both which I entirely missed considering I was a psychology student :') hahaha buuut I love the story and it reminded me of Looking for Alaska (which I loved)! I have Girl in Pieces on my TBR and excited for it but OMG THIS COVER IS A LOT PRETTIER <3 as for mental illness books I'd recommend Highly Illogical Behavior (agoraphobia), Whisper to Me (psychotic), and I'll Meet You There (more like a contemporary romance but amazing portrayal of PTSD) <3
ReplyDeleteYes I've heard the representation for Made You Up isn't the best and I've been meaning to fix up my review to match it! And I enjoyed Highly Illogical Behaviour and I can't wait to read the other books you mentioned! Thanks for the recs!
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