Rules book trailer

Rules by Cynthia Lord

See my post about the book as well.

Black-eyed Suzie book trailer

Black-eyed Suzie by Susan Shaw

See my post about the book as well.

Kissing Doorknobs book trailer

Kissing Doorknobs by Terry Spencer Hesser

See my post about the book as well.

Countdown Book Trailer

Countdown by Deborah Wiles

See my post about the book as well.

The Crazy Man book trailer

The Crazy Man by Pamela Porter

See post about this book as well.

The Phoenix Dance

The Phoenix Dance

Author: Dia Calhoun

Publisher: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux (2005)

ISBN: 0374359105

4 (out of 5) STARS

Summary: "Phoenix Dance battles an illness of her mind and emotions, realizes her dream of becoming shoemaker to the Royal Household, and attempts to discover what magic compels the twelve princesses of Windward to wear out their shoes each night." (publisher summary. Just so well put!)

Review: Phoenix Dance suffers from bi-polar disorder. In the book it is referred to as the Illness of the Two Kingdoms. People who suffer from bi-polar disorder experience extreme mood fluctuations. Their highs cause them to reach great heights of energy and creativity which can lead to sleeplessness, lack of appetite and poor choices. Their lows reach great depths of despair and depression which can even lead to suicide. The author of this book , Dia Calhoun, also has bi-polar. She has wanted to write a book about this disease for a long time and finally the fairy tale about the twelve dancing princesses seemed exactly correct. Calhoun believed the twelve princesses suffer a rapidly fluctuating case of bi-polar. The princess’s highs occur during the night when they dance their shoes to tatters. Then the despair occurs during the day when they cannot eat or sleep or concentrate, but feel depressed until they can again frantically dance.

The reader does not get to know the princesses very well in this book. The main character, Phoenix Dance, actually does suffer from bi-polar and must struggle with this disease as she makes choices about her career (shoemaking), love (Whelk), friendship (Rora)and if she wants to take her daily medicine to level her mood swings.

A Blue So Dark

A Blue So Dark

Author: Holliy Schindler

Publisher: Flux (2010)

ISBN: 9780738719269

4 (out of 5) STARS

Summary: Auro alone cares for her increasingly deranged mother after her parent’s divorce three years ago. All Auro wants is to be normal, but is that possible with a schizophrenic mother?

Review: Auro has been the sole caretaker of her mother for three years now. Auro’s mother has schizophrenia and it is increasingly getting worse. “Schizophrenia is a disease that is greatly feared and not well understood. Most of what people think they know about schizophrenia is wrong” (pg. 237). At the beginning of each chapter is a small tidbit about schizophrenia written most likely by Auro, but it does not say for sure.

Although caring for her mother is difficult what truly, deeply scares Auro is that she will turn out just like her mother. Auro feels like she can make a case for her fear. Auro’s mother is a painter and schizophrenic. Auro’s grandfather was a writer and schizophrenic. Many famous creative people were schizophrenic, one example being Vincent Van Gogh. Auro is a painter and a writer of poetry. She is scared to death that she will turn out like her grandfather and mother.

The descriptions and the poetry in the book are very descriptive and thought provoking. One such passage that spoke to me was after Auro’s mother went catatonic. “Let me tell you something-the inside of an ambulance is one thing you never want to see for yourself. It means that the whole world has just gone to shit. It means that death is dancing at your door” (pg. 199).

Alan and Naomi

Alan and Naomi
Author: Myron Levoy
Publisher: HarperCollins (1977)
ISBN: 0064402096

4.5 (out of 5) STARS

Summary: Alan is encouraged by his parents to befriend a girl who traumatized by the Nazi's in Europe. Alan and Naomi become good friends over time. But the traumas and scars within Naomi reach deep and Alan must come to terms with that.

Review: During the middle of World War II Naomi and her mother immigrate to the United States as Jewish refugees. Naomi suffers from extreme post traumatic stress disorder. She witnessed the brutal murder of her father in France. Naomi and her father were frantically trying to destroy critical maps while the Nazi’s were pounding at the door. They were ripping and tearing the maps up, trying to flush them down the toilet, even swallowing pieces. The destruction of the maps was successful, but Naomi could not save her father. She blames herself for his death.

Alan is a boy who lives in the same apartment building as Naomi. He is asked and encouraged to become friends with Naomi. When he first starts visiting her she will not even look at him. She spends all her time shredding newspapers into tiny pieces. Alan decides to take his ventriloquist dummy with him. Over time Alan’s’ dummy named Charlie and Naomi’s doll named Yvette become friends. After many months Naomi is doing quite well and is able to attend school with Alan.

I found this book to be a very thought provoking novel. Alan felt a great deal of peer pressure to hang out with the boys and not befriend a girl. But he made the difficult, moral choice to help another person. Although this book does not indicate, I would think this experience changed Alan and made him a more compassionate, strong person.

Rules

Rules

Author: Cynthia Lord

Publisher: Scholastic (2006)

ISBN: 0545036402

5 (out of 5) STARS

Summary: Catherine wishes for a "normal" life, but it is difficult with her brother who has autism. But the summer brings two new friends into Catherine's life and she learns to redefine normal.

Review:

“RULES FOR DAVID

Chew with your mouth closed.

Say ‘thank you’ when someone gives you a present (even if you don’t like it.)

If someone says, ‘hi,’ you say ‘hi’ back.

When you want to get out of answering something, distract the questioner with
another question.

Not everything worth keeping has to be useful.

If the bathroom door is closed, knock (especially if Catherine has a friend over)!

Sometimes people laugh when they like you. But sometimes they laugh to hurt you.

No toys in the fish tank.”

Twelve year old Catherine and eight year old David are siblings. David has autism and his family revolves around his disability. Catherine writes down and explains social and behavioral rules to help David understand how to act appropriately. This is the fascinating part about autism because so much of human behavior is learned not taught. But for David everything must be spelled out specifically and often even then it does not help.

As Catherine gets older she worries more about how others react to David. Catherine finds an unlikely friend when she goes with David to his occupational therapy. Jason cannot talk or walk, but he thinks and feels just fine. Catherine and Jason help each other find peace in their own life experiences.

Rabble Starkey

Rabble Starkey

Author: Lois Lowry

Publisher: Bantam Doubleday (1987)

ISBN: 0440400562

4 (out of 5) STARS

Summary: Parable Ann (Rabble) and her mother moved in with the Bigelow family to help while Mrs. Bigelow spends time in a mental institution to deal with depression.

Review: Parable Ann (Rabble) was named by her Grandmother. Rabble was born to her mother, Sweet Hosanna, when her mother was just fourteen years old. Sweet-Ho spent many years away from Rabble as she worked different jobs. But when Grandmother died Sweet-Ho and Rabble settled down to tend children and clean house for the Bigelow family.

Mrs. Bigelow suffered from depression and quite possibly other mental illnesses. After a particularly dangerous episode of Mrs. Bigelow trying to baptize her son Gunther, she went to spend some time in a mental hospital.

Sweet-Ho and Rabble moved into the house to help care for the family. These two families had quite different challenges and yet both tried to do the best they could. Mr. Bigelow encouraged Sweet-Ho to go to school. It took quite a bit of convincing, but Sweet-Ho finally applied and was accepted into college.

Mrs. Bigelow became well enough to return home. Which was a good thing, but where did that leave Sweet-Ho and Rabble? Life is about change and trying to find the best path for yourself and your family.

Kissing Doorknobs

Kissing Doorknobs

Author: Terry Spencer Hesser

Publisher: Random House (1998)

ISBN: 9780440413141

5 (out of 5) STARS

Summary: When Tara was eleven her obsessive-compulsive disorder erupted in full force. After working through many misdiagnoses and new compulsions she finally learns about her condition and starts to get help.

Review: Tara worried about nearly everything from the time she was a little girl. She also suffered extreme anxious as a young child when she was away from her mother. When Tara was eleven she heard the rhyme “step on a crack, break your mother’s back.” She could not get it out of her head. And then Tara’s life began to unravel. She began counting the cracks in the sidewalk on her way to school. If she lost count or missed a crack, she had to run home and start over again. Tara did not like having to do this and often cried on her way to school. But she had to count, she just had to.

Over time Tara’s compulsions would wane and then flair up again. Often the compulsions would change. One of the most time consuming compulsions was when Tara would have to kiss the front door doorknob with just the exact amount of pressure on her mouth and again on the doorknob. She had to do it 33 times before she could open the front door.

Finally after visiting many doctors and receiving many incorrect diagnoses, Tara meet someone who knew about her condition (obsessive compulsive disorder) and was able to find her help and a new friend who understood her.

It's Kind of a Funny Story

It's Kind of a Funny Story

Author: Ned Vizzini

Publisher: Hyperion (2006)

ISBN: 0786851961

3 (out of 5) STARS

Summary: Craig Gilner desires entry into the most elite high school in New York City. But once he is accepted, Craig's life slides into a deep depression. It takes a stay in a mental hospital for him to see his path to happiness.

Review: Craig works very hard in school and studies faithfully to pass the test that will allow him entry into the Executive Pre-Professional High School. He does get accepted. But it is not what he expected or hoped. No longer is Craig the brightest student in his classes. His grades begin to slip and his stress level goes through the roof. He sees his homework piling up and piling up. His email box is getting crowded and he cannot keep up with it. He begins to lose sleep. In fact, it reaches a point where he cannot sleep or eat. And everything comes to a head one night when he tries to commit suicide.

Craig checks into a mental hospital for a stay of five days. But these five days help bring him clarity and lead to an end of his depression. He also gets back on his medication to help control the depression.

The author of this book, Ned Vizzini, also spent five days in an adult psychiatric ward from November 29, 2004 to December 3, 2004. He then went on to write this book of 444 pages from December 10, 2004 to January 6, 2005. I often find my pleasure, enjoyment, and appreciation of a book increases when I learn more about the author and see a connection to their personal life.

A Mango-Shaped Space

A Mango-Shaped Space
Author: Wendy Mass
Publisher: Little, Brown books (2003)
ISBN: 0316523887

4.5 (out of 5) STARS

Summary: Thirteen-year-old Mia Winchell appears to be completely normal. But there is a secret she keeps about how sounds, letters and numbers all have color for her.

Review:
Mia’s name is candy-apple red with a touch of avocado green. Mia sees the world differently than most people. Sounds, letters, and numbers have color for her.

Mia’s brother set every clock and alarm clock in the house to go off at the same time. Mia was unprepared for all the noise. “My sight is filled with blurry purple triangles and waves of green and floating black dots and balls of all sizes and shades of colors, spinning, swooping, swirling in front of me and across the room and in mind’s eye. If I had been prepared, I would have been able to anticipate the onslaught, but now it is overwhelming and I feel like I am suffocating” (pg. 15).

Mia made a comment in third grade about her abilities but she was immediately called a freak and teased. Mia learned to not talk about her colors to anyone. However, when she reached Junior High math and Spanish were causing extreme problems for her. She felt she had to talk to her parents so she would not fail her classes.

Mia’s parents tried a few experts before finding Dr. Jerry. The term for Mia’s color abilities is synethesia. (Although this book is fiction, synethesia is a real condition.)

I found this book to be well-written and very interesting. I had read a book about a man with some similar conditions entitled Born on a Blue Day that I also enjoyed.

The Crazy Man

The Crazy Man

Author: Pamela Porter

Publisher: Groundwood Books (2005)

ISBN: 0888996942

4.5 (out of 5) STARS

Summary: Twelve year old Emaline lives in Saskatchewan with her family. After a farming accident she loses many important things to her, but gains a new friend in a local patient from the mental hospital.

Review: After Emaline’s tractor accident, she loses both her beloved pet dog, Prince and her father. Now Emaline and her mother are faced with the daunting task of running the farm. They cannot do it alone. Emaline’s mother approaches a neighbor for help, but he declines. So then Emaline’s mother employs someone from the nearby mental hospital. Unfortunately, the town’s people are not pleased with this decision at all.

Angus lives in the barn and tends the farm. He eats his meals on the porch of the farm house. He does not talk much. At first Emaline is scared of him also. But over time she realizes he really is just a gentle giant.

“After Angus got done seeding,
Mum thought there wasn’t much reason
for him to stay.

But I wanted him to,
so I’ve been trying to think
of things Angus could do
to be useful around here.
Like work on the garden, fix the gate.” (pg. 76)

The whole text of the book is written in this style of free form verse. It makes for a nice and pleasant read.

Define "Normal"

Define "Normal"

Author: Julie Anne Peters

Publisher: Little, Brown and Company (2000)

ISBN: 0316706310

3 (out of 5) STARS

Summary: Antonia accepts the opportunity to be a peer counselor to Jasmine "Jazz" Luther. Although Antonia and Jazz are very different they discover they have much in common and are able to help each other and become good friends.

Review: “I opened the door and froze. Not Jazz Luther. Couldn’t be. Impossible. My jaw stuck in the gape-open position.

‘What are you looking at?’ Jazz sneered at me.

Your purple hair? Your black lips? Your shredded jeans? ‘Nothing,’ I muttered.

‘You my peer counselor?’ Jazz asked, clunking anklehigh boots up onto the conference table. She tipped back the chair and threaded her fingers together behind her head.

My stomach knotted. ‘Guess so.’ I thought, Define ‘peer.’

Jazz snorted. She must’ve had the same thought.”

Dr. DiLeo, the school counselor, had asked Antonia if she would be a peer counselor, but he certainly did not tell her it would be counseling Jasmine Luther. On the surface it appears that Antonia and Jazz have absolutely nothing in common. Yet as the book unfolds it becomes clear they have much more in common than initially seen.

Black-eyed Suzie

Black-eyed Suzie

Author: Susan Shaw

Publisher: Boyds Mills Press (2002)

ISBN: 156397729X

4.5 (out of 5) STARS

Summary: Suzie suffers many psychological and physical abuse from her mother. She copes by living in a "box." After a stay in a mental hospital she is able to make new friends and work through her life experiences.

Review: Suzie sits in her chair. She is good at sitting. Sitting so still. Suzie lives in a box with four sides. A tall, brown box that presses in on her from all four sides. She sits in the box on the chair. Her feet rest on the chair and her chin rests on her knees. No one can see the box, but Suzie feels it. She knows it is there.

Suzie’s mother feels like she has sacrificed her music career to be a mother. Suzie’s father is never home. Only Suzie’ sister, Deanna, pays any attention to what is going on with Suzie.

Suzie’s uncle comes to visit and sees Suzie sitting on her chair. What is going on here? It’s just a phase. Suzie’s mother tells him. My daughters never went through a phase like this. Suzie is gathered up and driven to the hospital where she is soon checked into St. Dorothy’s mental hospital.

Suzie cries and cries. The nurse helps her eat. Suzie cries. She goes to art class. The pencil drops out of her hand. Suzie cries. If only she can stop crying, maybe she can go home. There are fragments of memories hovering. A broken bike. Burned cookies. Flames. Singed hair and hands. Yelling. How do these pieces fit together? With much time and help Suzie is able to solve the mystery of her past and feel safe again. Loved this book!

Hattie on Her Way

Hattie on Her Way
Author: Clara Gillow Clark
Publisher: Candlewick Press (2005)
ISBN: 0763622869

3.5 (out of 5) STARS


Summary: After Hattie's mother passes away, her father takes her to live with her maternal grandmother. Fiesty Hattie has a difficult time adjusting to proper society but grows to love her grandmother very much. She also learns the secret about her grandfather which helps explain some of her mother's behavior as well.

Review:“But now my ma was buried under the plum tree by our little cabin back home in the hills above Pepacton, where I was born.” Mattie’s father takes Mattie to go live with her maternal grandmother after the death of her mother. Mattie would prefer to be out working in the woods with her father, but now her grandmother wants her to learn to be a lady.

Mattie starts to hear whispers of rumors around town about the fate of her maternal grandfather. It is rumored that Mattie’s grandmother killed her grandfather. Although Mattie does not quite believe this, she is still frightened and worried about it. Mattie learns over time it is not murder that plagues her family but mental illness, most likely schizophrenia.

Although this book was not an amazing piece of work, it was an enjoyable read. Sometimes it is nice to read a book where the ending is positive and a group of people bond together to help each other out. It may not always be realistic, but it is still a pleasant read.

My Louisiana Sky

My Louisiana Sky

Author: Kimberly Willis Holt

Publisher: Random House (1998)

ISBN: 0440415705

4 (out of 5) STARS

Summary: Tiger Ann lives with her grandmother and her mentally slow parents. When Tiger's grandmother unexpectedly dies, she is faced with difficult decisions about her future.

Review: Tiger Ann Parker was born to a mentally disabled mother and a “slow” father who cannot read or write. She lives with her parents in her grandmother’s home in Louisiana. After Tiger’s grandmother passes away, she is invited to live with her aunt in Baton Rogue. At first, Tiger is excited to escape her small town of taunting peers, but as she learns more about her family’s past she is reluctant to leave her parents.

This book uses wonderful, descriptive language. “As I looked to the tall pines reaching toward my Louisiana sky, I reckoned that maybe that’s the way life is supposed to be. Some days are like Saitter Creek-smooth and calm, letting you stay a child a little longer, and others are like Hurricane Audrey taking hold of you and spinning you above the pines, making you grow up a little quicker” (pg. 200). Tiger grows up in this book and finds she is able to handle more responsibility. Tiger also grows to understand the meaning of unconditional love and learns to give of herself as well.

Countdown

Countdown
Author: Deborah Wiles
Publisher: Scholastic (2010)
ISBN: 9780545106054

4.5 (out of 5) STARS


Summary: Franny Chapman is a young teenager during the 1960s. This book chronicles her life during the year 1962 which is during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Franny deals with world peace, best friends, cute neighbor boys and family issues.

Review:Franny just wants peace. But now is not the time of peace. The United States is on the verge of war with the threat of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Franny’s school has bomb threat drills on a regular basis. Franny feels scared all the time that her country will go to war or that a nuclear bomb will hit her town. They are taught to duck and cover if they hear the bomb sirens, which actually is ironic because ducking and covering cannot save anyone from a nuclear bomb.

Franny is also experiencing trouble at home. Her great uncle lives with her family and he suffers from post traumatic stress disorder as a veteran from World War II. He often forgets where he is and thinks he is back in the foxholes during the war. He is unpredictable and becoming more unstable over time.

The format of this book is very interesting. The chapters are interspersed with pictures, propaganda, and news from the 1960s era. It makes for a very interesting read. “Deborah Wiles has created a documentary novel that will put you right alongside Franny as she navigates a dangerous time in both her history and our history” (book flap).

Memories of Summer

Memories of Summer
Author: Ruth White
Publisher: Douglas & McIntyre Ltd. (2000)
ISBN: 0374349452

4 (out of 5) STARS


Summary: Lyric, Summer and their Poppy live in the hills of Virginia. In 1955 they move to Michigan for Lyric's father to find work in the car factories. Once in Michigan, Lyric's older sister, Summer begins a slow but steady descent into schizophrenia.

Review: A prominent theme in this book is loss. The year Lyric was three her mother died from consumption and her grandfather was killed in a mining accident. Lyric does not either of them, but their loss colors her father’s life and thus affects her. Death of a loved one affects everyone differently. Often books explore the theme of loss with a main character becoming lost in grief and unable to care for those left behind. In contrast, Lyric’s father is a kind, brave man who is a pillar of strength and love in Lyric’s and Summer’s lives.

The loss of Summer to schizophrenia is another loss that is the main theme of the book. Summer does not physically pass away in the book, but her sweet, happy personality is gone. Lyric struggles not only with losing her sister but also other accompanying emotions such as embarrassment, annoyance, anger, and fear. “I was thinking that night that it was getting harder and harder to love Summer, and to forgive her for her weirdness.”

This book delves into some of the difficulties associated with living with someone who is mentally ill. Summer is put on anti-psychotic drugs which seem to help some of her odd behaviors but they make her sluggish and tired. These drugs make it easier for Lyric and Poppy to take care of her, but Summer is not happy.

Lyric is a thoughtful, considerate narrator and sister. Although life is difficult, this book leaves the reader hopeful.