Review: Made You Up

Last week I read ‘Made You Up’ by  Francesca Zappia and enjoyed it very much. This novel was insightful for me to read, mostly due to it’s subject content on the subject of Paranoid Schizophrenia. This was the first novel I read where the main character struggled with this particular mental illness, so I didn’t really know what to expect. While I personally don’t know the full extent of Schizophrenia, nor do I know anyone who has it, I applaud the author, Francesca Zappia, who does not have Schizophrenia, but really did her research on what Schizophrenia and is and writing about character that is living through it, and not writing from preconceived notions or what the media and society present to the public.

First I’ll say that this book hit me with the feelings. There were twists, that weren’t crazy or BAM! kind of twists, but the kind of twists where you think to yourself; “Oh wow, I was NOT expecting that!” or “This went down a completely different path than I thought it was going to go, but I can see now that this path makes more sense.” The novel was romantic, but not in a cheesy or trope-y mental-illness-love-story-way. The romance was sweet and thoughtful.
Our main character is Alexandra Ridgemont. Alex is a seventeen year old in high school who is starting her senior year in a new school. Alex suffers from Schizophrenia and has a difficult time differentiating what is reality and what is her imagination. Alex likes to take pictures of things she isn’t sure are real so she can further understand the difference between the two. Alex is pretty optimistic considering her circumstances. Alex doesn’t let her mental illness define her.

Alex is smart and with an almost carefree attitude. She knows she is schizophrenic, but she doesn’t wallow in that fact. She accepts it. Alex does have trouble telling others, and tries to keep it a secret. Although a few events that unfold in the novel prevent that from happening. From the beginning of the novel, we see that Alex doesn’t have a lot of friends, but she soon see Alex meet a particular group of people in a club Alex is mandated to join, and we see her doing regular teenage girl things, like going out with on a Friday night, going to parties, and even falling in love.

Alex meets this boy named Miles who at first, she can’t stand. Miles is known as the school know-it-all and prankster. The reasoning behind this is both very sweet, but also very sad. The thing that keeps Alex thinking about and even running into Miles repeatedly, is the fact that Alex is sure she’s seen him before. He reminds her of a boy she met once before, whom she nicknamed “Blue Eyes”. The problem is that Alex isn’t sure if “Blue Eyes” was even real to begin with. Alex isn’t sure if a lot of things she once believed were real, ever were. And this is what we come to find out throughout the novel. Piecing each part together to better understand who Alex is and what she is not, crazy.

I don’t want to give away too much about this book because it’s so good and I really recommend it to anyone who deals with a mental illness of any kind. It’s so easy to feel like you’re alone sometimes, but the great thing about books is that within them, you can discover characters that are just like you and it’s like finding a new friend.

–4/5 stars

Brooklyn Review

I know this review is a tad late, but such is life. I finished reading ‘Brooklyn’ by Colm Tóibín last week and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Having seen the movie prior to reading it, I was familiar with the story and feel that the movie followed the book very well. If anything the movie inspired me to read the book since there are some added events that aren’t in the movie, which is typical for most book to film adaptations.

Happy 100th, Beverly Cleary!

Yesterday, April 11th 2016, marked the 100th birthday of a renowned and most beloved author, Beverly Cleary. What a milestone! Although she retired from writing in 1999, Beverly Cleary’s books still continue to draw kids into the magnificent world of reading. From the “Ramona Quimby” and “Henry Huggins” series to “Ralph S. Mouse”, Beverly Cleary has written more than 40 books, respectively.

Cleary’s books were the first chapter books I not only delightfully devoured, but recall reading through on my  very own. Until I discovered Mrs. Cleary’s  literary universe, the only chapter books I was experienced to were the ones my mother would read to my sisters and I during school nights at our kitchen table. When I first discovered Ramona Quimby, I was 8 years old and stumbled upon a ‘Ramona Quimby’ 4-book box set after receiving our monthly Scholastic Magazine one day in third grade. After begging my mother to allow me order the box set I couldn’t wait for it arrive. And when it did, I immediately dove in and found a friend and fellow younger sibling connection in Ramona Quimby. I read and re-read about the adventures of Ramona and her journey through 3rd grade as well as her life in a middle-class suburban family. Ramona may have been a third grader, but when I read about her coming home from school to a family stressed out about their financial situation like mine often was, I felt like I had gained a sister in a way. Romans was a kid, sure, but she saw the realities of life and Beverly Cleary never wrote those realities out or sugar coated them. She let them be as they were. And it poses the question that, maybe  reading about Ramona’s third grade level, albeit still highly relevant anxieties, was the first outlet I had for dealing with my own undiagnosed anxiety at the time.

When I think of Ramona I tend to think about an instance that occurs in “Ramona Quimby, Age 8” when Ramona, previously told she is a nuisance by her teacher, feels sick in class, but she’s  afraid of being exactly what her teacher deemed her to be. Instead she decided not to say anything, and then the inevitable occurs and Ramona vomits in the middle of class, for all to see. Although I thankfully, never had that experience in school, I do remember being afraid to raise my hand in class for almost anything, I remember the anxious feeling that I was an “annoying student”. Beverly Cleary didn’t just write embarrassing and sticky situations for Ramona and then leave her to experience them, shrug it off and go on with her life. She also wrote about the after effects of those situations, like Ramona lying in bed at night after throwing up in class that afternoon, replaying the events over and over in her mind. (Which I still do quite often, even if they’ve occurred TEN YEARS AGO) What I mean to say is, Beverly Cleary wrote about a lot of things kids experience in grade school and she wasn’t afraid of covering all the bases. Kids have embarrassing moments, but they don’t get over them or reach a resolution at the end of the day like a character would in a sitcom. They live through it and learn from it and as a young reader, you did too, just like Ramona.

Among those connections to Ramona as previously mentioned, another was how Ramona grew up with a big sister like I did, named Beezus, who wasn’t afraid to tell Ramona like it is. She let Ramona know when she was being annoying or bratty or funny, like many siblings do. (Looking back, I’m pretty grateful for this because it saved me from wearing a plethora of tacky outfits growing up) Ramona and I were so similar, that I almost felt like Beverly Cleary took a look at my life and wrote a book about it. Ramona wanted to be like her big sister Beezus and her friends, I had similar yearnings as well.

Beverly Cleary will forever be an inspiration to me and to anyone else whose childhood was defined and captured by her stories. *raises glass of pink champagne* Happy birthday, Mrs. Cleary. Here’s to you and to many, many more years of your beautiful presence and influence on behalf of me and all the  Beverly Cleary readers both young and old, out there!

If you’re interested in learning more about Beverly Cleary, check out her website which includes information about her life, career, and books. While you’re at it, check out an interview on PBS.org titled “7 Things You Didn’t Know About Beverly Cleary” , that includes some interesting facts like how she struggled with reading as a child and how a young boy from Yakima, Washington inspired her to write one her most famous characters. *Another notable article is this one from the New York Times 

*Photo by Oregon Public Broadcasting

 

What Kind of Reader are You?

Bookriot is one of my favorite websites for all things books. They’re always up to date with the latest releases and never shy away from shouting out some of the classics, weekly. Today they posted about the different kinds of readers determined by some of the characters from Parks and Recreation. I’m a cross between a Leslie, an Ann, and a Donna. How about you? Take a read and see for yourself! Book Riot

 

Do We Really Read Our Audiobooks?

I have a complicated relationship with audiobooks. I’ve only started listening to them recently. And although I find them enjoyable, I can’t help but feel a bit lazy when I do so. But how can that feeling of laziness be attributed to something that makes reading more accessible to those who not only have reading disabilities, such as dyslexia, but also those who are blind? Audiobooks have come a long way, from tapes to now digital MP3’s, they really offer an experience to reading that can make you feel like you’re almost in a movie, smack dab in the middle of the action. Not to mention some great narrators from celebrities to even the author’s themselves. (Ex. Like actor and comedian Aziz Ansari does in his book of relationship essays Modern Romance)  I’ve always been one to cheer anyone on who is reading. I don’t care what you’re reading, you’re reading! And that in and of itself, is wonderful. But personally, when I listen to audiobooks, I find myself hit with the question of am I really reading? Am I listening to the words and picturing in my head the rising and falling actions? Am I invested in the characters? What about my Goodreads Challenge? Does it count if I didn’t “read” the book? All of these questions are the reason why I have a weird relationship with audiobooks. To me I find it better to focus on the story if I’m holding either a book or my Kindle in my hands. There’s something about holding a book and feeling like you’re ready to go on an adventure. And maybe if you listen to audiobooks often you experience that same feeling whilst on a long road trip. I guess the phrase “To each their own” really applies here. I think I need to open up my mind to audiobooks and not be so quick to assume I won’t be able to place myself in the story as easily as I can with a book. I’m going to keep trying and keep reading or, listening. I think I needed to write this blog post so I could gather and sort out my feelings on audiobooks once and for all. So if you enjoy audiobooks, keep listening! You are reading. If you’ve never tried listening to one, I strongly reccommend giving them a try. And who knows? You might find yourself getting lost in the story!