"One...two...three...four...five..." My sister groaned softely. I didn't look at my parents or my sister, but I could imagine their faces. If only they understood that I was doing this for all of us. The tyrants in Tara's head only got worse. Tyrants. That is what Tara calls the voices in her head. As these so called "tyrants" got more powerful. Tara's relationships with others got worse. She stopped walking to places with people. She could not be disturbed, or she would have to start all over again.
This story is told in first-person, by Tara. Even thoough it's fiction, you will learn a little about something called OCD. And all the kinds people could have. Kissing Doorknobs is a serious book, but will make you smile at the same time. Unlike most books, this one has mood swings. At one point, you will be emotional. And two pages later, you will be laughing like there was no tomarrow. Yes, it is a chick-flick. But not all girls will enjoy it. I would recommend you reading it if you like reading fictional books about the lives of teenagers.
Kissing Doorknobs will make you wonder. "Why don't Tara's parents support her?" "What is wrong with Tara?" Well that's for me to know, and you to find out!

Excellent 1st person look into a disorder that can be hard for the average person to understand. Its easy to say "just stop" when you don't understand how the people suffering from OCD are tortured by their disease. This read was entertaining while also opening the door for education of OCD and its effects on those who suffer from it as well as their family & friends.

Tara Sullivan has obsessive compulsive disorder. She cannot step on cracks or it will break her mother's back, so she counts all the cracks on the walk to school. She also cannot help but pray every time some curses, has to turn the doorknob with equal pressure from all fingers, and must confess every single infraction at her Catholic confession. She visits various doctors who cannot diagnose her, much to the frustration of her family, who find it hard to understand that she doesn't want to be difficult but feels overwhelmingly compelled to do her rituals to be okay. While this part of the book is very interesting, Tara often speaks as though she is an adult instead of a teen. She comes to conclusions at age eleven that are clearly not possible. Also, there is a small romance injected towards the end of the book that doesn't fit with the rest of the novel and seems forced, as though the author felt obligated to include romance. Despite these drawbacks, the book is appropriate for 12+, and is a great look at what OCD really feels like, and the ramifications it can have on the family members of someone with OCD.

I first read this book in 8th grade. Seven years later, after having been diagnosed with OCD, I've realised how well done it really is. Tara's pain and her family's pain are both acutely, poignantly, and humorously described. The ending, as stark as it may seem, is like the "endings" I've expereinced with my OCD: relapses do occur, but all you can do is keep fighting. I recommend this book to families of people with OCD, as well as to people who just want to understand it better.

In the book Kissing Doorknobs by Terry Spencer Hesser, She explains exactly what OCD feels like and the effects it has on friends and family. The main character Tara Sullivan had always worried about everything. In Kindergarten she always thought something was going to happen to her mother while she was in school. As time moved on and she got to middle school she started to act somewhat normal. When Tara turned eleven she heard the saying "step on a crack, break your mothers back" everything started to go wrong again. Tara now believed that she must count every crack everywhere she went. If she got interrupted or lost count she ran back to the beginning and started over, or something bad would happen to her mother.
As time passed Tara tried everything she could to calm herself down. She recited prayers, arranged her meals and talked to her dolls. Even the sound of her voice calmed her down. As her compulsive behaviors got worse Tara came up with a new ritual to make herself feel better. By kissing doorknobs, this all started when stopping by her friend Donna's house Tara placed all ten fingers on her lips. Tara knew right away that it would be repeated. Although her mother did not like when Tara acted like this she did it anyway. This book taught me a lot on OCD and the effects it has on friends and family.