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Liked It1 of 1 members found this review helpful “A great book, I read it within two days and it was awesome. I didn't want to put it down. A very interesting and intriguing story, the narrator leaves me giggling and smiling and crying all at once. His wit and his ideas blow my mind.” see full review » see other reviews » |
Didn’t Like It “I didnt like this book because it was deppressing. If you can handle depressing books read it but the books me all blah so yeah...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Newest Reviews
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“This book lets readers in on a world that is unknown to many. Its extraordianry plot line and realistic characters make readers feel like they are sitting in the room while the story is taking shape. ”
corinne b wrote this review 14 hours ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I deeply admired the main character for going to get help when he could have easily jumped. The characters were wonderful, I fell in love because they were all different and had tempers of their own. This author is fantastic!”
Megan B wrote this review 3 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This book was amazing. I love the character Craig and all of his strange quirks. ”
Aida E wrote this review 2 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“I didnt like this book because it was deppressing. If you can handle depressing books read it but the books me all blah so yeah...”
Cortney L wrote this review 3 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This book was well written with a clear focus in mind but it was certainly not a very memorable read for me. Suffering from chronic depression and having stayed in a psychiatric ward myself, I was hoping I could find comfort in Craig's story, feel a mutual understanding in accord to his experiences. I understand that depression is different for everyone, but I wished the author had spent a bit more time developing Craig's emotions so as to give readers insight on how it is really like to struggle with mental illness. At the start of the novel there are fleeting moment where we feel Craig's pain and misery, but as the book progresses and Craig is hospitalised, we lose that valuable perspective. I felt that his stay at the ward was pretty shallow in terms of context; Craig stops reflecting on his life, grows less and less insightful...only to stop and study the inhabitants of Six North. While the patients provided interesting story, I wish this part of the novel served to describe Craig's process in recovering (which happened ridiculously fast; only five days in the hospital and already such a changed view of life)...I definitely expected more from a book dealing with such a serious and real subject.”
star in the minuteshow wrote this review Wednesday, December 2 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Kind of IS a funny story”
emilyjulianne wrote this review Tuesday, December 1 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This book is written from a first-person viewpoint, in a very informal matter. The characters are very flavorful and the book gives the reader a different look on mental hospitals. It is kind of a funny story.”
Lizzie H wrote this review Monday, November 23 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Craig is so determined to get into a special, advanced school that he gives up his social life (which isn't much anyway) and all other fun stuff to study for the entrance exam. Lucky for him he gets in! So does his best friend Araon and his hot, hot girlfriend, Nia. Unfortunately, his luck doesn't hold out. Craig realizes that he isn't as brilliant as the other kids at the school and the stress of keeping up becomes unbearable. He stops eating and sleeping until one night, he contemplates killing himself. Through a series of almost comic events, Craig checks himself into a mental hospital! He thinks he can get out in a few hours, but they claim he has to stay for at least 72 hours, if not more! If Craig was stressed about school when he was going, he's even more stressed now that he can't go! This is a very sophisticated story with some drug use and off-the-page sex. Older readers will enjoy the word play and "crazy" characters.”
Connie P wrote this review Saturday, November 21 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Absolutely hilarious. Ned Vizzini takes a topic that can be extremely somber and uses humor to open our hearts to understand that depression is real and is rampant in today's society. Anyone who is a teacher of young adults should read this book.”
Mr. Martin wrote this review Friday, November 20 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This was a fantastic book to read and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It gave me an idea of what it's like to be suicidal. Although Craig thought he was really screwed up, he realized how better off he was compared to the other patients in the mental hospital. Unlike most, Craig had a family that supported him and stayed by him as he went through the process of rehabilitation. Craig also grew through out the book and realized that his best friend wasn't as great as he thought. At the beginning, Craig was head-over-heels in love with Nia. He thought she was perfect and was constantly getting jealous of Aaron, Nia's boyfriend. However, he soon realized that she was stuck up and flawed. His attraction to her was only hormones whereas his attraction to Noelle was geniune feelings. I think Ned Vizzini is a great modern writer. The language he chooses to use is very easy to understand and relate to. It sounds realistic, making Craig seem like a real person. Although I can't completely understand Craig's suicidal feelings (thank god), Ned makes it so believable that one can really connect to him. I always thought that people who were suicidal were extremely stupid to even consider trying to take their own lives. I thought it was extremely selfish because killing yourself meant hurting your family and friends. It's never right to think that suicide is the only option left. However, after reading this book, I realized that people result to suicide very easily and even really bright people like Craig consider it. Craig always did well in school but went to an extremely high-level school, pressuring him and diminishing his self-esteem, causing him to almost kill himself. Luckily he caught himself before he did anything stupid. Still, it made me realize that suicide isn't as preposterous as I thought. Now I somewhat understand why Dante placed the suicidal in the upper part of Lower Hell. Although they committed their sin knowingly, they weren't completely using reason since their emotions had overtaken them, causing them to act so recklessly.”
Anna Saw wrote this review Sunday, November 15 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
