This was my first book by Julie Schumacher, but I hear she's written others as well. I don't think I'll actively be seeking them out. While the subject of mental illness is one that I continually find to be of utmost importance to be represented in young adult literature, this book wasn't for me. The portrayal of mental illness was accurate, but was seen through the eyes of a 14 year old sibling of the individual suffering with depression. It's been a while since I was 14, and I'm sad to say that I found it difficult to get through this book, perhaps because of that. More than that, though, much of the story was repetitive and predictable. It's a good book for a very specific demographic, siblings, young ones, of individuals dealing with mental illness, but isn't a very appealing read to others who have already experienced mental illness, either in their own lives or the lives of others. It's a good introduction to what depression is and how to deal with people in your life who might be battling it. There are some great ideas presented, but they're kind of jumbled together. The most coherent, beautiful part of the book for me wasn't anything in the text, but the author's note after it.
