Welcome to Litsy!

This novel is aimed at middle grade readers, but held me captive for sure. Jake charts his challenges with anorexia and OCD in this heartbreaking, but ultimately hopeful novel in verse. Jake and his grandmother share a love of musical theatre and reading. But he struggles to connect with friends his own age and fights off a very controlling voice in his head that is causing him great suffering. This beautiful book shares Jake's journey to healing.

A story of a thirteen year old boy that gets bullied at school and develops an eating disorder. It becomes so severe he gets sent to an inpatient facility . He struggles with opening up to his doctors & peers, trying different foods ,and dealing with his beloved but sick grandmother.

When I was ten years old my then fifteen-year-old cousin was admitted to a lock-down facility for non-compliant youth because she would not treat her type 1 diabetes and seemed to be literally wasting away. I have no idea if her experience was anything like Jake‘s, but his story painfully illustrates how lonely and difficult that healing process must have been. I‘m grateful for this look into the psyche of someone living with anorexia nervosa.

John Schu‘s YA novel told in verse form is an incredibly moving book based on his own experiences of having an eating disorder. I felt desperately sympathetic to the vulnerable Jake whose relationship with his grandmother is clearly very important to him but more could have been made of his relationship with his parents, which is much too lightly sketched and should have been explored given his mum‘s anxiety issues seem to feed into Jake‘s.

A raw, honest, and emotional novel in verse that ultimately feels like a triumph while shedding light on a painful journey towards self-acceptance.

Sometimes, it's only through books that we (kids) can find this.

Take care of your heart! 💗
Do what brings you joy! 💖