Mental health in books

As you may (or may not) know, I love reading and it is one of my distractions from depression.

I find the subject of how mental health is treated in books very interesting and lately I have felt drawn to books containing characters struggling with mental health issues. In those books, the mental health issue may not be the main subject, but it is present. I think that the way something is represented in books (and films, and the media) is very important as it is one of the first points of contact for some people with mental health issues.

I think that it is important that there is something more to the character other than their mental health since characters (just like real people) need to be complex and mental health is not everything that there is to a person! This last point is very important in order to fight the stigma around mental health illnesses.

I have decided to start a section of this blog in which I will talk about books containing characters who struggle with mental health issues and debate a little how it is addressed. (This will also satisfy the need I have always had to have a book blog).

For now in this post I will mention the latest books that I have read which have characters struggling with mental health issues. I will simply post the synopsis and then I'll write about them in more depth once a week (I'm feeling it for Thursdays).

Make sure to add me as a friend in Goodreads!
I'd love for you to recommend me more books!

Kacey Cleary’s whole life imploded four years ago in a drunk-driving accident. Now she’s working hard to bury the pieces left behind—all but one. Her little sister, Livie. Kacey can swallow the constant disapproval from her born-again aunt Darla over her self-destructive lifestyle; she can stop herself from going kick-boxer crazy on Uncle Raymond when he loses the girls’ college funds at a blackjack table. She just needs to keep it together until Livie is no longer a minor, and then they can get the hell out of Grand Rapids, Michigan.

 But when Uncle Raymond slides into bed next to Livie one night, Kacey decides it’s time to run. Armed with two bus tickets and dreams of living near the coast, Kacey and Livie start their new lives in a Miami apartment complex, complete with a grumpy landlord, a pervert upstairs, and a neighbor with a stage name perfectly matched to her chosen “profession.” But Kacey’s not worried. She can handle all of them. What she can’t handle is Trent Emerson in apartment 1D.

 Kacey doesn’t want to feel. She doesn’t. It’s safer that way. For everyone. But sexy Trent finds a way into her numb heart, reigniting her ability to love again. She starts to believe that maybe she can leave the past where it belongs and start over. Maybe she’s not beyond repair.

 But Kacey isn’t the only one who’s broken. Seemingly perfect Trent has an unforgiveable past of his own; one that, when discovered, will shatter Kacey’s newly constructed life and send her back into suffocating darkness.

Sometimes discovering the truth can leave you more hopeless than believing the lies…

That’s what seventeen-year-old Sky realizes after she meets Dean Holder. A guy with a reputation that rivals her own and an uncanny ability to invoke feelings in her she’s never had before. He terrifies her and captivates her all in the span of just one encounter, and something about the way he makes her feel sparks buried memories from a past that she wishes could just stay buried.

Sky struggles to keep him at a distance knowing he’s nothing but trouble, but Holder insists on learning everything about her. After finally caving to his unwavering pursuit, Sky soon finds that Holder isn’t at all who he’s been claiming to be. When the secrets he’s been keeping are finally revealed, every single facet of Sky’s life will change forever.

Penny has a secret.

Under the alias GirlOnline, she blogs about school dramas, boys, her mad, whirlwind family - and the panic attacks she's suffered from lately. When things go from bad to worse, her family whisks her away to New York, where she meets the gorgeous, guitar-strumming Noah. Suddenly Penny is falling in love - and capturing every moment of it on her blog.

But Noah has a secret too. One that threatens to ruin Penny's cover - and her closest friendship - forever.

There are so many more, I thought I'd only share a few for now in order to not overwhelm you but I will keep talking about them. And on Thursday I'll post about one of them!

Before Thursday there will be another (normal) blog post so make sure you keep an eye out!