Had we actually gotten to see Adam in therapy and conversation with his therapist, I think this book could’ve been so much better and the messages it sent would’ve been more positive. As we follow Adam throughout almost a year of his life, we also get a look into what Valentine’s Day is like and how it’s dealt with at the Catholic school Adam is attending. Adam talks about how there are religious parents who have convinced their kids that sex is bad, etc and then he ends his musings by saying that those people are weirdos and everyone knows it. And I just wanted to yell at him. You do not get to tell other people what they can and can’t think about sex or how they approach sex. It’s up to an individual to decide on how they want to act. Or not to act, for that matter. And sometimes it’s just a feeling that someone somewhere is watching me, which I know is ridiculous. Why would anyone bother, right?” This book really made me think. I realized how even our best intentions get outweighed by our inner fears and prejudices, no matter how hard we try. I also never thought about how a person living with an illness might feel if someone with the same illness does something wrong; in this case, Adam's feelings and those around him after the shooting in Sandy Hook, since the shooter was schizophrenic. What a powerful scene, one which really opened my eyes.

Adam, is our main character. God, did I want to hug him until he couldn't breathe anymore. He is schizo. But that's not all that he is. He is also sweet, a great cook *soo jealous*, honest to a fault, moody, a good friend and finally, the best boyfriend any girl could have. I also have to say how much I appreciate Adam’s head on approach in coping with his mental condition. I didn’t tell her that they were twice the size of regular bats or that they had human eyes or that their tiny fangs hung like needles from their mouths. Basically, the novel portrays the ugly side of his mental illness. In that, Adam describes the searing intensity of other people’s hatred for him, their fear of such a kid patient, and the weight of expectations to behave well. But, Adam tells us that’s not how his brain works, there’s no switch that he can flip to reality or live with the hallucinations.

Words on Bathroom Walls

Will the Wilmington film rebound continue in 2019?". Winston-Salem Journal. January 6, 2019 . Retrieved August 25, 2020.

Mrs. Brizeno said you looked up in the chemistry lab, started screaming, and fell to the floor.” I remember how calm she was. My mom has this Jedi voice that sort of washes over you when she’s trying to get information. “What did you see?” Meadow, Matthew (July 15, 2020). "The Chainsmokers Feature New Original Music In Movie Coming Out This Month". youredm.com . Retrieved July 17, 2020. aSchizophrenia in adolescence |0https://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh90001938 |vJuvenile fiction. |0https://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh99001687 Words on Bathroom Walls is told through journal entries Adam is writing to his therapist, as he remains non-verbal during their sessions. It took me a bit to adjust to the storytelling method. While most journal/diary novels are directed at the journal itself or anyone who is reading it, Adam's passages are directed at one specific person, therefore, the reader somewhat assumes the role of his therapist. I admit, it was strange at first (I mean, how often does the narrator get angry at the READER?) but it became very natural by the end of the story. I adored Adam's voice - He is unfiltered and expressive through every chapter. He strikes the correct balance between suffering and humor which made the story immensely enjoyable. I’m not sure where to start (or where this will go aside from a giant ramble), so let’s begin with our daily debriefing on the various ways in which I am an idiot. Today’s example is how I asked for (and was denied, of course) this book simply for the cover and title. I didn’t bother reading the synopsis. I just wanted it. I assumed it was going to be a “Megan Abbott-y” type of mean girl story about – you guessed it – words on bathroom walls. Kinda like this . . . .A month ago, before I started taking ToZaPrex, I couldn’t tell when I was slipping out of control. I would be afraid for no reason. Everything I saw was real to me. Once the hallucinations started, there was no switching them off. I could be lost in them for hours. As with almost anyone new in school, Adam must deal with a bully who believes he is better than anyone else because his parents are wealthy, but he also makes a good friend and tries keeping his head down as much as possible. And then he meets Maya—beautiful, fiercely intelligent and opinionated, and someone for whom Adam wants to remain well and act as "normally" as possible. But that means hiding a part of himself from her, even if she may be more observant than he realizes.

Dosage: 0.5 mg. Same dosage. Adam starts new school. Still unwilling to speak. Perhaps new environment will act as catalyst for progress in therapy.Now, when my mind starts misbehaving, I can at least watch its projections like a movie. Real CGI shit. Sometimes it’s actually kind of beautiful. I can watch a whole field of grass erupt into a cloud of butterflies. Sometimes voices serenade me to sleep, and now that I know they’re not real, I’m not afraid of them. So that’s nice. It’s the stuff that jumps out at me that makes me look like a spaz. Another big positive of this novel for me is the main relationship. I found Adam and Maya's relationship to be one of the most realistic high school relationships I have read in YA, and a very healthy one at that. Of course, a large theme in this novel is that Adam refrains from revealing his diagnosis to Maya, and secret-keeping is not exactly a "healthy" behavior in relationships (but come on, it's young adult fiction), but they are consistently respectful of each other, entirely supportive, always willing to aid the other and go out of their way to comfort and defend each other. I appreciated that they actually began as good friends and developed into romantic feelings for one another over time. Personally, it was very reminiscent of my own relationship in high school, which is always pleasant to read. There is one passage in the beginning of the novel where Adam refers to Maya as "the cure" because his illness is more manageable when she's around, which is of course a theme I am vehemently against in mental health fiction. That being said, I feel the author chose this wording specifically to denounce this concept as the story progresses because Maya is most definitely not a cure for Adam's schizophrenia, she is merely a positive figure in Adam's life who brings him happiness as he provides the same for her. I would not at all consider this book to fall under the trope of "love-cure" - In my opinion, it's a great example of how to write love stories into mental health fiction. I’m glad [my parents] have each other, but sometimes I think about how much happier everyone would be if I weren’t around. That’s when I feel sad and guilty because if anything happened to me, my mom would be devastated, but as long as I’m in her life, she’s always going to worry about whether or not I’m okay. I don’t know which is worse.