Book Review | The Existence of Amy by Lana Grace Riva

*Book given by author in exchange for an honest review*

Description:

Amy has a normal life. That is, if you were to go by a definition of ‘no immediate obvious indicators of peculiarity’, and you didn’t know her very well. She has good friends, a good job, a nice enough home. This normality, however, is precariously plastered on top of a different life. A life that is Amy’s real life. The only one her brain will let her lead.

What I Liked

I would like to start this review out by saying I don’t normally accept review requests directly from authors very often, but reading the email with the description of this book that landed in my inbox, I knew I would break my personal rule so I can read and review it. Mental health is something that needs to be talked about and normalized in general, but also the fact that mental health can affect everyone differently and at different times in your life. I felt that this book was a very honest exploration of how mental health can impact you at a later point in life.

I though the authors choice to tell this story in the first person was a very good decision because the reader can see how not only mental health can affect them, but also how they are mad at themselves or frustrated because they really want to do something, but they just can’t. Also, one of the more notable things throughout this book was the narrator/main character understanding why others are mad or sick of them. It was heart breaking and something I have witness through friends and loved ones.

Like I said earlier in this review, mental health is varied and different for each person, but I really felt that this book was a very well done piece of literature that demonstrated how negative mental health can feel to the individual. The book talked about the good days and the bad, which I appreciated because that it a realistic view in m opinion. Mental health can be great one day, bad the next, and maybe neutral for a few days in between. I don’t cry very often, but I teared up quite a few times throughout this book because hearing this persons struggle in their own words was powerful, but also how they viewed their effect on those around them.

What I Didn’t Like

Honestly, nothing. I thought this was a wonderful written book on a very personal subject. Not everyone experiences positive or negative mental health the same way.

Overall Thoughts

Overall, I felt that this was a very well done book. It can be hard to read emotionally and may be triggering for some. But, I do recommended it if you feel comfortable reading about this content. I felt that the material was handed well, the writing itself was great. I felt the pacing was on point and it felt like there was a purpose for everything the author added to the book. I also feel like this book would be good for someone who had a hard time understanding how negative mental health can affect someone because they are not experiencing it themselves.

Here is a list of mental health hotlines for around the world, checkpointorg.com. I am not familiar with any of these personally and I not a mental health professional so I cannot speak to all of their quality, but I wanted to share this resource incase anyone needs it.