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Dr. Bird's Advice for Sad Poets
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“Self-deprecating humor abounds in this debut novel that pulls no punches about the experience of depression and anxiety for its teen protagonist.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“I hate myself but I love Walt Whitman, the kook. Always positive. I need to be more positive, so I wake myself up every morning with a song of myself.” Sixteen-year-old James Whitman has been yawping (à la Whitman) at his abusive father ever since he kicked his beloved older sister, Jorie, out of the house. James’s painful struggle with anxiety and depression—along with his ongoing quest to understand what led to his self-destructive sister’s exile—make for a heart-rending read, but his wild, exuberant Whitmanization of the world and keen sense of humor keep this emotionally charged debut novel buoyant.
“A poignant, funny, and bighearted novel about the power of saving oneself.”—Nina LaCour, award-winning author of We Are Okay
“The right readers may find it lifesaving. Give this darkly funny debut to fans of Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower.”—Booklist
“Roskos has created a character that does not necessarily change throughout the book, but learns to live with himself as he is, to celebrate himself and those around him even as flawed as they are.”—VOYA
“Author Roskos’s strength lies in his refusal to tidy up the mess in James’s life and in his relentless honesty about surviving with depression and anxiety.”—Horn Book
“Roskos effectively sketches James as a boy who is far more comfortable inside his own head than in connecting with others . . . Bravely facing real sorrow, James confronts his problems with grace and courage.”—Publishers Weekly
“I hate myself but I love Walt Whitman, the kook. Always positive. I need to be more positive, so I wake myself up every morning with a song of myself.” Sixteen-year-old James Whitman has been yawping (à la Whitman) at his abusive father ever since he kicked his beloved older sister, Jorie, out of the house. James’s painful struggle with anxiety and depression—along with his ongoing quest to understand what led to his self-destructive sister’s exile—make for a heart-rending read, but his wild, exuberant Whitmanization of the world and keen sense of humor keep this emotionally charged debut novel buoyant.
“A poignant, funny, and bighearted novel about the power of saving oneself.”—Nina LaCour, award-winning author of We Are Okay
“The right readers may find it lifesaving. Give this darkly funny debut to fans of Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower.”—Booklist
“Roskos has created a character that does not necessarily change throughout the book, but learns to live with himself as he is, to celebrate himself and those around him even as flawed as they are.”—VOYA
“Author Roskos’s strength lies in his refusal to tidy up the mess in James’s life and in his relentless honesty about surviving with depression and anxiety.”—Horn Book
“Roskos effectively sketches James as a boy who is far more comfortable inside his own head than in connecting with others . . . Bravely facing real sorrow, James confronts his problems with grace and courage.”—Publishers Weekly
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Începeți să citițiInformații despre carte
Dr. Bird's Advice for Sad Poets
Până la Evan Roskos
Descriere
“Self-deprecating humor abounds in this debut novel that pulls no punches about the experience of depression and anxiety for its teen protagonist.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“I hate myself but I love Walt Whitman, the kook. Always positive. I need to be more positive, so I wake myself up every morning with a song of myself.” Sixteen-year-old James Whitman has been yawping (à la Whitman) at his abusive father ever since he kicked his beloved older sister, Jorie, out of the house. James’s painful struggle with anxiety and depression—along with his ongoing quest to understand what led to his self-destructive sister’s exile—make for a heart-rending read, but his wild, exuberant Whitmanization of the world and keen sense of humor keep this emotionally charged debut novel buoyant.
“A poignant, funny, and bighearted novel about the power of saving oneself.”—Nina LaCour, award-winning author of We Are Okay
“The right readers may find it lifesaving. Give this darkly funny debut to fans of Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower.”—Booklist
“Roskos has created a character that does not necessarily change throughout the book, but learns to live with himself as he is, to celebrate himself and those around him even as flawed as they are.”—VOYA
“Author Roskos’s strength lies in his refusal to tidy up the mess in James’s life and in his relentless honesty about surviving with depression and anxiety.”—Horn Book
“Roskos effectively sketches James as a boy who is far more comfortable inside his own head than in connecting with others . . . Bravely facing real sorrow, James confronts his problems with grace and courage.”—Publishers Weekly
“I hate myself but I love Walt Whitman, the kook. Always positive. I need to be more positive, so I wake myself up every morning with a song of myself.” Sixteen-year-old James Whitman has been yawping (à la Whitman) at his abusive father ever since he kicked his beloved older sister, Jorie, out of the house. James’s painful struggle with anxiety and depression—along with his ongoing quest to understand what led to his self-destructive sister’s exile—make for a heart-rending read, but his wild, exuberant Whitmanization of the world and keen sense of humor keep this emotionally charged debut novel buoyant.
“A poignant, funny, and bighearted novel about the power of saving oneself.”—Nina LaCour, award-winning author of We Are Okay
“The right readers may find it lifesaving. Give this darkly funny debut to fans of Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower.”—Booklist
“Roskos has created a character that does not necessarily change throughout the book, but learns to live with himself as he is, to celebrate himself and those around him even as flawed as they are.”—VOYA
“Author Roskos’s strength lies in his refusal to tidy up the mess in James’s life and in his relentless honesty about surviving with depression and anxiety.”—Horn Book
“Roskos effectively sketches James as a boy who is far more comfortable inside his own head than in connecting with others . . . Bravely facing real sorrow, James confronts his problems with grace and courage.”—Publishers Weekly
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This was a heartwarming and funny book about a very dysfunctional family and a teen boy navigating through the trials of everyday life. I enjoyed the characters and very real take on social anxiety. One of the best books I have picked up this year.
Rating: 4Today I welcome a bright new voice to the world of young adult contemporary fiction as I take a look at Evan Roskos’ debut novel Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets. My advice – grab a copy and settle into the unique world of a teen who lives by the poetry of Walt Whitman and utilizes an imaginary pigeon therapist to battle anxiety and depression.An unusual protagonist takes center stage in Evan Roskos’ debut novel Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets Sixteen-year-old James Whitman is dealing with anxiety, depression, and guilt, and the only way he knows to make it through the day is to live his life by the poetry of his hero, Walt Whitman. Hugging trees, letting out celebratory “YAWPS,” and singing songs of himself, he tries to face each day with a positive outlook and hold back the darkness inside. But now that his sister Jorie has been thrown out of the house the battle is getting harder, and even the assistance of his imaginary pigeon therapist isn’t helping. Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets follows James in his daily struggles to stay afloat and celebrate the small things so that the darker feelings he holds inside don’t consume him.This is a wonderful, emotionally charged debut by author Evan Roskos. What did I love the most about Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets? The sad poet himself, James. I ended up loving this kid and wanting so much for him to be okay, yet he wasn’t a character I connected with immediately. Desperation bled through as James tried to remain frantically upbeat in his day-to-day interactions with the world, and it was a little uncomfortable at first. Throwing himself in front of a school bus in Chapter 2 to rescue a wounded bird (with unexpected results) got my attention, however, while his conversations with the imaginary Dr. Bird won me over. The moments when James succumbed to his anxiety or depression caused me some anxiety, though, as I worried about his ability to pull through; there was a feeling of raw honesty to the scenes that gripped my emotions and connected me more deeply with his character. James was incredibly self-aware, as well, which I loved. He recognized his issues and realized he was reaching a point where he needed more help than Dr. Bird could provide, and his quest to find out the truth behind Jorie’s exile gave him something to hold on to until he could get the help he needed. I loved that he fought so hard for himself and his well-being, and that he worked to find support wherever he could – in trees, the poetry of Walt Whitman, and imaginary pigeons. While I didn’t agree with one of his more drastic choices, I sympathized with his reasons and was so glad when it led to even more support from his best friend Derek. He deserved every hard-won victory.Secondary characters are kept to a minimum so that each of them stands out even as the focus remains squarely on James. We see these characters through James’s eyes so we only know what he knows or discover what he discovers as the story unfolds, but none of them really fades into the background. The nicknames for his parents – the Brute and the Banshee – give huge insight into their characters even as they don’t take up a lot of page time. His relationships with best friend Derek, love interest Beth, and sister Jorie are each unique and I enjoyed the way they brought out different emotions in James – loyalty and true-blue friendship with Derek, the pangs of first love with Beth, and the knot of love and guilt tied up with Jorie. The dynamic between Derek and James was especially interesting, and it was wonderful to see how they supported each other and recognized each others flaws. There were blow-ups between them (every friendship has them), but they stood by each other when the chips were down and really did have each other’s backs. Derek, Jorie and Beth all gave James something to focus on outside of himself, which he sorely needed. Very nicely handled by Roskos.Despite its difficult subject matter, this story is told with plenty of humor – although it’s more of a sympathetic humor than the laugh-out-loud kind. There were one or two moments where I burst out laughing as James found himself in an unusual situation or two (the bus incident, helping defuse Derek’s angry ex-girlfriend, etc.), but most of the time it was a wry chuckle or a big smile at his unique view of the world around him. In addition to the humor, Evan Roskos has an unusual style that may be a bit off-putting at first, but fits perfectly with the character of James and provides plenty of energy to the narrative. There are “bursts” of words in the first-person present tense, as if James can’t hold in his thoughts or emotions and just has to let them out right now, and it’s that emotion and energy that sucked me into the story and had me empathizing with him to the end.One of the most poignant young adult debuts to be released in 2013, Evan Roskos’ Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets charts the struggles of 16-year-old James Whitman to keep his head above water while fighting clinical anxiety and depression. It is an emotional subject that is handled with humor and unusual style by Roskos, with plenty of Walt Whitman thrown in to light the way. James may be the quirkiest character I’ve met this year with his need to “YAWP” and hug trees to get him through the day, but he is also the one I wanted to hug to just let him know everything would be okay. Recommended for readers who enjoy realistic fiction with serious undertones (bonus points if you love Walt Whitman as well).
Rating: 4Susan is the adventurous one. She’ll see a book cover that interests her, read the firstDrBird page or two and decide whether or not the book is worth reading. Me? I typically take my cues from reviews or favorite authors. So, it was odd that I’d just pick a book from Books of Wonder and decide to buy it based on the title and cover. But that’s exactly what I did and it was a good choice. (The other book I picked was from an author I like and it was somewhat disappointing.) Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets by Evan Roskos was a rewarding, humorous, serious book.James Whitman, no relation to Walt, does have an affinity for Walt’s poetry and cites it often. James is a tree hugger, when he gets depressed. The shape, the bark, the roundness, the texture oftentimes makes him feel somewhat better. And James does have things to be depressed about. His father, the Brute, and his mother, the Banshee, are abusive. They’ve kicked his sister Jorie out of the house, ostensibly because she beat up another girl at school. But Jorie’s always been a problem.When James needs to vent or think things out, he sees Dr. Bird, an imaginary pigeon therapist who knows all about James, as Dr. Bird is in his mind. Dr. Bird will walk in circles, coo at him, stick his beak under his wing and stare at him with his big black eye. This, too, seems to help James cope.Like all high school juniors, James has anxiety…about school, about girls (especially Beth), about life, about his sister. Unfortunately, his anxiety extends far beyond that of most teens.Mr. Roskos wonderfully handles the issue of anxiety, depression, thoughts of suicide and cutting. He tells kids it’s not bad to have anxiety but too much is no good. He lets kids know that it’s OK to need someone independent to talk to about problems. He also lets kids know that they don’t necessarily have to live with abuse.It’s Mr. Roskos’ combination of the serious and the absurd (James’ friend Derek being the absurd…I won’t tell you why) that caught my attention and kept me reading. There are some books that are ‘in your face’ about teen issues and there are those that get the point across more subtly, as is the case with Dr. Bird.I thoroughly enjoyed Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets. It’s probably low on most people’s radar but I hope this may bring it up a notch.
Rating: 5James Whitman (no relation to Walt) loves poetry and is a tree hugger. Literally. He is still trying to get over the time his parents kicked his sister out of the house after she was expelled from school for fighting. He decides to try to persuade the school to reinstate her and then get his parents to let her return but he has to dig to find out the truth of the events that led up to the expulsion. What he learns helps him face his own problems.I really liked the fact that James read Walt Whitman's poetry and could always remember a stanza or poem that related to things going on around him. I loved that he got involved with the school's annual poetry publication and helped adapt it to a modern online version.
Rating: 4Sixteen-year-old James Whitman recites Walt Whitman (no relation) to help cope with his unhappiness. Maybe I should make a go of that for my own depression. Wonder how my neighbors would like me yawping away on my deck.
Rating: 4Who knew that contemporary literary young adult fiction was a thing? I get so used to reading about angst in the context of vampires or faeries that it's almost refreshing to read about real people. This debut novel from Evan Roskos has one of the best, most realistic portraits of living with mental illness that I've read. I'm a little concerned that teens reading this will think that if they don't have a terrible, abusive home like James then they're not really depressed. Still, people who've been through the shit will recognize themselves in the twisted, miserable, and giddy mind of the narrator.
Rating: 4This was a heartwarming book about a young boy with depression and anxiety growing up in a dysfunctional home. His sister Jorie also suffered from mental disorders had been expelled from school and kicked out of their home. James tries to figure out what happened to his sister the day she got expelled. He also struggles with the fact that his parents really don't believe in mental illness so he gets a job to pay for his own therapy. I think this book shows how some people keep a blind eye where mental illness is concerned. I even think they could have done more for Jorie, rather than expelling her. I was impressed with James ultimatum at the end, advocating for himself. I think that's a good example to set for other teens in the same situation. Good read.
Rating: 4Incredibly good --funny, real (about depression about teenage lust, about bad people).
Rating: 5The protagonist in this story is a nice kid, you gotta give him that. A bit strange, a literal tree-hugger, and then there is the whole Dr. Bird thing. Not what I expected, and not especially interesting, just kind of silly, and not in a good-silly way.I expected this to be filled with teenage angst, and it was. Unfortunately, that's about all there was. It seemed to be a one-note song and I got bored with it. The plot was almost non-existent, and it needed one, couldn't hold its own without something stronger. Too many cliches, not enough substance. While some of the characters were interesting, most had not much depth. So while I love the title of this book and expected great, or at least good, things, in the end I was disappointed.
Rating: 3