by: Lisa Genova
Goodreads Description:
A breathless, riveting novel about a young woman diagnosed with bipolar disorder whorejects the stability and approval found in a traditionally “normal” life for a career in stand-up comedy.
Maddy Banks is just like any other stressed-out freshman at NYU. Between schoolwork, exams, navigating life in the city, and a recent breakup, it’s normal to be feeling overwhelmed. It doesn’t help that she’s always felt like the odd one out in her picture-perfect Connecticut family. But Maddy’s latest low is devastatingly low, and she goes on an antidepressant. She begins to feel good, dazzling in fact, and she soon spirals high into a wild and terrifying mania that culminates in a diagnosis of bipolar disorder.
As she struggles to find her way in this new reality, navigating the complex effects bipolar has on her identity, her relationships, and her life dreams, Maddy will have to figure out how to manage being both too much and not enough.
With her signature “deep empathy and insight” (Booklist), Harvard-trained neuroscientist and New York Times bestselling author Lisa Genova has crafted another profoundly moving novel that makes complicated mental health issues accessible and human. More or Less Maddy is destined to become another classic like Still Alice.
Helen says: 🤓🤓🤓🤓 1/2
I read this during the snow storm and couldn’t put it down. What a wild ride! It seemed a perfect description of the onset of Bipolar disorder. The frenetic energy of the main character, Maddy, sent my mind reeling. I needed a mood stabilizer after reading this book. It was a fantastic portrayal of mental illness, peppered with humor and truthfulness. I highly recommend this one.
Holly says: 🤓🤓🤓🤓1/4
I thought this was great, although at times difficult to read, story about someone being diagnosed, struggling, and living with bi-polar disorder. I recommend this book for everyone. If you know someone who has bi-polar disorder, you will definitely relate, and if you don’t you will emphasize with the struggle. The title is spot on, and the author who also wrote Still Alice, has a PhD in neuroscience from Harvard University. She has a way with words and has given a real personality and insight to life with bi-polar disorder.
Helen and Holly Hit the Books 