Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Dr. Bird's Advice for Sad Poets by Evan Roskos

Dr. Bird's Advice for Sad Poets
James Whitman (no relation to Walt) lives with his parents, the Brute and the Banshee, who have recently kicked out his sister recently expelled from school for fighting. Now he enjoys all of the parental attention by himself. To use his phrase, "Yawp!" Now he suspects that he is suffering from depression and is toying with the idea of killing himself. He realizes he needs help.

His best friend is dating a 21-year old woman and is not a reliable source of empathy. He gains the attention of Beth, a girl at school who is trying to get him to look in his sister's room for some poetry she had written. He offers his own photography along with his own poetry and helps them develop an online publication. He tries to persuade the school to readmit his sister and allow her to walk the stage with the hope his parents would allow her to return home. He finds out that there was much more to the story than he realized.

Unlike most other young males who may turn to violence or drugs to deal with their issues, James turns inward with his problems.  His favorite way to cool off is to literally hug trees and he has an imaginary therapist, Dr. Bird, who talks out his problems with him.

I would recommend this book to readers who are dealing with 'stuff' like depression, thoughts of suicide, cutting, abusive parents, or leaving home.

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