We are all so good at smiling

Title:

Author:

Summary:

Whimsy is back in the hospital for treatment of clinical depression. When she meets a boy named Faerry, she recognizes they both have magic in the marrow of their bones. And when Faerry and his family move to the same street, the two start to realize that their lifelines may have twined and untwined many times before. They are both terrified of the forest at the end of Marsh Creek Lane. The Forest whispers to Whimsy. The Forest might hold the answers to the part of Faerry he feels is missing. They discover the Forest holds monsters, fairy tales, and pain that they have both been running from for 11 years. -- Amazon.

Audience:

Ages 13 and up. Feiwel and Friends.

Grades 10-12. Feiwel and Friends.

Edition:

First edition.

Physical Description:

283 pages ; 22 cm

Genre:

Magic realist fiction.

Novels in verse.

Subject Term:

Mental health -- Fiction.

Magic -- Fiction.

Friendship -- Fiction.

Depression, Mental -- Fiction.

Grief -- Fiction.

Psychic trauma -- Fiction.

African Americans -- Fiction.

Publisher:

Feiwel and Friends,

Publication Date:

2023

ISBN:

9781250780386

Publication Information:

New York : Feiwel and Friends, 2023.

Call Number:

YA MCBRIDE

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Item Barcode	Collection	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
33607003687137	New Young Adult	MCBRIDE	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

They Both Die at the End meets The Bell Jar in this haunting, beautiful young adult novel-in-verse about clinical depression and healing from trauma, from National Book Award Finalist Amber McBride.

Whimsy is back in the hospital for treatment of clinical depression. When she meets a boy named Faerry, she recognizes they both have magic in the marrow of their bones. And when Faerry and his family move to the same street, the two start to realize that their lifelines may have twined and untwined many times before.

They are both terrified of the forest at the end of Marsh Creek Lane.

The Forest whispers to Whimsy. The Forest might hold the answers to the part of Faerry he feels is missing. They discover the Forest holds monsters, fairy tales, and pain that they have both been running from for 11 years.

Author Notes

Amber McBride estimates she reads about 100 books a year. Her work has been published in literary magazines including Ploughshares and Provincetown Arts . Her debut young adult novel, Me (Moth) was a finalist for the National Book Award, and won the 2022 Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent, among many other accolades. She is a professor of creative writing at University of Virginia, and lives in Charlottesville, Virgina. Find her on Twitter: @ambsmcbride.

Reviews (2)

School Library Journal Review

Gr 9 Up--McBride presents another affecting author/narrator performance of her sophomore novel in verse, repeating the dual-credited success of her 2021 National Book Award Finalist debut, Me (Moth). Her opening "A Note Before Entering the Forest," which warns of "clinical depression, self-harm & suicide," sets a somber tone throughout. Atmospheric music announces each new chapter in the recovery journey of two teens, Whimsy and Faerry, who meet while hospitalized. The members of their group therapy circle to which Whimsy "assign[s] each person a Fairy Tale name" will play vital roles in the pair's survival. An author's note insistently reminds, "Stories keep the world intact." Whimsy & Faerry's Playlist follows, ending with acknowledgments that underscore the lifesaving power of poetry. VERDICT McBride's self-described "book about depression & pain & hope" is a healing balm for suffering souls.

Publisher's Weekly Review

McBride, the author of Me (Moth), employs lilting poetic wordplay to weave familiar fairy tales with original, resonant fables in this haunting verse novel. When human poet Whimsy is hospitalized with clinical depression, she meets and immediately connects with a Fae boy named Faerry. After getting discharged, she learns that Faerry has just moved into a house on Whimsy's street and soon realizes their intense familiarity hints at a shared past that neither of them seems to remember. Working together to unearth buried memories, the teens battle a fantastical physical embodiment of sorrow and struggle to face their inexplicable fear of the forest at the end of their street. Sparse yet expressive verse ("We are floating in a circle/ made from hope & crystal wings") grounds mystical happenings, such as Whimsy and Faerry's meetings with characters from classic fairy tales and folklore, including Anansi, Baba Yaga, and Snow White. Drawing from personal experience, as detailed in a beginning note, McBride delivers a dark, whimsical adventure that viscerally depicts experiences of clinical depression, generational trauma, racism, self-harm, suicidal ideation, and survivor's guilt. A glossary of the fairy tales referenced concludes. Whimsy and Faerry are Black. Ages 14--17. Agent: Rena Rossner, Deborah Harris Agency. (Jan.)