Every Last Word

YA fiction 

     "If I cut it once I'll keep going.  I know I will.  I'll move on to the next rose, and the next one, and I'll keep cutting until there's nothing left but a huge pile of stems, leaves, and petals."

     Sam, protagonist of Tamara Ireland Stone's Every Last Word, was diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder when she was eleven.  Now in high school, she's been seeing a psychiatrist and taking anti anxiety and sleeping pills for years.  She's getting so tired of it.  She longs for a life free of therapy and meds, a life in which she'll finally be normal like everyone else.

     Sam is part of a popular group of girls who have been best friends most of their lives.  Sam doesn't know who she'd be without them.  But she's also seen them be mean to group members and outsiders and knows that she's very vulnerable.

     "My friends can't know about my OCD or my debilitating, uncontrollable thoughts because my friends are normal.  And perfect.  They pride themselves on normalcy and perfection.  And they can't ever find out how far away I am from those two things."

     There is hope.  When Sam becomes a member of a secret poetry club she finds people to really see and accept her.  Unfortunately they're the exact kind of people her clique makes life miserable for.  Can she reconcile her worlds? Or will she have to give one up?

     The seed for Every Last Word was sown when a 12-year-old friend of Stone's family was diagnosed with OCD.  Stone sympathized with her challenges and struggles.  

     "I knew she wasn't alone.  I wanted to learn more about the disorder and to understand what it was like to live inside her mind.  She was eager to share her experience, and I was honored when she agreed to work with me on this novel."

On a purrrsonal note, the stent removal was a total success.  I got to see it on a screen.  It was fascinating, sort of like a video game.  Then I had to rush to campus to take part in my very first hackathon (which I'll tell you about in my next review).  I now have an adult bladder capacity instead of a three-year- old one.  No more feeling like I've been hijacked by a preschooler.  It feels amazing!!!  ( Jules)

She's all better!!!  (Tobago)

A great big shout out goes out to my urologist!

Tobago and Jules Hathaway 

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