Book Review: Rage

So most of you that know me, know that I am big into Psych.. especially teen psych illnesses. It's something that not only fascinates me but it's something I want to spend my life involved in, trying to help if I can. While at the store a few weeks back I ran across two books that I think will go a long way in helping some teens with some serious issues that come up in almost everyday life. The first book was Hunger, I already did the review of it, and LOVED that book. Now I am on book 2 and I couldn't put it down.

Rage is about teen cutting, and the dramas and hardships that come along with it. From what can cause it to start to finding away to beat it. I adore these books the most because they not only send a message about how harmful these conditions can be but they do it in a way that isn't bogged down with lecture and judgement. If it were up to me I would put a book like this in every teenagers hands in the world.

Missy cuts. She is miserable in her life... most of the time. She doesn't want to die, so it's not a suicidal thing. She wants release, to be free of the ball that tightens in her chest and threatens to control her. So she cuts, the slide of the blade across her skin, the sight of the bright red blood as it flows out gives her exactly what she needs, a release.

Adam is a jerk, the worst kind of jerk. He told he loved her, but when faced with her secret, he ran. Not only is he a jerk, but he is a coward. If that wasn't bad enough, Missy's lifelong friend, Graygirl, the family pet, dies as well. The pressure is entirely too much, so she cuts.

The night everything gets ruined beyond compare, Missy decides she needs to cut. Even after going a few days with trying her hardest to not do it anymore. That night is different, and she cuts too much, and too deep.

When Death comes to her, she knows it's time, until she is reminded of the package he brought her. If she will embrace her inner Horseman, then she will live. But once she becomes the physical manifestation of War, there is no going back, and it not only becomes a war on the outside, but she struggles more and more each day with the new internal battles.

It all comes down to if Missy is truly strong enough to win against herself. If she can beat her own inner demons then she can take on War with not problems. She just has to get to the point where she can forgive herself, and move on. Unfortunately she might not be strong enough.

I ADORED this book, Jackie Morse Kessler did a fantastic job of getting across a message that needs to be heard. She did it in a way that makes more ppl want to listen, specially the ones who may be stubborn teenagers :)

For every book that is purchased a portion of the proceeds will go to Write Love on Her Arms. This is a nonprofit organization bent on helping ppl with illnesses such as self injury, among many other problems. You can visit the website http://www.twloha.com/ to find out more information of these issues, and to find ways that you may be able to help someone who desperately needs it.

I recommend this book and is predecessor to EVERYONE. Especially the parents of teenagers, and the teenagers themselves.

-Danielle