How do you know if you're on the verge of a nervous breakdown? For seventeen-year-old Stacy Black, it all begins with the smashing of a w... read full description
reviews
Jul 06, 2011
Sara
rated it: 
In the juvenile section of our local library, there is a large card holder. The cards each depict a different graphic novel that the library owns. There is no description to the book so it's a case of judging a book by it's cover or title. Such is the case with this book, my son picked it out because the title sounded funny. I got the book first and was immediately shocked by the fact that this was not a humorous book at all. It's a great book and I look forward to hearing his reaction to it.
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Apr 14, 2011
Rachel
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How I Made It to Eighteen is the dramatic story of Stacy Black’s account of her stay in a mental institution. The author uses graphics and multiple perspectives to tell the story that she claims is mostly based on the true event of her own mental breakdown and struggles with bulimia.
Personally, I did not particularly care for this novel, though I can see its value for students who struggle with depression or bulimia. I found the protagonist to be overly whiney, and, for that reason, i More...
Personally, I did not particularly care for this novel, though I can see its value for students who struggle with depression or bulimia. I found the protagonist to be overly whiney, and, for that reason, i More...
Apr 11, 2011
Mallory
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How I made it to 18 chronicles Stacy Black’s journey to happiness after she checks herself into a mental institute for putting her fist through a glass window just to feel something real. She is unsure of why she feels so depressed all the time, and honestly can’t remember how to be happy; all that she is sure of is that she wants to be happy. Slowly she unveils her personal issues with depression, lack of self esteem, drug abuse, and bulimia, and tries to get at the root of her problems – the “
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Jan 16, 2011
Mark
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Stacy Black checks herself into Golden Meadows Hospital in an attempt to feel happy again, after putting her fist through a window at her apartment. This graphic novel follows Stacy's time at the hospital, as she adjusts to psychotherapy, deals with her issues, and comes to grip with her bulimia, even as she advises a fellow patient against it. The book flashes back effectively to moments from Stacy's past, which set her on her current path.
This is a pretty straight-forward story, More...
This is a pretty straight-forward story, More...
Dec 18, 2010
Nicola
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Reason for Reading: This is a Cybils '10 nominee and required reading for me as a graphic novels panelist.
This is the author's memoir of when she had a nervous breakdown when she was 17 and checked herself into a mental institution. She admits freely to taking artistic licence with the truth for the sake of the story but as the title states it is mostly true. Told from the point of view of Stacy Black, 17yo high school graduate with no intentions of going to college she has moved out More...
This is the author's memoir of when she had a nervous breakdown when she was 17 and checked herself into a mental institution. She admits freely to taking artistic licence with the truth for the sake of the story but as the title states it is mostly true. Told from the point of view of Stacy Black, 17yo high school graduate with no intentions of going to college she has moved out More...
Dec 14, 2010
Barky
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Jun 24, 2010
Chelsea
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Stacy Black is seventeen years old when she puts her fist through her boyfriend's window and decides to check herself into Golden Meadows (restoring mental health since 1938). She doesn't intend to be there that long, but as the days stretch out, she realizes she is not quite well enough to be released yet. Stacy knows her time talking to the doctors and other patients is ultimately supposed to be helping her, but she just doesn't feel it yet. With the aid of fellow patient and friend Ashley, St
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Oct 30, 2011
Alexei
rated it:
{Sited from my website TeenageBookaholic }
In this "mostly true story", we're told about Stacy Black in her teen years. She's into drugs and is trying to shake off her bulimia. But once she decides to break a window on drugs, she realizes then that she needs to check into a hospital. She checks into a mental hospital, she comes to realize that the drugs and her bulimia are not the cause of her depression and suicidality, but the deeper feelings from her past. Can she repair More...
In this "mostly true story", we're told about Stacy Black in her teen years. She's into drugs and is trying to shake off her bulimia. But once she decides to break a window on drugs, she realizes then that she needs to check into a hospital. She checks into a mental hospital, she comes to realize that the drugs and her bulimia are not the cause of her depression and suicidality, but the deeper feelings from her past. Can she repair More...
Jul 23, 2010
Cindy
rated it:
How I Made It to Eighteen by Tracy White says it’s “mostly a true story.” The book tells the experiences of Stacy Black and her journey from a breakdown through therapy and institutionalization and to the other side. It’s a powerful story in a simple presentation.
With words and images, we meet Stacy’s friends, and we get to read their perspectives on her personality and her actions. We see notes about Stacy from the records at Golden Meadows hospital. And we hear the words of Stacy h More...
With words and images, we meet Stacy’s friends, and we get to read their perspectives on her personality and her actions. We see notes about Stacy from the records at Golden Meadows hospital. And we hear the words of Stacy h More...
Feb 13, 2011
ananka
rated it:
I have a few people near to me that struggle with some sort of addiction, whether it is drugs, alcohol or eating disorders. This book helped me look at those illnesses from the person experiencing them's perspective. It made it a little easier to forgive and to stop feeling guilty for not "being there." This is a memoir style comic that tells how Stacy Black goes to a mental hospital to deal with the depression that has been slowly building up in her over the last several years. T
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Jul 23, 2011
Margot
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Tracy White was a teenage hot mess, and now she's not. I enjoyed the tidy line drawings and the organization of the book including the chapter introductions featuring "Stacy's" friends talking about her. But, as is the common downfall of many a memoir (particularly recovery memoirs), it's self-absorbed to the point of lacking a commonality with the overall human condition. This book is all about Stacy/Tracy, and although she may have meant it to provide inspiration to other angsty alco
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Dec 30, 2010
Abby
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Dark, funny autobio comic about White's teenage years and what happened when she checked herself into a mental hospital at age 17. Really effective simple line drawings reminiscent of John Porcellino's King-Cat Comix. One technique I really appreciated was how she drew conversations between herself & her psychiatrist or other people -- she divided the page in half with herself drawn in panels on the left side and the other conversant on the right with the gutter going down straight down the page
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Aug 11, 2011
Rosalia
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The author writes about how she had a nervous breakdown and spent some time in an institution where she finally learned how to take care of herself. As you go through the book you get her friends opinions on what is going on with her and how they weren't always able to see the problems. The reader also gets to see Stacy's past and how some things that happened when she was younger directly affected her behavior's as an adult.
I thought this did a great job showing how things that More...
I thought this did a great job showing how things that More...
Aug 22, 2010
Steve
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Would have liked a little more to have happened in this book. The moment she gets close to a breakthrough the story just stops. The art style is a bit simplistic, which works for it sometimes but falls short others. The fact that the book focuses so much on the perspectives of her four friends is another thing that kind of works for it but also kind of doesn't. And the fact that she changes her character's name to Stacy Black instead of Tracy White kind of got under my skin. If you're going to t
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Aug 04, 2011
I was a little worried about how the graphic format would work with this book, but that wasn't an issue, at least not in the way I thought it would be. The drawings really added to the, well, picture of who Stacey was.
They told a somewhat different story than would have been told only in words. You can see the changes she makes to her hair, for instance. A page might have several panels with her and her therapist, with nothing else happening. Words might have described the silenc More...
They told a somewhat different story than would have been told only in words. You can see the changes she makes to her hair, for instance. A page might have several panels with her and her therapist, with nothing else happening. Words might have described the silenc More...
Aug 07, 2010
John
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I've followed Tracy White's online comic "Traced" for a couple of years and was really looking forward to seeing and reading this book. I was not disappointed.
The art is White's typically minimal, yet deeply evocative, style. A lot of emotion lies underneath a few ethereal brush strokes. She also inserts four of Stacy's friends into the story who give their observations of events during different parts of the drama as it unfolds. In the process, they tell as much about them More...
The art is White's typically minimal, yet deeply evocative, style. A lot of emotion lies underneath a few ethereal brush strokes. She also inserts four of Stacy's friends into the story who give their observations of events during different parts of the drama as it unfolds. In the process, they tell as much about them More...
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Dec 08, 2010
Lisa
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I thought this was an interesting account, but I wanted to know more about what happened to Stacey? Did she kick Eric in the shins?
Also, I found myself confusing some of the minor characters, and I wish the accounts of her friends were in a different font. The font that was used hurt my eyes, so I skimmed those parts....
Also, I found myself confusing some of the minor characters, and I wish the accounts of her friends were in a different font. The font that was used hurt my eyes, so I skimmed those parts....
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May 08, 2011
Sarah
rated it:
After seeing the author speak on a YA graphic novel panel at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, I was curious to read How I Made it to 18. A "mostly true" memoir with thin veils of fiction, the protagonist tells the tale of committing herself to an institution when she is depressed, cutting herself, and bulimic.
While the story is somewhat compelling, it falls flat in two ways: 1) 4 characters periodically give first hand accounts of their interactions and history wit More...
While the story is somewhat compelling, it falls flat in two ways: 1) 4 characters periodically give first hand accounts of their interactions and history wit More...
Mar 01, 2011
Liralen
rated it:
So close.
How I Made It to Eighteen is a graphic memoir, a genre I approach with caution. I often find that the art gets in the way of my reading experience - not a reflection on the art itself, but rather on how I approach books, I think. In any case, I don't read as many graphic novels/memoirs as I might, because adding art to the mix means yet another ingredient that may or may not add to the final product.
I wasn't disappointed on that end, mind. White's art is very sim More...
How I Made It to Eighteen is a graphic memoir, a genre I approach with caution. I often find that the art gets in the way of my reading experience - not a reflection on the art itself, but rather on how I approach books, I think. In any case, I don't read as many graphic novels/memoirs as I might, because adding art to the mix means yet another ingredient that may or may not add to the final product.
I wasn't disappointed on that end, mind. White's art is very sim More...
Jul 05, 2010
Tracie
rated it:
17-year-old Stacy Black suffers a nervous breakdown and describes her subsequent 6-month stay in a mental institution; based on the author's personal experiences.
I liked that the author combined multiple perspectives to tell this story, showing us Stacy's plight through the eyes of her friends, her therapists, and herself. The novel ends with Stacy realizing that she is bulimic and bringing this revelation to the attention of hospital staff. While I cheered for Stacy's "Aha!" More...
I liked that the author combined multiple perspectives to tell this story, showing us Stacy's plight through the eyes of her friends, her therapists, and herself. The novel ends with Stacy realizing that she is bulimic and bringing this revelation to the attention of hospital staff. While I cheered for Stacy's "Aha!" More...
Oct 30, 2011
Samantha
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In one word: honest. I liked the way this story was told. Stacy, the main character, talks directly to the reader in a dear diary sort of way and every so often a narrator/psychiatrist type will pose a question about Stacy and then her friends will weigh in. Their responses reveal as much about Stacy as it does about each girl in her friend circle. Stacy struggles with some difficult issues: drugs, an eating disorder, low self esteem, bad relationships with friends/men/family, but I think the au
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Dec 16, 2010
Additeenlibrarian
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Autobiographical graphic novel, written and drawn by the author. Engaging story of author's near-nervous-breakdown and time spent in a mental hospital when she was 17. Each chapter begins with an excerpt from her medical records and ends with her four friends responding to a question about Stacy (main character). I would have liked it more if there'd been more evidence of Stacy changing, getting better, responding differently to the world, but there isn't much -- her progress is shown primarily
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Sep 04, 2010
Maysen
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I'm not really sure what i can say about this book unless really liking it counts. It was a really good book, yet it was not one of my favorites. She is a really great author, so I cant wait for her next book to come out. I learned a lot of things from this book. Such as, taking drugs can really ruin your life. But you can always decide to take charge and turn your whole life around. And that if u decide to be belimic it can ruin your life forever, or it can feel like forever. The truth is that
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Feb 16, 2010
Kathryn
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Stacy checks herself into a mental hospital at 17. This is her story told in graphic novel format of coming to terms with her depression, anxiety and the destructive behaviors she has used to cope. The drawings are very stark and simple but work well with the story. I think this book will have appeal for teen girls especially and anyone else who struggles with self-esteem and body issues. Watching Tracy come to the place where she wants to get better and begins to do so will be recognizable t
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Sep 28, 2010
Diane
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In this graphic novel, the author recounts her time spend in a mental hospital after a breakdown at seventeen when her drug abuse and bulimia began to take its toll. We meet the other girls, each with their own issues with eating disorders, drugs, and depression in the hospital and the doctors. This is a serious tale of those 24 weeks. She does not pull any punches in telling her “mostly true” story. The line drawings that tell the story add to the intensity and seriousness of her story. T
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Sep 01, 2010
April
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This is perhaps the most amazing graphic novel I have ever read. It is so honest about what it means to be truly depressed and self-destructive. My only complaint is that the end is kind of sudden and leaves you hanging, but I put this book right up there with Prozac Nation and Girl Interupted. In fact, I think this book is BETTER. It is an uncomplicated look at one of the most complicated subjects there is...mental illness and self esteem. I applaud Tracy White's courage for sharing such a
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Sep 14, 2011
Eric
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Another graphic coming of age story. Lots of the usual elements: drugs, self-loathing, mental illness, eating disorders, parental loathing, you get the picture. Does anyone ever draw/write about living through a fairly normal high school experience, or is it only the most misery-laden lives that are chronicled and that we find interesting? Still, I enjoyed the book, the minimalist drawing style worked, and I liked the Greek-chorus of friends who are interviewed at various stages about their t
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Apr 08, 2011
Andria
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I'm rarely enthusiastic about a graphic novel, but give me one that's also a memoir of teenage mental illness and addiction set in a treatment facility with a snarky female lead, and I'm already halfway there. Add simple, expressive, and quirky line drawings, and I'm sold. I've been reading graphic novels recently to become more familiar with the genre, and really enjoyed this one. The black & white illustrations perfectly complement the text, set the tone, and help tell the story of a young
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Jun 23, 2011
Clementine
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Seventeen-year-old Stacy Black suffers a nervous breakdown, and after putting her fist through a plate-glass window, checks herself into a hospital. Over the course of half a year, she learns to deal with her depression, anxiety, self-esteem issues, and drug addiction. While in the hospital, she befriends a cast of characters who represent teenagers with a wide range of problems and addresses her issues with her mother.
White’s graphic novel is largely autobiographical, and her spar More...
White’s graphic novel is largely autobiographical, and her spar More...
Jul 11, 2010
Nicole
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Lots of good stuff here. The art is extremely spare, which suggests both the isolation/blunt affect of depression and the bare institutional feel of a treatment facility. It's not an overly dramatic Hollywood-ization of the type that so frequently shows up in teen lit narratives about mental illness and drug abuse and eating disorders - it's pretty realistic, as far as I can tell (according to the author, it's a largely true account, so that makes sense). The monologues from Stacy's friends are
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