From the Bookshelf of Around the Year in 52 Books …

Challenger Deep

Neal Shusterman,

Brendan Shusterman (Illustrator)

Why we're reading this: 7/8 -
- Brain on Fire
- The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
- Turtles All the Way Down
- Sharp Objects
- The Hours
- …more
[close] 7/8 -
- Brain on Fire
- The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
- Turtles All the Way Down
- Sharp Objects
- The Hours
- A Head Full of Ghosts
- You

21 - ATY list of lesser know books

Find A Copy At

Group Discussions About This Book

No group discussions for this book yet.

What Members Thought

Mar 02, 2017 Ann rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: character-sympathetic, nautical, realistic, young-adult, tone-angst-filled, pirates, animals, high-school, mental-illness, storyline-character-driven

Challenger Deep isn't the easiest book to get into, but it's so so so rewarding. Neal Shusterman writes truths about mental illness, both devastating and infinitely hopeful in their wisdom, that instantly brought me to tears as I read them. ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Jun 07, 2015 Lacey Louwagie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 100-book-challenge-2015, literary-fiction, youngadult

This is one of those books that is going to be hard for me to review.

First off, I know it's an important book. Contrary to a review I read on the book, it is NOT rare for YA literature to tackle mental illness, but I've never seen it addressed in quite this way. Challenger Deep consists of two parallel story lines, one that takes place in the "real world" and one that takes place on a pirate ship. It is not difficult to see how these stories intersect as you read on. Still, it takes a little wh This is one of those books that is going to be hard for me to review.

First off, I know it's an important book. Contrary to a review I read on the book, it is NOT rare for YA literature to tackle mental illness, but I've never seen it addressed in quite this way. Challenger Deep consists of two parallel story lines, one that takes place in the "real world" and one that takes place on a pirate ship. It is not difficult to see how these stories intersect as you read on. Still, it takes a little while to get grounded in the story. The pirate storyline is not historically or culturally accurate, and at the beginning it seems free-floating enough that it's hard to find an anchor (no pun intended) to hold on to. This made me prefer the "real-world" storyline in the first half of the book, although as the book went on the pirate storyline began to make more sense and proved very intriguing.

This book really gave me a "feel" for what it might be like to experience schizophrenia, especially in the dream-like sequences on the pirate ship and in the descriptions of Caden's increasingly unusual drawings. Is this an "accurate" depiction of what life is like for a schizophrenic teen? I have no way of answering that and hope that people with direct experience or mental health expertise will weigh in.

This book was scary in that there was no clear "reason" for Caden's schizophrenia. Of course, we know it is a mental illness that does not need a "reason" other than the brain chemistry one was born with. But I wondered whether anyone else in Caden's family tree had ever struggled with mental illness. His parents are supportive and fleshed out fairly well, but neither of them seems able to provide any insight into what is happening to their son, and they both seem pretty mentally healthy.

Although this still feels like a "problem novel," Caden IS more than his mental illness. He has interests, is concerned about his sister, develops a crush, and speaks his mind. The presence of an adult mentor who is managing his own schizophrenia was also a nice touch, giving the reader an idea of what a history might look like for Caden.

I wavered between giving this book three and four stars. This is my first Shusterman book, and there is no doubt that he is a gifted writer. The teen voice and the dialog ring true. I didn't find the end to be completely satisfying and thought the revelation of who "The Captain" really was was a bit of a letdown, although I can also see the symbolic role he may have played in Caden's life. Also, I already mentioned the slow beginning. But the middle is strong -- ultimately too strong to relegate this book to 3-star territory. ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Dec 29, 2019 Jennifer W rated it it was amazing

Shelves: ya, mental-health

An emotional, realistic look at schizophrenia. It handled well the voices, internal and external that compete in an ill person. One I would highly recommend, and one I hope to reread at some point.

1 like · Like · see review

Aug 22, 2015 Brandi rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: teen, favorites, random-reads-column, realistic-fiction, drama, 2015, mental-illness-neurodivergence

I feel like I have a lot to say about this book, but I don't know if I have to words to express everything I'm feeling. I waited a day to write the review in hopes that I could come up with something. Here's what I got...

When I started reading this book, I wasn't sure that I was going to like it. However, I could tell that it was very different from anything else I've ever read, which kept me hooked.

This book is lyrical chaos. It pulls you from one thing to another without warning. It should fe ...more

Like · see review

Mar 07, 2023 Ana rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, 2023, 2023-aty, 2023-march

Powerful book

I loved the disjointed narrative and story, and yet how it all ties together. It's a deep dive into the mind as the mind dives deep. Really powerful and makes you think. ...more

Like · see review