Written by Caroline C. McGee & Illustrated by N.C. Hall
This is the story, told from the perspective of a hermit crab family, of a school-age boy who starts presenting the symptoms of early onset bipolar disorder. The narrative of fourteen short chapters begins with a typical quarrel between Matt and his sister, Abby. However, Matt’s behavior quickly deteriorates leaving his family baffled and afraid. Matt is persistently argumentative and disruptive. He swings between aggressive hostility and complete isolation. He struggles with food cravings and nightmares. At times, Matt even experiences extreme paranoia and delusions. The situation climaxes with the hospitalization of Matt in a children’s psychiatric hospital.
This children’s chapter book is a great resource for explaining bipolar disorder to kids. However, I do offer one word of caution. This book is written on a level for children to read, but I believe it would be best for a parent to read the story before presenting it to a child and to read the book with the child. While many behaviors are common from one child to the next with bipolar disorder, some are not. Children are very impressionable. If there is a behavior or difficulty that your child is not experiencing (for example, eating candy in the middle of the night), you may want to consider skipping that part to avoid introducing a new problem.
In conclusion, I do highly recommend this book. Caroline McGee presents this very poignant story, which is all too often the difficult reality for families touched by this disorder, with great sensitivity and insight. The way in which Matt’s parents, siblings, teacher and classmates rally around him and work to gain an understanding of his illness is inspirational.
