So Much to Tell You by John Marsden

by | Sep 9, 2013 | Blog, Mental health, Writing

I recently happened onto a tiny YA book (only 119 pages) called So Much to Tell You by an Australian author named John Marsden, and I’m absolutely blown away by this author’s personal journey and this, his debut book. Marsden dropped out of law school and spent his...

MEMORIES OF SUMMER by Ruth White

by | Sep 3, 2013 | Blog, Mental health, Writing

  If you’ve been following my blog you know that my book, CRAZY, is about a teen dealing with her mother’s bipolar disorder in the sixties.  That’s why I tend to read books like MEMORIES OF SUMMER, which is a different twist on the same theme. Newbery Honor...

ROGUE by Lyn Miller-Lachmann

by | Aug 21, 2013 | Blog, Mental health, Writing

Shortly after  I reviewed The Way I See It, by Temple Grandin, I received an email from Lyn Miller-Lachmann, whose recently released book, Rogue, is based on her own experience with Asperger’s Syndrome.   I am thrilled that she has agreed to be a guest on my...

MADNESS by Marya Hornbacher

by | Aug 12, 2013 | Blog, Mental health, Writing

I just finished reading Madness, Marya Hornbacher’s account of her life leading up to and after the diagnosis of Type I rapid-cycle bipolar disorder, the most severe form of bipolar there is. All I can say is Hornbacher’s first-hand experience made my own circumstance...

THE WAY I SEE IT by Temple Grandin

by | Aug 5, 2013 | Blog, Mental health

The most famous spokesperson for autism and Asperger’s that I know of is Dr. Temple Grandin, a high-functioning adult on the autism spectrum who has written many books on the subject, including The Way I See It.  I was spellbound as she shared in some detail the...

The WIP and I Take a Roller Coaster Ride

by | Jul 29, 2013 | Blog, Writing

I am about half way through the first draft of my WIP, a Middle Grade adventure about a boy with learning disabilities who has left a science project until the last minute, the last minute being a family reunion during Spring Break at a castle in Switzerland.  I...

Stop Pretending……by Sonya Sones

by | Jul 22, 2013 | Blog, Mental health

When I was finishing my forthcoming novel, CRAZY, someone suggested that I should read STOP PRETENDING….what happened when my big sister went crazy.  I did read it with interest, and as my own book marches its way to publication, I recently reread it with even more...

Dyslexia and a Mother’s Intuition

by | Jul 8, 2013 | Blog, Mental health, Writing

Recently I have featured a few Middle Grade books that present protagonists with learning disabilities who reach a turning point after which we know that life is going to be more manageable going forward.  (see Another Struggling Reader in Close to Famous;Eleven:...