Jo could never have guessed that the friendship she so desperately craves would come in the shape of a severely disabled boy. He can't even speak. Maybe it is because he can't speak that she finds herself telling him how difficult it is living with her eccentric, mentally fragile mother. Behind Chris' lopsided grin and gigantic blue wheelchair is a real person - with a sense of humour, a tremendous stubborn streak and a secret he has kept from everyone. For a while it seems life may actually get better. But as Jo finds out just how terrible life is for Chris, and as her own life spirals out of control, she becomes desperate to change things for both of them. In a dramatic turn of events, Jo makes a decision that could end in tragedy. This is the story of how an unusual friendship unlocks the words that neither knew they had.
Mental illness is an 'illness' which touches many people. I am one of those people and I now, after over fifteen years, feel ready to talk about it. however, when I was younger, I wish there had been a book that I could of related to, this is such a book.
The book touches on many subjects, bullying, disability, mental illness and the over riding topic of friendship makes this story such a beautiful read which has underlying messages running throughout. It is a great book to read at anytime but also it would be a powerful book to read during school PHSE lessons and could be used as a great introduction into mental illness.
This book should be introduced into school -let's get it onto school reading lists!
In summary, a well written book and I look forward to reading more by this author soon.
Thank you to the publicist, Antonia Wilkinson, for sending me this book to review.
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