Saturday, January 13, 2018

Finding Perfect by Elly Swartz - ESSENTIAL

Swartz, Elly Finding Perfect, 296 pages.  Farrar Straus Giroux 2016. $16.99. 

Language: PG (1 swears, 0 "f"); Mature Content: PG; Violence: PG.  

EL, MS, HS -ESSENTIAL

On the surface, Molly is your typical 12yo.  She loves her family, hanging out with friends, slam poetry, and organizing.  But Molly's idyllic world gets a brutal blow when her mother decides to take a job in Toronto for a year, leaving Molly and her brother and sister behind with their dad.  Molly struggles to cope with her mothers absence and her growing need to keep everything in her life just right.  When Molly's need for perfection and order reaches a tipping point, she must find help or drown in the feelings and compulsions she can't control. 

Molly's story is a glimpse into the life and very real struggle of someone dealing with OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder).  I love the author's use of poetry throughout the story and felt it brought an authenticity to Molly's emotions.  Readers of all ages will connect with Molly as a character, but will also get an introduction into a very real but often misunderstood condition.  Like many other books that deal with disabilities or disorders, this book will enlighten the reader and they will walk away from it a better person. 

Gina, Media Specialist

No comments: