Dr. Bird's Advice for Sad Poets

In this often hilarious, sometimes heartbreaking but always hopeful young adult novel, 16 year old James Whitman is trying to navigate high school and a tough home life while wrestling with depression and anxiety. James recites Walt Whitman, hugs trees, talks to an imaginary bird therapist and tries to figure out why his sister Jorie has been kicked out of school and out of the house. His parents won't talk about it and act like their family is better off now that she's gone. But James feels guilty for failing to defend Jorie over the years and one day while snooping through his sister's room, he stumbles upon a box that reveals some of Jorie's secrets. In his quest to try to bring Jorie back home, he ends battling with his parents, the principal, his best friend and even himself as he tries to figure out what part he played in Jorie's exile and discovers that some of Jorie's secrets aren't that different from his own. The novel packs quite an emotional punch at times, as when James contemplates suicide, but we never doubt that James will pull himself out of his hole as he searches for and finds help in surprising places. This debut novel by MFA Evan James Roskos offers an incredibly compelling view of teen angst and depression, capturing all the anxiety, dorkiness, emotion, conflicts, passion, and confusion that teens can go through.