Turtles All the Way Down in Shadow Lounge Readathon Group

Mar 28, 2019 Elyse rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: genre-age-young-adult, libby-ebooks-borrowed, gr-challenge-2019, stars-3

I absolutely appreciate what John Green is trying to do with Aza. Bringing awareness to mental health, specifically anxiety. And just because he is John Green, this book will get a TON of reads. Already has, I'm technically late to the game!

Buuut I wasn't wild about this book. The only other John Green book I've read is The Fault in Our Stars and I really liked it, didn't *love* it. And this was no TFIOS. There was no real plot. The Pickett story was kind of dumb and pointless. I felt bad for D ...more

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Mar 08, 2018 Sunsettowers rated it it was amazing

Shelves: young-adult

There are times when you pick up a book at the exact time you need it. This was one of those times, and this was one of those books.

In John Green's Turtles All the Way Down, we meet Aza, a sixteen year old consumed by anxiety and obsessive compulsive thoughts, feeling forced by her own brain to focus on the bacteria that surround her and the bacteria she knows are inside her, an absolute all-consuming compulsion that compels her to reopen a cut on her fingerpad over and over to make sure it is c There are times when you pick up a book at the exact time you need it. This was one of those times, and this was one of those books.

In John Green's Turtles All the Way Down, we meet Aza, a sixteen year old consumed by anxiety and obsessive compulsive thoughts, feeling forced by her own brain to focus on the bacteria that surround her and the bacteria she knows are inside her, an absolute all-consuming compulsion that compels her to reopen a cut on her fingerpad over and over to make sure it is clean and not infected.

When a billionaire goes missing, on the run because of shady things he's done with his money, Aza finds herself and her best friend drawn into the mystery, because of the reward, but also because of Aza's past connection with the fugitive's son, Davis. As Aza is drawn into the seemingly infinite and and completely overwhelming spirals of her own mind, she struggles to hold onto herself and the relationships she has formed.

Aza is so so painfully and amazingly real. Green has done a masterful and important thing by making her the first person narrator of her own story. I needed and need Aza, as I am sure so many readers did and do. I picked this book up not only because of glowing recommendations from people I care about, but also because I needed it. I am in the midst of my own work on my own anxiety disorder and depression, especially following the loss of my beloved dog, and while it is nowhere near where Aza finds herself, there is still so much in the book I could relate to, so much I needed to hear put into words. Green understands it so well because he's been there, and is still there, and this allows him to write with such honesty. He tells a story that needs to be told, because it makes all of us out there who can relate feel and know we are not alone. And that there is nothing to be ashamed of, no need to hide--a best-selling author has put out a best-selling book that tells our truth--and who we are is important, and valid, and makes us no less than anyone around us.

It is so rare to find a book that you keep nodding your head along to, that you feel every word in your heart, that resonates so strongly, and that makes you feel uplifted in your soul. This was one of those books for me. I recommend it with my whole heart, and with my spiraling, but beautiful, mind. ...more

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Sep 16, 2018 Nicole Dunton rated it really liked it

I really enjoyed this book a lot more than I thought I would! I heard from people I follow that the book wasn't as good as the rest of his books. I can't really judge that fully because the only other book I've read of his is The Fault In Our Stars. That was an amazing book and the comparison between the two wouldn't really be fair at all.

I have Anxiety, Depression, PTSD, and ADHD. While I related to Aza in many ways, I did not relate fully. There were a lot of ways I totally agreed with her an ...more

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Jun 22, 2017 Heather rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: mental-illness

EDIT: Dropping this down to 1 star instead of 1.5 stars because ever since I read this book, I've been panicking about having C. diff due to my frequent use of antibiotics thanks to my chronic illness. Fuck this book for that reason.

“I would always be like this, always have this within me. There was no beating it. I would never slay the dragon, because the dragon was also me. My self and the disease were knotted together for life.”

1/5 stars
I find this extremely hard to rate.
For starters, this s ...more

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Apr 26, 2018 Heather P added it

The beginning was slow, in my opinion. John Green did a great job writing about a mental illness that many people struggle with, including himself. I loved the ending.

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