I don't really have much to say about this except it's absolutely brilliant and wow I'm so happy this book exists and I picked it up.

Mental health issues are always, always going to be worth talking about, especially when they're treated with such care and such rawness. I know John himself struggles with some of the things he touches on in TATWD, but being part of Aza's story felt unbelievably validating. I have never read a book that deals with mental health as largely as this one does before, and it felt empowering and sad at the same time - because I felt it so deeply, and all I wanted to do was take it all away from Aza, set her free.

Surprisingly enough, this cry-baby only shed tears at one particular line that hit me like a freight train: 'Jesus Christ, Holmesy, you can sure hold a grudge against yourself.' And I definitely can. It's something I've struggled with for a long time, and I never thought seeing it put down into words would get such an emotional reaction out of me, but alas, it did. Personally, I've never experienced OCD and such debilitating anxiety as Aza does (mine is largely social), but that didn't take away from my experience with this book. Although I couldn't really understand it, I was given a front-seat view into the life of someone who has to constantly battle against forces bigger than themselves, sometimes winning over them, sometimes losing, and to that I am definitely no stranger.

I love this book. It's such a great book. Beautifully written and such a poignant story. Will probably most likely definitely pick it up again over the course of this year. What an amazing book.