Book Review: (Don't) Call Me Crazy: 33 Voices Start the Conversation About Mental Health by Kelly Jensen

Publish Date: October 2nd 2018
Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers
Series: None
Source: ARC from publisher in exchange for honest review

Goodreads Synopsis:

Who’s Crazy? What does it mean to be crazy? Is using the word crazy offensive? What happens when such a label gets attached to your everyday experiences?In order to understand mental health, we need to talk openly about it. Because there’s no single definition of crazy, there’s no single experience that embodies it, and the word itself means different things—wild? extreme? disturbed? passionate?—to different people.(Don’t) Call Me Crazy is a conversation starter and guide to better understanding how our mental health affects us every day. Thirty-three writers, athletes, and artists offer essays, lists, comics, and illustrations that explore their personal experiences with mental illness, how we do and do not talk about mental health, help for better understanding how every person’s brain is wired differently, and what, exactly, might make someone crazy.If you’ve ever struggled with your mental health, or know someone who has, come on in, turn the pages, and let’s get talking.

My Review:

(Don’t) Call Me Crazy is an anthology written by so many people. People who are famous and whose names you’ve probably heard of (Libba Bray, Kristen Bell etc). It’s written by people who have been told they are crazy and need help. It’s written by people who have gotten help professionally or just through friends and family support. It’s written by people like you and I.


Mental health is everywhere and it used to have such a stigma attached to it (it still does but it’s getting better). We need to continue talking about all of the different ways people struggle with mental health. We need to encourage everyone that you are not alone. And it’s books like this one right here that can help!

I would say that my mental health for the most part is in good shape but I had a bit of an eye opener reading this book, because my husband suffers from (self-diagnoses) OCD, and to be honest I never really thought of it as a mental health issue. I thought it was just an annoying trait that was hard for me to deal with some days. But there’s a really good piece in this book about Obsessive Compulsive Disorders and it made me realize that it’s more than just “an annoying trait”. It really made me stand back and look a little harder at everything that goes on in a daily basis. It also made me think about what he goes through on a daily basis and now I try to help him out (and support) as much as I can. That’s the thing with mental health, it can affect anyone and there may or may not be obvious signs. The struggle can be internal or hidden with smiles and laughter and what most would call “normal behaviour”.

We need to continue to show awareness about mental health and even if you just pick up this book, read it, talk about it, and /or pass it on you’ll be doing something. This isn’t a “self-help” book that will feel dry and boring, it’s more than that! I cried and laughed throughout it. I was able to learn a bit about mental health and I encourage everyone to read this!