My Life in the Fish Tank
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5.0 • 5 Ratings
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- $8.99
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
From the acclaimed author of Maybe He Just Likes You and Halfway Normal comes a “compassionate…touching” (Donna Gephart, award-winning author of The Paris Project) and powerful story of learning how to grow, change, and survive.
When twelve-year-old Zinnia Manning’s older brother Gabriel is diagnosed with a mental illness, the family’s world is turned upside down. Mom and Dad want Zinny, her sixteen-year-old sister, Scarlett, and her eight-year-old brother, Aiden, to keep Gabriel’s condition “private”—and to Zinny that sounds the same as “secret.” Which means she can’t talk about it with her two best friends, who don’t understand why Zinny keeps pushing them away, turning everything into a joke.
It also means she can’t talk about it during Lunch Club, a group run by the school guidance counselor. How did Zinny get stuck in this weird club, anyway? She certainly doesn’t have anything in common with these kids—and even if she did, she’d never betray her family’s secret.
The only good thing about school is science class, where cool teacher Ms. Molina has them doing experiments on crayfish. And when Zinny has the chance to attend a dream marine biology camp for the summer, she doesn’t know what to do. How can Zinny move forward when Gabriel—and, really, her whole family—still needs her help?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Twelve-year-old Zinny Manning loves her three siblings' loud banter, especially from her usually affable older brother, Gabe. But Gabe's recent rebellious behavior has Zinny baffled and even frightened. When he is in a car accident, her parents reveal that he has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and suggest that the family keep it a secret while Gabe receives treatment in a mental facility. Almost overnight, Zinny's once close-knit family grows distant and quiet, leaving her uncertain about what to tell her friends. With the help of an empathic teacher and a lunchtime group meant for kids struggling with similar challenges, Zinny grapples with her feelings about her brother and the societal stigmas attached to bipolar disorder. With emotional detail, Dee (Halfway Normal) captures Zinny's turmoil, particularly through flashbacks of affectionate interactions with her brother and current school scenes that reveal Zinny's anger and uncertainty. Though Dee's message that mental illness need not be stigmatized comes through clearly, the story manages to avoid feeling didactic through lunchtime conversations that are particularly relatable. With sensitivity and skillful storytelling, Dee portrays a difficult subject in an engrossing, accessible way. Ages 9 13.
