Barbara Dee did it again! She so great at telling a relatable story and making something so difficult understandable. Great story, great character development.

I think that this is an excellent middle grade novel about mental health, and coping when your family becomes "complicated." Zinny grappling with Gabriel's "secret" is the core of this novel, but it's also the struggle of a twelve year old to pick up the pieces when her parents are emotionally unavailable. Zinny notices that her mom has stopped cooking actual meals, so she starts buying groceries for the house, and attempts making "tuna surprise." She also notices that her younger brother, Aiden, is struggling to make sense of his homework assignments. Zinny's older sister, Scarlett, is reeling from Gabriel's diagnosis and unable to help, so Zinny becomes the good, obedient, helpful child. It is only at the one end of the novel that she's able to express her frustration and anger about what's happening.

I am a big fan of Barbara Dee's middle grade novels, and this is another winner.

I'm sorry for the late review. Barbara Dee is becoming one of my most recommended authors for middle grade realistic fiction. I purchased My Life in the Fish Tank for my K-5 library earlier this school year and it hasn't spent much time on the shelf.

Thank you, Barbara Dee and Simon and Schuster Children's publishing for letting #Collabookation review this title!

I've been hearing so much lately about how amazing Barbara Dee's books are because they are so true to real life experiences, and boy am I glad I was able to read this one. Mental illness is such a common issue, but not one that is mentioned very often in middle grade lit. I absolutely loved how Dee approached it in My Life in the Fish Tank!

Zinny and her family are dealing with an untimely wreck that involves her older brother Gabe and spirals into his diagnosis of bipolar disorder. In the middle of all this, Zinny is a middle schooler who is dealing with normal middle school issues, struggling to fit in, and not lose the few friends she has while keeping the events surrounding Gabe's accident a secret. I love that Zinny through her struggles realizes the value of the "Lunch Club" that she was so hesitant to be a part of. I will definitely be adding this one to our classroom library!

I was given a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Zinny's brother has started acting weird. When he has a mental breakdown and then is diagnosed with ADHD and bipolar disorder, his parents ask her and her two siblings to keep her brothers illness quiet. They do that in order to make it easier for her brother to return to their lives after staying in a mental hospital for several months. But being silent is too much for Zinny and starts to affect her friendships and other relationships. Great middle grade novel discussing important issues.
#netgalley #BarbaraDee #MyLifeInTheFishTank #Bipolar #ADHD

Thank you, Barbara Dee and Simon and Schuster Children's publishing for letting #BookAllies review this title.

Zinny and the Manning family are thrown for a loop when Gabe gets in an accident and is diagnosed with mental health issues. This book could really connect with young readers, those dealing with the challenges that come in middle school, fitting in, friendships, and finding your way when life at home is a struggle as well. This one has already been added to our classroom library and should be added to yours if it isn't!

Barbara Dee can do no wrong. I have loved everything she has written and this one was absolutely exquisite - so many tears for me. Middle grade doesn’t have nearly enough high quality representation of mental illness and this one is the gold standard for the impacts it has on families. LOVE. Can’t wait to share with kids!

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

Seventh Grader Zinny's life is turned upside when her older brother is diagnosed with bipolar disorder and sent to a treatment center. Zinny has to take care of things at home while keeping this a secret from everyone outside of her family.

This book is masterfully written. It explores mental illness, therapy/counseling, changing friendships, and growing. Middle grade readers will learn and think about a lot during this book.

My one issue is the ending felt rushed compared to the rest of the book but that did not take away from my enjoyment.

I applaud any effort to be more open about mental illness. And not just for the person diagnosed but also for the affect on the family. Here we have a middle-schooler, a point where social interactions can already be bewildering. She's in a precarious position socially when her world is upended by her brother's diagnosis. Her parents are essentially absent and her sister is closed off leaving her singularly responsible for her younger brother. Her parents instruction to keep the diagnosis "private" serves only to further isolate her. It's a pretty straightforward narrative with a predictable conclusion.

Barbara Dee is very quickly becoming one of my "go to" middle grade authors. Her books are exactly what middle grade students need to read about because they so often mimic their real life experiences. My Life in a Fish Tank is no different and hits the nail on the head for the targeted audience. Dee gets real about the struggles with mental illness and the affect on family members, especially children. This is a title I have recommended to the school counselor for students in a similar situation.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced digital copy.

I've been hearing about the genius of Barbara Dee for a few years now, and this is somehow the first book of hers I've gotten my hands on. It did not disappoint.

My Life in the Fish Tank tells the story of Zinny and her family as they deal with mental health of her older brother Gabe. Gabe, after his first semester of college, is going through a mental health crisis that requires the focus of Zinny's parents. This is a detriment to the rest of the family including big sister Scarlett,, who is standoffish about Gabe's diagnosis, and younger brother Aiden, who Zinny winds up caring for when mom loses her direction and can't function anymore. In the middle of all this upheaval, Zinny has to deal with the regular angst of middle school, not knowing where you fit in, losing familiar friends and struggling to make new ones.

Zinny reminded me of my students who are going through these struggles as their normal. I love that Zinny is strong enough to stand tall in her truth about her changing friendship with Kalani, but especially Maisie, as well as realizing the value of the "Lunch Club". Zinny grows from unsure young girl to confident young woman. I look forward to sharing Zinny's story with my students.

Zinny is 12 and is a middle child in a big loving family. Her brother Gabriel is diagnosed with a mental illness after an accident while he is away at college. Zinny struggles with Gabriel's need for privacy and her need to be able to talk about her own feelings and work through them. This is a terrific story with great, well developed characters that I wanted to be friends with. I think the kids are going to love this one.

On the first day of school, the four Manning kids line up for their Annual Kid Photo, just like always. But by November, things were no longer "just like always" when the family gets a phone call that college student Gabriel Manning is in the hospital after having a car accident. Not only that, but Gabriel has also been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and his siblings - Scarlett, 16, Zinia called Zinny, 12, and Aiden, 8, are asked to keep it private.

After he is transferred from the hospital to a residential care facility, it doesn't take long for Gabriel and his diagnosis to take over the lives of all the Mannings. Mom takes a leave of absence from her teaching job and spends her time on the phone dealing with Gabriel's situation. Dad begins staying at work longer and longer, rarely even eating dinner with his family. Scarlett's moodiness increases, pushing Zinny out of her life and the often out the room they share, and Aiden becomes obsessed with the How To project his teacher has assigned his class. And Zinny, who has a real interest in marine biology, begins to hang out in the lab with her science teacher, Ms. Molina, during lunch as her relationship with friends Maisie and Kailani begins to deteriorate because she refuses to talk to them about Gabriel.

When Zinny is invited to join the Lunch Club held by the guidance counselor, Mr. Patrick, Maisie is adamant that she not go, but Zinny decides to go just once. Then, Ms. Molina tells Maisie she can only hang out and set up the fish tanks for the class crayfish study if she also goes to Lunch Club. Once her friendship with Maisie and Kailani ends, Zinny figures why not? There, she discovers that she isn't the only one with family troubles, problems and issues. And slowly, Zinny even begins to become friends with some of the Lunch Club kids while still keeping Gabriel's bipolar diagnosis a secret.

Meanwhile, things at home aren't much better. Zinny finally takes things into her own hands and begins to buy groceries and make dinner for her family. She also tries to help Aiden with his How To project by leaving humorous suggestions for him, but he can't decide what to do and the teacher rejects his most outlandish suggestions.

The Mannings occasionally visit Gabriel as a family, but Scarlett refuses to go. Then Zinny discovers that Scarlett is seeing a counselor and has told friends about Grabriel's bipolar diagnosis. In the middle of all this, Ms. Molina recommends Zinny for a place in a competitive camp to do marine biology research for four weeks - all expenses paid.

There is a lot happening here, including Zinny that worries, understandable so, that she might also be bipolar. Can the people in her life, including her new friends in Lunch Club and Mr. Patrick, help Zinny move on with her life without feeling like she is betraying Gabriel?

My Life in the Fish Tank is a family story that looks at how mental illness is not just about the person with the diagnosis, but impacts the family in all ways. I liked that it was narrated by Zinny, whom I thought old enough to observe what she sees and feels, but young and inexperienced enough to not always understand it all.

I thought Dee really captured the way the Manning parents shut down. So often when something like mental illness happens within a family, parents seem to forget they have other children who still need them. Zinny's parents are clearly depressed and kudos to Scarlett for getting her mother to go to counseling. It is interesting how quickly the family becomes isolated from friends and neighbors, and then from each other, even though they are all concerned and worried about Gabriel. Should people be open about mental illness when it happens to a family member? Each family must decide that for themselves. Family dynamics differ and what may be ok for one may not be for another family.

I particularly likes Dee's treatment of time. It does seem that when bad things happen, time does funny things. As Zinny says: "...one thing you notice, when those bad things happen, is that calendars and clocks stop making any sense...It was like, after it happened, we were in a different time zone from everybody else." And Zinny's narration does jump back and forth in time, as she recalls different times she observed Gabriel's bipolar behavior - times when he was feeling on top of the world and taking dangerous risks, other times when he was depressed and sleeping too much.

Barbara Dee really knows how to handle some very difficult topics, like sexual abuse (Maybe He Just Likes You) and mental illness, but in the end, she always offers hope to the reader that when life turns you upside down, with help, you can turn right side up again.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Barbara Dee's middle-grade book My Life in a Fish Tank is captivating! The non-linear plot structure, short chapters, and conversational style make this book a quick and interesting read. It tells the story of Zinny, whose college-age brother has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. As Zinny adjusts to a new normal, she tries to understand her family's insistence to keep her brother's mental illness "private," leaving Zinny unable to talk to her friends at a time when she needs them most. The author writes about this subject in an honest and compassionate way. Recommend for older middle-grade students looking for books about a topic that hasn't been given much attention for this audience. Excellent! Thanks to #netgalley and #simonandschusterchildrenspublishing for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Family dealing with a mental illness is a complex issue but not an uncommon one. Being able to discuss it in coming of age literature is timely and important. Zinny’s brother is bipolar, and his diagnosis and behaviour affect the whole family. The author does a wonderful job conveying the story in a realistic manner that doesn’t minimize the situation, but it also provides solutions and hope at the same time.

Zinny's family is pretty typical - they laugh together, have fun and get into arguments. However, when Zinny's college aged brother Gabriel crashes his car, their family dynamic starts to shift. What seems as a normal car accident, becomes much more with the news that Gabriel is bi-polar, and his decisions have started to endanger others.

I loved this middle grade novel that tackles such tough topics gracefully. It is important in battling the stigma about getting help with mental health, and kids will be able to relate in many ways to Zinny.

I think most of us would agree that the middle grade years are possibly some of the hardest years. I remember the “fights” with my best friends. We’d inevitably make up and all would be well…until our next fight. Those awkward years when we transition from childhood to “almost” adulthood are hard enough without dealing with a major crisis at home. And a major crisis is exactly what seventh grader Zinny’s family faces when her family receives a phone call letting them know that her brother Gabriel has been in a car accident and seems a bit off.

My Life in the Fish Tank is simply brilliant. Mental illness is something we don’t talk about nearly enough. This is 2020, not 1920! We should know better than to treat mental illness as something that needs to be kept private. We don’t keep cancer private. Since we understand so much more about mental illness than we did in the past, we’ve got to treat it as a “real” thing because it is. Zinny goes through so much more anguish than she would have had to had her family not told her to keep Gabe’s bipolar disorder private (which means secret, right?).



My emotions took a serious beating while reading My Life in the Fish Tank because I could empathize with Zinny’s parents. There were times throughout the book where I had tears running down my face. Though I haven’t had a child spend time in a residential treatment center, I know what it’s like to have a child dealing with depression. And I know what it’s like to live with depression and anxiety myself.

Barbara Dee does an excellent job of showing us how each family member deals with Gabe’s mental illness. She doesn’t just reveal Zinny’s emotions; she shows us how Mom and Dad exist during this period, how Scarlett shuts herself away from her family, and how Aiden’s fears affect his daily life.

I feel like I could write a book about how much I love My Life in the Fish Tank because I haven’t even scratched the surface of the depth of my feelings about it. Ms. Molina, Mr. Patrick, Lunch Club, science class, old and new friends, treatment center trips…these are people and things you’ll have to discover for yourselves.

I seriously didn’t want this book to end and would have gladly read another 320 pages; however, the ending is perfect. I highly recommend it to anyone who has been touched by mental illness: teachers, counselors, middle grade kids, high school kids, parents, grandparents… Dive into My Life in the Fish Tank ASAP!

Thanks to NetGalley and Media Masters Publicity for a free ARC of the book. I was not required to give a review.

This book tells the story of Zinny as she deals with school, friendship, and the bi-polar diagnosis of her older brother. I thought this book generally handled mental illness well and had some good conversations about ableist language and othering. However, it’s a personal preference that I wish more middle grade actually spotlighted tweens who have mental illnesses instead of exploring mental illness and acceptance through family members, as I feel like it continues to other mental illness for kids who are mentally ill themselves. Overall, I thought this book was solid, but I wouldn’t rave about it.

Things change very quickly for Zinny and her family when her brother has a car accident. After the accident Zinny’s brother is diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Zinny isn’t sure what to do. Things are further complicated for her when her parents suggest she keep her brother’s diagnosis a secret.

Barbara Dee writes about tough topics with great heart. She understands that in periods of grief and stress it’s still important to find ways to smile and laugh and she incorporates this sentiment seamlessly into this story.

The book’s title is a reference to where Zinny finds solace through the story - her science teacher’s lab. I love that this book encourages readers to be interested in the world around them and become scientists themselves.

Thank you to Barbara Dee and Simon and Schuster Children’s Publishing for sharing an eArc with #BookAllies in exchange for an honest review.

Barbara Dee writes exactly the kind of middle grade novel I love to read: realistic fiction with a likable main character who faces important/current problems. Her writing isn't preachy, so you don't feel like you're being hit over the head with a hammer about the issue. It's just part of the story (an important part!) but it never feels forced.

I read and loved Maybe He Just Likes You earlier this year, so I was thrilled to get and e-galley of My Life in the Fish Tank. In this novel, Zinny's older brother is dealing with mental health issues, and this affects their entire family. Zinny starts to push her friends away, her parents retreat inwards, her big sister is angry, and her little brother becomes obsessed with survival. So often, mental illness is hidden or kept secret because it's not understood or people feel shame. Zinny deals with these very feelings and has to learn about how to deal with her problems at home while dealing with typical middle school issues like friendships, schoolwork and boys.

I absolutely loved My Life in the Fish Tank and can't wait to add it to my middle school library. This is a novel that many readers will love, whether or not they know anyone dealing with mental illness.