This book in theory was very intriguing to me, covering topics within the Christian space that are not conversations being had. However, I felt like the author was not particularly empathetic to believers who struggle with mental health. Did not finish.

Thank you to NetGalley for a free eARC copy of this book, in exchange for my honest review.


I thought, "ok, it's a short read, I can do this in a few days at most"... but with the amount of research and info provided in the book I've found that I read a few pages and then need to digest the information (I'm currently at 67%, and started over a month ago actually anticipating I'd read it in less than 3 days).

...I'm still digesting what I've read and working through this very well-written and well-researched book. And working on finishing it in time-- it is not one to fly through.

Education: undergrad: psych, religious studies, faith, sociology. Graduate: ministry/divinity school, psych-related, community development.

How can the church respond to what seems to be a growing mental health crisis? I love the way author Carlene Hill Byron addresses this question in her encouraging book. No, we may not be trained mental health professionals, but yes, the church has a positive role to play. We can show up for one another and take small steps like using our gifts of prayer, hospitality, and listening. We can acknowledge the larger challenges like doing what we can, yet accepting our limits, and placing our hope in God, who loves us and walks with us as we seek to walk together.

Author Carlene Hill Byron has turned her concern about mental health into an excellent resource for churches, families, communities, and friends who want to show up for one another in the day to day challenges of maintaining mental health. Not Quite Fine might be a title we can all embrace, particularly in this season of COVID concerns in which no one is really walking in equilibrium as we experience “normal responses to abnormal circumstances.”

Byron makes a strong argument that the alarming mental health statistics in 2021 have their basis in the unhealthy cultural waters we’re all swimming in these days. For instance, how’s a soul to find meaning, purpose, value, and hope in an environment in which “normal” has been curated to mean Pinterest Perfect? Her compassionate voice is a battle cry and a wakeup call to the local church, for we are empowered by God to be a healing community with resources beyond what professional medical staff can begin to provide for hurting souls.

Perhaps the best news of all comes directly from Isaiah 61 where the prophet extends hope for the broken, promising comfort, and casting them in the role of rebuilders and restorers. Even if you are not already alarmed by rising suicide rates, the opioid crisis, and the prevalence of anxiety and depression as chronic conditions, the clear and insightful way in which Carlene addresses current mental health problems and the need for supportive communities will inspire you to think deeply about the lessons of suffering, the meaning of “normal,” and how our expectations can actually undermine our own mental health.

Many thanks to Herald Press for providing a copy of this book to facilitate my review, which is, of course, offered freely and with honesty.

This is an important book—about individuals, and about our collective population, who truly are Not Quite Fine. Lest you adopt an “us and them” stance in response, please recognize that Carlene Hill Byron is talking not only about the mentally ill, but about you . . . and me.

Author Byron, who has dealt with her own mental health issues for decades, deserves the platform this book affords. She’s lived with her own mental illness, and she’s also thoroughly researched prevailing attitudes and practices surrounding mental health. Her time spent counseling others with cognitive and emotional struggles rounds out her head knowledge with first-hand experience and infuses her views with compassion.

Consequently, she offers a Christian perspective for steps, both large and small, that we can take to love and support those in the throes of pain from brains and emotions that betray us—or those who need time to heal from trauma, grief, and other hurts that families, cultures, and this unstable world throw at us.

I was impressed by her clear read on how our changing culture distorts and hinders appropriate grappling with the suffering surrounding emotional pain and imbalance. With how she reframes some of the pain intrinsic to the human condition as a healthy, necessary response to our broken world, rather than labeling and dismissing it as a product of often stigmatized mental illness. With her trust in God through it all.

Her perspectives will challenge you. Agree or disagree, you’ll come away wiser, more thoughtful, and less likely to swallow the prevailing culture’s party line about mental illness.

This book would be helpful for you if you are a clergy person, church leader, or Christian who doesn't understand mental illness. If you think that mental illness is something people deserve because of their sin or that mental illness is a demon, you need to read this.

If you live with mental illness and have already deconstructed the harmful beliefs of the church, this book is too simple for you. At times it doesn't go into enough detail, and at other times she spends too much time talking about something that isn't relevant or important.

Overall, I wish this book has more to offer. I understand and see how it can be helpful as an introductory text for someone who has never thought through these things, but we don't really need any more books like that.