This book reads like a series of inspirational posters. I mean that in the best possible way. More than once I wished I had an image of a page I could hang on my wall or share with friends and family on social media. The art in this book does a really great job of visually representing the author’s changing mental state. The half memoir have guidebook set up of this comic worked really well. I was able to both empathize with the author and reconsider how to approach my own thought life.

Everything Is Okay Is a graphic memoir of the author's (Debbie Tung) experiences with depression and anxiety.

From beginning to end, I was emotionally involved in the story, finding Debbie's journey with her mental health so incredibly relatable and close to my own heart. It was nice to know that there is someone else who has had similar experiences to myself, and that has begun to heal and cope with their mental illnesses better. It gives me hope - for both myself and others struggling.

The art, of course, was beautiful and perfectly captured the intense emotions the author was trying to convey. I can't deny that I cried several times while reading this.

Overall a beautiful graphic memoir highlighting the struggles of mental health and the authors own experiences. I highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Everything is OK by Debbie Tung is a very personal account of her struggles with anxiety and depression. It is an amazingly brave and open book, and one that I think a lot of people will relate to. It is very encouraging to see such an honest account of the struggles of living with poor mental health, and the journey involved in seeking help. The biggest take away for me as a reader were the reminders that it is as okay and important to be as kind to ourselves as we are to others. I also really appreciated that she showed that progress is not always linear, bad days happen and that is ok. The book is illustrated in Debbie's usual style but what really stands out is her colour choices , they really resonate with the tone and theme of the book.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

⭐️ARC REVIEW⭐️ - Everything is Okay
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release Date: 9/27

**Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review**

This is a graphic memoir about the author's journey getting help for mental health and man, it hit me right in the feels as someone who struggles big time. 😭

She even shows her feelings of unworthiness and I also struggle with that feeling, that's why I got the word WORTHY tattooed right on my wrist several years ago, so I could see it every day and remember that I am worthy, even when I forget.

Anyway, this book is A+. Fantastic.

Isn’t it the best sensation when you need something, you don’t know what it is, but you can feel it in your bones and then one day you get it and you realize what you were seeking. This book gave me the same feelings to me. I have always loved Debbie Tung’s illustrations but this is the first time I am reading her book and it proved to be exactly what I was looking for and different from her other works. The graphics make it all better and more engaging.

It begins by showing Debbie’s internal commotion towards what was happening in her life. It was the time when she finally decided to be a freelance artist. As happens in life, her biggest decision came with a lot of uncertainties and fears of failure. It shows how it started taking a toll on her mental and emotional life. She was physically everywhere but mentally she was stuck between a spiral of thoughts and numbness. The story doesn’t there; it shows her journey of self-healing after acknowledging her problem. It was all realistic with troubles, wretchedness, feeling left out, not enough, doubts, insomnia and then hope, kindness, trying, healing and keep trying.

I instantly felt connected with the book and the character and needless to say that I learnt a lot, the most important of them are – needing help is not a sign of weakness, you should not ignore your physical and emotional needs and show kindness towards yourself as you would do to other, you’re a human and you’re allowed to feel messed up. I can’t even express how much I loved this book. I am going to keep rereading it.

Reading this book was very calming. It's interesting to see how other people deal with their mental health problems.
The art was absolutely gorgeous (the use of color combinations was very nice)
I recommend this book a lot!

In Everything is OK, Debbie Tung illustrates her mental health journey, including her struggles with anxiety and depression, and her experience seeking therapy. She shares relatable feelings and typical thoughts that someone experiencing these struggles may have, and shows how mental health affects everything in your life. This book provides an honest look at these topics and includes important reminders about showing self-compassion and seeking help.

I’ve had anxiety for a long time and this book perfectly captured some of my struggles and anxious behaviour. A lot of moments in this book felt familiar to my own mental health journey, and I appreciate the graphic novel’s direct and realistic approach to these difficult topics. While a lot of the comics in this book are self-critical, I love how there’s so much kindness and self-compassion included as well. I also loved seeing the journey from feeling like you’re alone in your struggles and that no one will understand what you’re going through, to accepting your struggles and knowing it’s ok to ask for help. This was such an earnest book about mental health and I think a lot of people will be able to relate to it.

The use of colour in this book is stunning, and it’s wonderful to see Tung’s growth as an illustrator. For the most part, I enjoyed the writing but occasionally found it to be repetitive, or in a few instances I thought it didn’t flow well. But overall this didn’t affect my rating of the book and I understand that it’s often necessary to repeatedly remind yourself that your feelings are valid and you’re doing your best when struggling with mental health.

This was one of my most anticipated books of the year and it didn’t disappoint. Thank you NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

A beautiful comic style read showing battles with mental health , I absolutely loved this book. The art style was so lovely and the use of colours etc to represent different mental states etc was genius . It does really well in brining awareness to various mental health conditions , and leaves some really lovely messages for us as the reader . Would recommend to anyone . Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review

Debbie Tung is one of my favorite authors. Her work is so honest. This one did not disappoint. It was very relatable to me, mental illness is no joke and the fact that Debbie was able to open up and share to the world the struggle with mental illness is remarkable. I think if anyone is going through depression or anxiety this is a great book for you to read.

I came into this comic looking for some validation for my depression and I got exactly that. Debbie Tang showcases depression as something that is scary but that can be worked through but you have to be wanting to put in the work to be able to live with it. It also shows that depression stays with you no matter how you try to ignore it but by getting help you find that it quiets the noise just enough for you to keep going with your life. I felt extremely heard throught this comic which is why I'll highly recommend it to everyone.

I felt like I had unknowingly written and published a book in my sleep. And it also felt like therapy and helped me reflect on my own mental health struggles. Everything about Everything Is OK was so relatable, and I know it would be so helpful for students who are going through a tough time.

This is a beautifully created graphic novel about anxiety and depression. As someone who has both,this was an extremely relatable story. I plan on getting it for several friends who have anxiety.

Essa foi a primeira vez que li algo da autora e gostei bastante. Aos poucos a personagem vai percebendo que está em um ciclo depressivo e precisa buscar ajuda profissional então vamos acompanhar a jornada pessoal dela e ver todos os seus pensamentos, situações que são simples para outras pessoas nem sempre são fáceis de lidar quando se é depressivo.

Vemos a luta dela em combater a depressão e a ansiedade, em como isso afetou sua vida e sua percepção, aos poucos a medida que ela busca ajuda vai aprendendo a lidar com todas as situações um dia de cada vez. Nem tudo são flores e arco-íris, mas é preciso estar disposto para lutar contra uma doença que não é visível, mas está ali todo dia afetando sua mente e sua vida.

Foi uma leitura muito muito envolvente, adorei as ilustrações e o modo como foi usado as cores para expressar o estado da personagem.
Sei que essa leitura fará uma grande diferença para algumas pessoas e espero que faça um grande sucesso.

I don’t even have words! This is perfect. This comic truly touched me, and I really see myself in this character. It is so inspiring to see the progress from deep depression to dealing with it better and better every day. I will buy this once it releases so I can give it to a friend who I think could also really benefit from reading it, just like I did today.

WoW. I do not remember giving anyone permission to write my biography. See you in court sweaty. 😌 (for legal purposes this is a meme)

Seriously, this is my first Debbie Tung book and it won't be the last. I immediately went to my library's website after finishing Everything is OK to see what other works they had. Everything is OK is more of a random thoughts memior than a linear story. Which is exactly how my brain has worked my entire life. Everything is OK is a graphic memior of growing up and living with depression and anxiety. I have never read any other book that has captured it so realistically. (That part about being labeled a shy child that stemmed into anxiety. 🥲) I read most of it through literal tears. And it didn't help that the art was actual breathtaking. I screenshot some of it just so I can use it as my phone background and stare at in hyperfocus adhd later. I will be buying a physical copy for my collection.


***Thank you to Andrews McMeel Publishing for the review copy. And thank you to Debbie Tung for making me cry.***

A brilliant graphic memoir depicting the author’s battle with depression and anxiety, and her journey towards recovery.

I have read plenty of sequential art novels, and though I have many favourite artists in this genre, my absolute favourite is Debbie Tung because I feel like she GETS me. Her art speaks to introverts as well as book lovers, and I am very firmly in both categories. Her “Quiet Girl in a Noisy World” is my number one recommendation in the sequential art novel category.

With this book, Debbie ventures into more personal territory, as it describes her struggles with anxiety and depression. As someone who has taken a long time to be (somewhat) comfortable in her own skin, I, once again, found myself enamoured with her words and her thoughts.

This book is for everyone who is feeling lost or overwhelmed. Debbie honestly portrays all that she felt during the dark days when depression took over – feelings of inadequacy, not wanting to get out of bed, not being able to speak for herself, imposter syndrome, social anxiety,… Outwardly, he still went, “Everything is ok/fine”, but inwardly, she was floundering. The twist in the situation comes when she acknowledges that she needs help, and that asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness. After this point, the book depicts the change in her mindset. No, it’s not a miraculous turnaround; this isn’t fiction after all. Debbie is very real in her approach, depicting how she still finds it difficult to face life on some days. But small progress is still progress, and every bit of positive thinking helps alleviate the monster in the mind. The final section gets a tad too motivational/self-help for my liking and feels a bit random in its sequencing. But on the whole, brilliant content.

Debbie was lucky to have a supportive husband and an outstanding therapist. Family and medical support are crucial in battling mental health issues, and I am so happy for her that she had both in her life.

Her art style in the books I’ve read has a dominant B&W colour palette. This style works wonderfully for the topic at hand. In this book, she also incorporates a rainbow-style colouring on a few pages, to distinguish them from the negative ones. These are the thoughts that are more hopeful. I loved this contrast and it works wonderfully in sync with the content.

If you are someone batting mental health issues, OR you know someone facing this problem and you want to be a good family member/friend, pick up this book. It offers you a genuine glimpse into the minds of sufferers, and of what can help them. It is important to remember that this is from the point of view of the patient and not the disorder itself. There are no textbook definitions or explanations of what anxiety or depression means. No medical jargon at all.

I won’t count this work as my favourite Debbie Tung book, but I still feel that is a must-read in today’s world where mental health issues are growing more common but are still taboo to talk about. Strongly recommended.

4.25 stars.

My thanks to Andrews McMeel Publishing and NetGalley for the DRC of “Everything Is OK”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

This is an excellent book if you or someone you know struggles with anxiety and/or depression. The writing style explains the hardships a person has on the inside and out. I now understand myself better thanks to this book.

This book has lovely color pictures and uses color beautifully. Additionally, they were precisely in line with what was going on in the tale at the time.

I'm certain I'll read it numerous times.

Miigweetch NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

This is a story about mental health, and learning to treat oneself with compassion. Although the subject matter is heavy, I didn’t think this was a sad book. The author is honest about her struggles dealing with anxiety and depression, but also expresses hope for her life once she is finally able to seek help. The art style is simple but effective, and fits the tone of the story.

I enjoyed this book as I could deeply relate to the story being told. The conflicts in the book, such as social anxiety and work pressures, will feel familiar to readers of a certain age. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys “slice of life’ comics and graphic novels, but especially Millennials.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher Andrews McMeel Publishing for providing me an advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

I like to break down my graphic novel reviews into character, plot, and art.

Character: This graphic novel is autobiographical, so the character is the author. I love Debbie Tung. I have read her other three graphic novels and she is always great at making you feel seen.
Plot: This graphic novel addresses anxiety and depression and has a good mix of therapy, self-help, and positive self talk without feeling cliche or preachy. I could relate to many of the experiences and learn about her experiences through the others. It is not light enough to be a coffee table book, but is still enjoyable despite the more serious subject. I also like that it put mental health on a spectrum or a curved path and not something to conquer once and for all.
Art: I love that the art style is the same as her other books-black and white and cozy, but she uses color throughout to show hope and growth and I feel that added a lot to the story. I want to use some of the panels as inspirational wallpaper on my phone.

I give this graphic novel a 5. I have several people in my life who I am already recommending it to, and I will definitely be buying a physical copy.

This book explores mental health, specifically anxiety and depression. These two are both challenging to overcome and control while leading a seemingly normal life. The experiences shared here resonates with me and many others I am sure.

Mental health and caring for it still has stigma attached. So, this title is a good read for positivity that it will be ok.


Thank you NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read this. #EverythingIsOK #NetGalley