I really wanted to like this one because the impetus behind it is strong & important, but it was too abstract for me. I wanted to know what happened to both of their siblings, and it was never clear to me by the end. I got the metaphor of the overall depression storyline with the hospitalizations, but not the concrete details leading up to those hospitalizations.

We Are All So Good at Smiling is an absolute gem of a novel-in-verse. The audiobook was really well done with some special elements, and I love that it’s narrated by the author. The main grit of the story deals with depression and grief, but it’s presented in a unique way. Mainly a YA contemporary novel, this story has a healthy dose of fantastical elements and fairytales from around the globe. This book is both heartbreaking and hopeful. 4.5 stars

This was an absolutely stunning novel in verse about a young women dealing with depression and trauma. There was something so raw and haunting about this book that had me feeling deep in my thoughts long after the story's end.

What an amazingly well written book full of eloquent words and brilliant descriptions. The audiobook version is narrated by the author and adds a layer of depth and emotion. The book begins “My name is Whimsy and Magic is real. But I am not whimsical anymore.” Written in verse and interspersed with fairytale-like music, the book tells a story of pain, raw emotion, voicelessness and hope. As she points out the only way out is through and this is where the book takes you. I would definitely reread this book as it has all the feels.Trigger warnings for clinical depression, suicide ideation, racism and bullying.

A genre-spanning rumination on grief, loss, the value of memory and community support. The reading and aural accompaniment are hypnotic in their consumption, perfectly capturing the mania and magic of the story, giving readers a chance to choose through which aspect to engage the story. Excellent for a reading for empathy list, exploring the intersectional issues of loss while black, depressed while black, mentally ill while black, isolated while black.

If I could give this book more than 5 stars I would give it all the stars that have ever been created.

TW: suicide, death, bullying, hospitalization.

We Are All Good at Smiling is a beautifully written novel that not only talks about mental health, but provides a beautiful narrative about overcoming our suffering and writing our own story even when the narrative has already been started.

This an unputdownable book that should be on every shelf. Gorgeous imagery, stunning prose, and tough subjects all set upon a background of a fairytale.

McBride's novel in verse was poignant and affecting, also gentle in approaching and dealing with mental health in young adults. She addresses how certain actions by parents can be more harm than good, how the truth, communication, and acknowledgement are always good tools to fight depression.

I was captivated in how she weaved fairytales, folklore, and cultural traditions and practices as a means of moving our main character toward uncovering the tools she already had to fight for her healing.

I didn't expect this book to make its way into my heart, but Whimsy and Faerry were too precious not to cheer for and too vulnerable not to want to protect.

Thank you NetGalley and MacMillan audio for an audio arc of this book.

After reading this book this author has now become and automatic buy author and I will definitely be reading her other novels soon. The writer created such a unique way of portraying clinical depression with so much grace. While I felt I could sit an analyze every line of this book it was still easy to follow and understand the meanings behind the character's "fairy tales". This Novel really touches on the reality of how difficult it is to go through clinical depression while reminding us that there is always hope and how "There is someone out there rooting for you, you are not alone on any forest". The writing was entrancing with the verses and magical setting that the author portrayed throughout the book. It definitely dives into all the symptoms of having MDD such as panic attacks, anxiety, Self-Injurious Behaviors while providing us with great coping strategies to battle these symptoms. This book will have a positive affect on anyone who reads it as it provides the feeling of being given a hug by the end of it. The topics of this book are extremely challenging and I advice you to be in the right space before picking this up.

The audiobook is absolutely fantastic and the author narrates the book herself making it a significant experience where we get to actually hear the story as she intended it to be heard.

Upon seeing this cover, I knew I HAD to read this book. A gorgeous cover had to have a gorgeous story within. But when I had a chance to listen to it, I knew that it was going to be the way to go. Amber McBride narrated her own story and brought it to life. The way her voice carried her characters through their journey to find answers was done with perfection.

McBride wrote her novel in verse and it was stunning. Whimsy is the main character and she suffers from a pain in her past that she can't remember. But when she meets and connects with another young character named Faerry, they realize they are connected by that past. The trauma caused by that past has led her to depression, but we get to see these characters overcome and build themselves up brick by brick. With a touch of magic and fairy tales, this was a unique journey to see 2 young characters realize their worth while battling such a fierce monster inside.

We Are All So Good at Smiling is the perfect title for this book. When we see depression, how does it look? Those smiles you see can be hiding so much underneath. When we deal with Death, pain, and trauma without asking for help and masking our real emotions, that is when the darkness can overcome us. Amber McBride took these pieces and gave us a beautiful yet heartbreaking story with such a tough subject matter and came out on the other side. I especially liked her added author's note and let us know that we're not alone and where we can reach out for help. This story may be a bit of sadness, but the beauty and peace Whimsy and Faerry found was magic in the end.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for this arc!

Whimsy is a high school student who has been diagnosed with clinical depression. She also comes from a magical family. When she meets a boy named Faerry, she finds a companion who understands how mental illness and magic intertwine.

It's really hard for me to explain this book. I think if I had read it instead of listening to the audiobook, then it might've been easier to understand. There's A LOT of magical realism and a lot of times it's difficult to understand what's exactly going on with Whimsy and Faerry. The book is very abstract. I might be a literal person because it was very hard for me grasp what was real and what wasn't, even though technically everything related to magic that Whimsy sees and describes are part of the real world.

I'm not sure if I understood the ending. It turned very Alice in Wonderland-esque which confused me even more. Also I was too distracted by the fact that Faerry's sibling's name is Tale(sp?) and that Whimsy's sibling's name is Cole(sp?), so "fairy tale" and "whimsical."

Overall I'd recommend this for readers who love magical realism and abstraction.

Absolutely brilliant. The way that depression and sadness are treated in such a magical way was so lovely that I felt as if I came from a great therapy session after I was done listening. The images McBride was able to create made me feel like finally someone recognized the hurt and pain that I've gone through in my life.

We Are All So Good at Smiling is a beautiful, magical novel-in-verse about depression and trauma. I highly recommend listening to the audiobook!

Gorgeous!
The cover, the characters and the way the author wove a journey of depression into a magical world.
This is a novel in verse, which is something I don't normally gravitate towards, but who could pass up that cover?!
I absolutely adored this book and hope everyone picks it up.
Side note: the audio was fabulously narrated by Amber McBride herself.
Highly recommend!!!
Much love to NetGalley & Macmillan Audio for hooking me up with this DRC.

Beautiful. Emotional. Written in verse, this is a story about sadness, depression, sorrow and grief. It’s about perception, and how memories aren’t always the truth. How blame shouldn’t be shouldered without all the facts.
Fabulously well done. Fairy and Whimsy, a pair of teenagers who have both experienced a devastating lost in their families, go through this incredibly emotional journey, tearing down their depression and building themselves back up again, one emotional brick at a time. There is magic and myth throughout, which just adds to the overall metaphorical vibe of the book.
The audiobook was, in my opinion, a great way to experience this book. The verse is so smooth and easily followed. The narrator was very even paced and had beautiful inflection and tone.
A solid 4.5 stars. Thank you to Netgalley for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review. All opinions within this review are my own.

This was really beautiful. No one writes like Amber! She’s incredibly talented. Definitely check the trigger warnings though.

Absolutely gorgeously written. It reminds me a bit of the lyrical sensibility of VE Schwab's most recent novels.

Unfortunately, I think I'm in the wrong headspace for this book at the moment, so will be DNFing. But giving it five stars because I can tell it's going to be a gorgeous read and it's not the author's fault that it's not the right timing for me.

"You be the flood. I'll be your boat."

This audiobook really drew me in from those first few moments of sweet, eerie music and the dark, lyrical lines of this story in verse. Whimsy's is a tale about clinical depression told through fairytales, folklore, and poetry-- a story that reads like a dream about her missing brother and her mysteriously familiar new friend and her deep, deep sadness.

I loved all of the food and candy imagery, how magic was woven in, the numbered lists, and Whimsy's deep need to touch dirt and know leaves leaves leaves.

Did I always understand what was happening? No. Did it matter even a little? No. The story was beautiful and poignant enough that I didn't care where it was taking me.

This was a short and stunning listen.

Thank you to NetGalley for this audiobook ARC.

We Are All So Good at Smiling by Amber McBride
Publication January 10, 2023
#AmberMcBride #NetGalley #ARC Macmillan Audio

❤ I was in the middle of a dissertation of a review before my computer wonked out, so I will try to keep it concise. This was a well done mixture of genres including #paranormal #fantasy and #biographical. The novelist and narrator wove symbolism poetically as she explains her real life experience as a Black Woman diagnosed with #clinicaldpression- a diagnosis that came decades after her initial symptoms began that was brought on by trauma. #Nature vs #Nurture and the all too common stigma surrounding the taboo topic of #MentalHealth among Black folks makes everyone in her created world (and this one) ask the #WhyCome and #HowCome of how the chains of #MentalIllness can weigh down the human spirit. This was a weirdly unique #audiobooking experience! Her voice can help so many--especially the younger generation, address their mental health needs. This would be great if this can be introduced into all schools IMO. And the #selfportrait cover is just #stunning! ❤

This was such a personal novel that touched on all the ugliness of depression and trauma, all while showing there is a light at the end.

We Are All So Good at Smiling follows Whimsy, who meets Faerry while they are both receiving treatment in a mental hospital. They soon realize that their pasts might be intertwined, and work together to fight past the trauma and grief that binds them.

This book proves that you do not need many words to make a point. Written completely in verse, we are taking on a journey of our main characters trying to overcome their traumatic pasts, and not let that trauma define the rest of their lives. The whimsical, magical setting added a uniqueness to the exploration of how depression affects you. We are talking through different parts of a forest, each section representing a different response to depression. This ethereal writing style gave her a way to dig deeper into hard topics such as self-harm and panic attacks, while not being too graphic with details. Fairytales are a way people choose to cope and setting the story in the midst of a fairytale will make it more palatable for those who might find the content triggering.

You will fall in love with Whimsy and Faerry. Whether you have clinical depression or not, this book will help you identify sorrow and harmful thoughts in your life. I believe this book will make others out there feel a little less alone.

(I will share some of my favorite quotes once the book is released.)

Please, check the trigger warnings before you reach for this book. While it is an important story that needs to be read, make sure you are in the right mental space for it.

We Are All so Good at Smiling follows Whimsy, a teenager recently out of a mental hospital. While there she meets Faerry, whose family ends up moving in next door to her. When the two venture off into the forest in search of answers, they find more than they ever thought they would.

This novel-in-verse explores depression, trauma, and grief in a bit of a magical, fairy tale sort of way. This is a poignant peek into McBride's depressive mind, and I think teens will relate to this. The only issue I had was that it was hard to follow at times, but I think that could be solved by having the actual book (instead of the audiobook). That said I enjoy it when authors read their own books and McBride was great, as expected.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ALC.