Very eye opening to the world of bipolar disorder, especially from a teens point of view. I could see this absolutely helping someone who is in this situation. Not a super long read but in this case, it's better that way. I liked the characters and I liked the flow of the story. With it being short, there wasn't really any room for it to be boring and I really appreciated that. Recommend for anyone dealing with mental illness like bipolar disorder or good if you're wanting to learn a bit more about it.

"Walking on Eggshells" is a wonderfully unique novella. Using a high-interest but easily accessible writing levels, the author writes in first-person as a high schooler experiencing his first mental health breakdown that requires hospitalization. This story follows him through his initial journey post-hospitalization, the impact on school, family and relationships. While this is a fictional retelling, it couild easily be a memoir. I read this is one sitting and would recommend this for middle schoolers through adults! 4+ stars! *I received a complimentary ARC from the author/publishing company via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts & opinions are my own.

I am going to reread this book again.

What a wonderful story about moving on all the while finding out if you can actually be your own person, be the one you want to be.

Yes, the plots are moving fast, which I love. The author does not spend a lot of time feeling sorry for himself, but rather findds himself havaing to really see what and how is life is.

Kai is a wonderfully imperfect character that propels the story forward.

After a first episode of psychosis lands him a stay in a psychiatric hospital, all sixteen-year-old Kai Lum wants to do is reclaim his life. But now that he’s back home, everything is different. He has medications to take, his dad is always hovering, and everyone at school keeps staring at him. Kai’s determined not to let any of that distract him from proving he can make it as a chef, though. He has his culinary arts program to focus on, and he won’t let his diagnosis change his plans.

But finding his new normal is harder than Kai expects. His medications have side effects that he doesn’t know how to control. His dad pushes him to accept more clinical help, even though Kai’s not sure he wants—or needs—it. And Kai’s best friends are ghosting him. On top of all of that, Kai isn’t sure if the voices he’s hearing are real or in his head.
Kai’s life begins to spin out of control as he struggles to know who he can trust. With his health and dreams on the line, he has to decide whether he’s willing to accept help in order to manage his newly diagnosed mental illness.

Synopsis: Kai, a chef in the making 11th grader experiences a psychotic episode and life changes for ever.

Thoughts: A quick read all about what 16 year of Kai experiences after a psychotic break. I felt the build of relationships was lacking and there could be more background and details around the characters. I didn’t feel as though I knew any of them well enough to be invested. I thought the storyline with Kai’s mother could have been deeper and was unresolved at the end. This book has good promise but could have been deeper.

Thank you to Jennifer Philips, Northstar Editions and NetGalley for the advanced copy

This is a first-person narrative of 16-year-old Kai who been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. The internal monologue is raw, honest and real.
Moreover, the dynamics of Kai’s interaction with his friends and the way his diagnosis impacted his culinary passion are both realistic and genuine. I liked the writing style, which flowed smoothly and was engaging as well as age-appropriate.

On a final note, I believe tackling mental illness in the context of fiction is tricky and sensitive. “Walking on Eggshells” was able to handle it with such grace and wit.
I highly-recommend this book for both teens and adults.