If their life was a movie, Amelia's popular, handsome older brother, Toby, would be the star. But when Toby starts acting strangely, the siblings' roles shift: Toby becomes proof that real life is not picture-perfect, and Amelia begins taking the lead in her own life. The symbolism is pretty heavy-handed, but Amelia's complicated feelings in the face of her brother's struggle with schizophrenia ring true. (c) Copyright 2017. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Gr 9 Up-Amelia is starting her junior year and is looking forward to parties and movie marathons. When her brother Toby begins hiding in his room, smoking pot, hallucinating when drinking alcohol, and becoming moody, her vision of him is shattered. When he's diagnosed with schizophrenia and sent to a treatment center, Amelia feels lost without her brother. Narrator Laura Knight Keating draws in readers with her easily distinguished voices. Her narrative style is smooth and handles well the nuances of the internal and external dialogue. Amelia is a likable, realistic character. The author's portrayal of the difficulties of mental illness is authentic. However, the heavy drug and alcohol use may be a concern for some listeners. VERDICT A great addition for any collection where fiction about mental illness is needed. ["Recommend to fans of realistic fiction that focuses on mental health issues": SLJ 10/16 review of the Abrams Amulet book.]-Kira Moody, Salt Lake County Library Services © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

A movie-obsessed teen struggles to cope after the older brother she idolizes is diagnosed with a mental illness. After a summer out of town, Amelia Meals Anderson, a white 16-year-old from upstate New York, notices her beloved older brother, Tobywho shares her love of movieshas become a pothead. Although everyone is concerned about his increasingly erratic and disturbing behavior, she continues to cover for him out of sibling loyalty. As Meals starts a long-distance romance with her summer fling, big-eared, white Epstein, things with Toby turn scary, and he's eventually hospitalized and diagnosed with schizophrenia. Unable to open up to anyone, Meals finds solace in the school film club, led by "Somali kid" Abdi. It's clear the author is a former film critic (Amelia's memories are often formatted as screenplay scenes), but Meals exhaustive knowledge seems improbable. Meals and Epstein's romance is another misstep, with off-putting, casually graphic descriptions of their physical intimacy and unnecessary miscommunications. Because of Amelia's frustrating unwillingness to admit Toby's schizophrenia, it is ultimately depicted as a catalyst for her personal growth rather than a nuanced mental illness. Although there are some titles on mental illness mentioned in the acknowledgments, its a pity there is no authors note or list of resources for readers who want or need to explore further. Thumbs up for close siblings but thumbs down for this bland issues-novel debut. (Fiction. 14-18) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Amelia and Toby always have each other's back they're siblings, and siblings keep each other's secrets. So Amelia doesn't tell her parents when Toby starts acting differently as his senior year begins. But when a mental breakdown lands Toby in the hospital with a serious diagnosis, Amelia has to figure out what being the best sister to Toby means now. This story features a rich portrait of a relationship being tested. Wunsch captures Amelia's warring emotions beautifully, from guilt that she didn't realize her brother needed help sooner, to grief over the version of Toby before his diagnosis. Reminiscent of the brother-sister dynamic in Jandy Nelson's I'll Give You the Sun (2014), the story is peppered with screenplay-style excerpts that capture moments in the siblings' childhood particularly their habit of envisioning the movie version of their lives that establish their history without slowing down the plot. Wunsch's debut offers a sometimes heartbreaking but ultimately hopeful portrait of a relationship that has changed forever but is still strong.--Horan, Molly Copyright 2016 Booklist

High school junior Amelia Anderson is always comparing events in her life to what their "movie version" counterparts would be, joined in her habit by her equally film-obsessed older brother, Toby. Toby is the star of the family, and Amelia looks up to him like no one else, so when he begins acting strangely she panics and starts covering for his increasingly disturbing behavior. After Toby is diagnosed with schizophrenia, Amelia and the rest of her family are devastated, even as she embarks on a tentative relationship with Epstein, a jam-band-loving Manhattanite she met during a summer babysitting gig in Montauk. Debut author Wunsch gives Amelia a powerful voice, alternately raw, vulnerable, and witty in its honesty about everything from sex ("I don't even feel bad that I give my very first blow job right on the couch where my grandmother watches the evening news") to family events spinning out of control. With a memorable, full-of-feeling narrator at its helm, this moving exploration of the effects of mental illness and a family's new normal marks Wunsch as a writer to watch. Ages 14-up. Agent: Rachel Orr, Prospect Agency. (Oct.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.