Book Review: The Night I Disappeared by Julie Reece Deaver

Title: The Night I Disappeared
Author: Julie Reece Deaver
Pages: 242
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Year Published: 2002

"Held hostage by an inner world..."
"Something scary is happening to seventeen-year-old Jamie Tessman. Ever since she and her mother arrived in Chicago, she's been plagued by freaky mind-slips and vivid daydreams about her sort-of-boyfriend, Webb. When Jamie's inner world start taking her hostage and keeping her imprisoned for longer period of time, she becomes terrified that she is slowly losing her mind.
Jamie's mom doesn't seem to notice anything is wrong. No one does- until Jamie meets Morgan, a new friend who's had her own 'brush with nuttiness.' When Jamie disappears into her inner world one night and can't find her way out, Morgan sees to it that Jamie finally gets help. Morgan's aunt, a psychiatrist, breaks though Jamie's paralyzing fear and helps her unravel a tangle of long-forgotten, horrifying secrets in her past..."

My Rating: 9/10

I really liked this novel because of its theme. This book is mainly about mental illness and how to deal with it. I guess most of us just consider people with something like schizophrenia as crazy, but really is is an illness just like diabetes. There is nothing to be ashamed of, because most of us will eventually deal with a mental illness (ex. depression, bi-polar, anorexia, schizophrenia, etc.) whether it be us ourselves or our loved ones. I really think that our society needs to learn to deal with people who have these illnesses, Our generation needs to learn that all of these things are ok, and need to be taken in stride with every day life. As you can probably tell this book changed my view on things immensely.
THANK YOU JULIE REECE DEAVER FOR PUTTING ME IN A 'CRAZY' PERSON'S SHOES!

Thanks for read,
Love,
Sidny ♥♪♫

Spoiler: The Night I Disappeared by Julie Reece Deaver

I really loved this book, and I found that I could hardly put it down. The way that Julie Reece Deaver wrote from the 'crazy' person's point of view was a lot more insightful than other books I've read involving mental illness. In this book it's like we got to see inside Jamie's head and see what she's feeling about what's happening to her. There is a ton of description I liked used when Jamie goes off into her inner world that makes it more real for the reader, and without it the book wouldn't touch me like it did. I enjoyed how after Jamie got out of the hospital she seemed to take in more of the city. The trials were another interesting idea that really tied the story together. The way that Jamie travels back and forth so frequently and without warning makes me feel like I'm traveling with her, figuring out what's going on with her.

Characters:
Jamie: I felt horrible for her at the beginning of the book when those girls where making fun of her in the bathroom. That's just horrible. She really has had a rough life and when she finds out Webb's not real I don't blame her for grieving, that was her confidant, her only true friend. To have that suddenly gone would be heartbreaking for all of us I'm sure. I could tell that there was something not quite right with her, but I though thta tmaybe it was that she had been molested by her babysitter's boyfriend. I never thought that she was kidnapped and ended up killing someone in self defense. It made the blood on the shirt make a ton more sense. I hope that this character gets better and proves to everyone that this can't hold her back .

Morgan: Morgan is an awesome friend because she doesn't treat Jamie like she's crazy or a freak. She just goes along for the ride and is there to drag Jamie out of her dark space after she's realeased from the hospital. If Morgan hadn't been there to get her out of the house I have no doubt that Jamie would have just imagined another friend.

Webb: Even though he's not real, I think it's important to let him be a character after all he plays a big part in Jamie's life. I can understand why she imagines him as her protector because who doesn't want someone to be there for them, and when her mom wasn't she deserved someone else and so she made him up.

Jamie's Mom: I love that she just leaves her daughter who is having mental problems alone and expects her to deal (sarcasm) . I would probably have had issues to if my mom was never around to talk to me. Jamie's mom doesn't come home for dinner most of the time, and sometimes she doesn't see her for days on end. I hope that she doesn't start to treat Jamie like a freak.

Dr. Hacker (Morgan's Aunt): I really liked her because not only was she nice and not weird, but incredibly funny. She's not afraid to joke or tease and I have the feeling that she could make anyone feel better after a certain matter of time.
Ellis: Why would you ever do such a thing to an innocent 9 year old kid? And then tell her she can't tell? I hope she goes to jail.


Moments to Remember:
♥Pg. 9
" 'You told me not to worry. You told me you'd look after me, remember?'
'I remember. I just didn't know at the time it would end up being my life's work.' "

♥Pg. 132
" 'Which skirt are you getting?'
'The black one. I figure it'll make me look thinner.'
'You know, guys never worry about stuff like that--'
'About how they look in skirts? No, probably not.' "

I hope you enjoyed this spoiler
Love,
Sidny xoxo