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The Way I See It

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Holly has something on her mind, but it’s not something she wants to admit to. It’s only after the funeral of a high school friend that she begins to realise she might have to speak up. It’s the reason she tears her hair out, the reason she picks at her skin, and the reason she sometimes has trouble breathing.

She has two friends on her side, Lara a friend from university who she lives with and Jem, a high school friend who she couldn’t live without. Jem is her rock and the one person in the world she trusts most, while Lara is everything Holly wishes she could be herself.

But time feels like it’s running out for Holly, and she’s not sure how much longer she can live the way she is. It’s time for her to stand up and speak out.

The Way I See It is is not a self-help book, nor is it full of inspirational quotes or success stories. It is a realistic portrayal of the ongoing, daily battle a young woman has with her anxiety, and how she decides to deal with it.

212 pages, Paperback

First published October 23, 2018

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Lucy Marrett

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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
Profile Image for Amanda - Mrs B's Book Reviews.
2,202 reviews331 followers
May 19, 2019
*https://mrsbbookreviews.wordpress.com
3.5 stars
The Way I See It is a raw and contemporary piece of fiction from Lucy Marrett. Published by Elephant Tree Publishing in 2018, this is an emotional and insightful glimpse into the world of a young sufferer of anxiety.

The Way I See It is Holly’s story. Holly is a young woman, who suffers daily from an anxiety disorder. The death of an old friend from high school serves as a big wake up call for Holly. It prompts Holly to confront her anxiety head on, rather than bury her head in the sand, Holly decides now is the right time to voice her problems. Relying on her friends when she reaches crisis point is imperative for Holly. Without her best friends Jem and Lara, Holly would be lost. When things change and her friends are not there for her when she needs them most, Holly decides to take the upper hand over her anxiety. The Way I See It is about confronting important mental health issues head-on and seeking help to make changes for the better.

In recent times, in my role as an educator of young children, I have seen a big push towards the recognition and training focus on mental health disorders. Therefore, I firmly believe there is a strong place for books such as The Way I See It by Lucy Marrett. Young people, their friends and loved ones need to find ways to share, connect and support those who suffer from the above disorders. The Way I See It is relevant and reflective of our current day climate, we are in society where anxiety rates are soaring and we need to be proactive in dealing with this increasing health issue. Preceding this novel is a trigger warning which is sensitive to those who are dealing with depression, anxiety or suicide. There are also options presented to those who may be suffering from a mental illness, by seeking help from the access points of Lifeline Australia and Beyond Blue.

It is hard to say when a book concerns itself around such a complex and emotionally fraught issue that the story was enjoyed. Rather, I came to appreciate the direction and overall message The Way I See It has in mind for its readership. I think this book will go a long way in recognising the feelings and experiences of those suffering from anxiety. Here is a glimpse of a moment in time in Holly’s life.

‘I don’t even know where I’m going, I might get lost, and if I get lost I will panic. The heat will rise from the anxiety in my gut and fill me up to my ears. And I’ll feel it and it will consume me, eat at my brain and my logic and suddenly not only will I be lost, but my face will be at risk of splitting apart as it tries to contains the tears and anguish.’

The Way I See It is a connective text, that allows those suffering from similar experiences to feel a sense of relief that they are not alone. It also opens up the possibility of living a healthier life in the face of anxiety. There is hope from the painful experiences shared. Marrett gets right inside the heart and soul of her main character Holly, who suffers from debilitating anxiety. We learn how every day is an uphill struggle, but Holly eventually rises above her anxiety and is able to seek help.

The experiences in the novel, aided by some solid characterisation, is realistic and relatable. The accompanying dialogue is authentic and will enable readers to see shades of themselves, or perhaps others in the characters. I was a little concerned that this book initially was going to read like a self help guide, or a memoir on anxiety, but I was mistaken. This is a very personal, almost diary like set of fictional experiences of a young woman negotiating her place in the world, while simultaneously dealing with a threat to her wellbeing. It gives the reader plenty of food for thought and plenty of in-roads in approaching anxiety.

Realistic, insightful, emotional and confronting, The Way I See It is a powerful title that gives a face and a name to the everyday silent victims of anxiety. Holly’s journey is well worth your time and it will give you a deeper appreciation for the daily struggles of a young person battling anxiety.

‘But I no longer mourn for myself, for the life that I was seeing burn our right in front of my eyes. I have a renewed strength and renewed light inside my soul and I will continue on every day of my life holding that light, letting it guide me and lead me where I am supposed to go.’

I wish to thank Elephant Tree Publishing for providing me with a free copy of this book for review purposes.

The Way I See It is book #69 of the 2019 Australian Women Writers Challenge
Profile Image for Laura Altmann.
111 reviews108 followers
December 6, 2018
Honestly, I was a little hesitant to read this book.

Due to my own experiences with anxiety, I tend to have a really strong opinion on books which feature anxiety as a theme. There are quite a few books I've read in the past year that have really nailed what it's like to live with mental illness (Turtles All the Way Down and Under Rose Tainted Skies, especially). But there's also a trope in which the mentally ill main character is magically cured of their anxiety when they find love (e.g. Finding Audrey), and that really bothers me.

However, I could not resist The Way I See Its' gorgeous cover, mustard yellow is after all my favourite colour! And I am pleased to report that this book definitely falls into the first category.

The book isn't particularly plot driven, it's all about a young woman named Holly and how she comes to accept, and formulate a plan to live with, her anxiety. There's a little bit of romance and friendship drama, but ultimately this is Holly's story and it's quite internal. And by that I mean, the main conflict in this book is between Holly and the invasive thoughts in her head. We follow Holly from the day she realises she needs help and observe her growing in confidence and self assurance. I found Holly's journey to be very easy to relate to, and I love how well Marrett captured the every day anxiety that can be at it's worst during seemingly simple encounters.

Overall though, what really made this book amazing for me was it's ending. Obviously I won't give any spoilers, but I will say that Holly makes a really positive and empowered choice that displays her immense character growth and bravery. At the beginning of the book, I wouldn't have guessed that Holly could be a character I would look up to, but I really admired her choices towards the end of the book.
1 review
November 26, 2018
I loved this inside look at living with debilitating anxiety. Holly’s journey will be helpful for those who identify with her struggle and/or for those who have friends going through this. Holly’s growing self-awareness, her courageous decision to begin to let go of self-pity and find her own strength rather than expecting someone else to hold her up, and her development of a more positive outlook are inspiring.
Profile Image for Pip  Tlaskal .
266 reviews2 followers
November 26, 2018
Reading this novel of delicacy and poise positions one on the tipping point of emotions that is living with anxiety. At the core is a story of loss of friendship and finding one's self through the pain. Characters are beautifully drawn and Marrett weaves their intertwining lives together seamlessly. A wonderful companion read to Sarah Wilson's 'First, we make the beast beautiful', this novel gives an intensely personal perspective on a misunderstood issue and is guaranteed to leave sufferers and their loved ones feel less alone.
211 reviews16 followers
October 26, 2018
A truly realistic portrayal of a young woman who suffers from anxiety and how she copes with her day to day life.
7 reviews
November 2, 2018
Well done Lucy. This is an excellent book, especially for your first. I couldn’t put it down. It is really engaging. I cried with Holly as she goes through her ups and downs and couldn’t wait to see what happened to her in the end.
1 review1 follower
January 28, 2021
This book was such a truly interesting book to read. As someone who lives with anxiety and struggles to explain my own experience, it was like I forgot to breathe as I read the first few pages. I was instantly amazed at how Lucy found the words to so accurately describe a feeling I could not actually form an understanding of in my own head.

It is not a book I found particularly easy to read as it is so real but yet it was refreshing in it's realness. I think it's important to read it at your own pace. It was so helpful to see that there are others who feel these same feelings, who question the same questions, and who have similar relationships.

I think this book would be so helpful for people to read if they know someone who feels anxiety strongly and wants to understand it more. A true insight into the brain of one person's experience.
Profile Image for Emily Dale.
Author 4 books13 followers
April 24, 2019
This was a wonderfully written snapshot of what life with anxiety is like. Lucy captures Holly’s fears and responses so well - as well as the responses of her friends. The reality of living with anxiety is sometimes soul crushing and it was great to see it properly captured. Well done!
Profile Image for Bron.
314 reviews10 followers
December 2, 2018
This was an engaging and well written look inside the life (and thoughts) of a young woman living with anxiety.
1 review1 follower
January 27, 2021
A fantastic book that really made me look at anxiety in a totally different way. Not having anxiety myself, I found it hard to understand. The way I see it has helped me to understand anxiety and dime of my friends struggles with it better..highly recommended for those with anxiety and without.
Profile Image for Kimberley - TardisBookishTales.
59 reviews
April 21, 2019
*** This review contains spoilers. It also discusses mental health, and may be confronting for some people***

The Way I See It by Lucy Marrett was a confronting read for me. I read it in one sitting. Let's put aside the occasional spelling errors and grammatical errors (whilst incredibly frustrating, and had me questioning if books even get edited any more before publishing), this book drew me in. Full disclosure - I do not suffer anxiety on the same level as Holly, the main character in this book. But some of the statements she makes, or the situations she describes, resonated with me.

" ''It's like my brain is split in two,' I exclaim, trying to explain to Rachel the inner complexities of my mind. 'It's as though there's my rational brain that says you have no reason to be anxious about this and my irrational brain that tells me I'll probably die if I do whatever it is I'm afraid of...'"

It was like the author was in my head. I often refer to having two different sides of my brain, and not the typical "Creative vs Analytical" sides. Marrett has captured the internal struggle that I feel many, if not all, individual's living with an Anxiety Disorder will experience. Admittedly when I started to read Holly's experience, I felt myself getting angry and annoyed at how incredibly "childish" and "annoying" she was, but then I started to understand. I saw myself in her.

" ... How could I be such a pathetic idiot... I am crazy. I've lost it. I'm not fit to function in society..."

Throughout Holly's journey, she shares the challenges she faces as she comes to terms with bringing her anxiety under control. She vocalises what many mental illness sufferer's are unable to - it's hard, and it scary. Holly talks about her anxious 'tics' - pulling at her hair, scratching her arms and hands until the skin is red and raw. I have those tics too.

Marrett has done an amazing job capturing the daily challenges of mental health. Holly's character is hard to like at first, but as you read, you can start to understand why. My only complaint with this book is that I feel that the ending didn't really wrap things up in a neat little bow. I felt like it was rushed to get to an ending, and that the ending of one relationship as another one began was too "fake". The emotion just wasn't there for me, and I feel that the book could have used another 20 pages to really develop the character relationships and show Holly's growth.

I gave this read 4/5 stars. I couldn't give it 5 as it just didn't have that "wow" factor, and the spelling and grammatical errors were pretty obvious. If you are looking for a quick but enjoyable read about mental health, I would highly recommend it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Gabby.
1,060 reviews148 followers
April 19, 2019
Rating - 3.5

The Way I See It follows Holly, a 24-year-old Journalist coming to terms with her anxiety disorder and trying to navigate life around it. She decides to challenge herself and see a psychiatrist and deal with a lot of her triggers with the help of her friends. We follow her journey through a year of her life.

First of all, we need to talk about this stunning cover. Font, design and colour- on point, one of my favourites. I love the simplicity.
The writing style of this feels like you’re reading Holly’s diary. At first it was quite jarring and difficult to read, but I soon got used to the “I did this, I did that” format of the book and started to flow a bit more naturally. This is very similar to how I write my everyday doings in my daily journal and while this book wasn’t written in journal format, it had a very “slice of life” feeling.
I flew through this! Planned to read a few pages and ended up reading over half the book in one sitting. It is a short book, so that helps, but I still read it quicker and more in-depth than I have for a book in a long time. I think the reading mood just hit me that day.
This story could’ve done with another round of editing to make conversation flow a bit more naturally between the characters (a lot of it felt quite robotic) and a few formatting errors here and there. I also felt a lot of things were “told” to us rather than “shown” in the characters every day actions.
Overall, as someone with an anxiety disorder, it was interesting to get a look at what anxiety is like in someone else’s life (I believe this is own-voices?) I related to quite a bit of the “catastrophising” and other effects of a general anxiety disorder that this book shared with us.
Overall a good read, I’ll definitely be picking up more from Lucy Marrett in the future!

Thank you to Elephant Tree Publishing for sending me a copy of this book. All thoughts are my own and honest opinions.
Profile Image for Aaron Yap.
22 reviews
January 29, 2021
Sometimes telling a story helps you understand something far better than if you read a non-fiction book about it. This is exactly one of those times. Lucy has written a clear, enjoyable, and insightful story that captures so many of the elements that someone dealing with anxiety suffers from, and brings it alive in a memorable way. It's quite helpful for anyone really, given the prevalence of these kinds of disorders in society. You'll be far more understanding and compassionate a person in interacting with anxiety sufferers - who wouldn't want that?
27 reviews
February 3, 2021
I didn't expect to enjoy this book a much as I did, nor come away the better for reading it. It helped me understand someone who suffers from anxiety better, as reading the character's inner dialogue and seeing her choices over the whole book taught me what it's like to live in her shoes, and has made me more readily compassionate to anyone who may be facing anxiety. It's written in such a compelling way that it's easy to read, engaging and - the best part in my opinion, is seeing her grow throughout the book!

Would definitely recommend giving this a read!
Profile Image for Laura.
309 reviews
April 7, 2019
I really enjoyed this book. Marrett does a great job at building characters and also a mind that can be so effected by anxiety. I was rooting for Holly from the beginning, she is an excellent protagonist as she isn't perfect and is so relatable. I loved the people in her life and the way Marrett develops each of their relationships. A great YA book from a new Australian author that really does deal with such an important topic around anxiety/mental health and the way it is discussed.
Profile Image for Hannah.
41 reviews
April 24, 2023
This genuinely was an incredible book. There was a sense of realism that I have yet to read in any other book quite the same.

As someone who loves fiction, and loves people this book opened my eyes to the possible feelings, lives, and heart of the people around me in a whole new way.
Profile Image for Emma Moxham.
32 reviews4 followers
May 31, 2023
An honest, frank, and extremely helpful look into life living with crippling anxiety, through the lens of Holly. I feel that my empathy has deepened for the anxiety of myself and those around me.

Thank you for writing this, Lucy.
1 review
January 29, 2021
Such a great page-turner!! I nearly forgot to get off the train to go to work!

Lucy did such an amazing job writing this book. I felt like I knew Holly on a personal level.
Profile Image for Naomi.
30 reviews
May 30, 2019
“Anxiety is a cruel illness; I don’t want to bow to it’s commands anymore.”

Holly has something on her mind, but it’s not something she wants to admit to. It’s only after the funeral of a high school friend that she begins to realise she might have to speak up.

Thank you so much to Elephant Tree Publishing for gifting me this book. I was in no way paid for this review and all thoughts are my own.

As someone who has anxiety, this book is incredibly relatable. While my anxiety isn’t as intense as Holly’s, I was still able to really connect with the things she struggled with. I will admit that the beginning of the book is a little slow but once I got past a couple of chapters, I was able to find a groove and really power through it. I really enjoyed this book and would happily recommend it to anyone who wanted a quick and captivating read about mental illness. Overall, I give ‘The Way I See It’ 4 out of 5 stars.
2 reviews1 follower
September 18, 2021
Heartwarming and insightful characters that take you deep into the anxious mind. This book was very easy to read, enjoyable and with too-real characters that made it easy to flip through the pages.

Thankyou Lucy Marrett for an enjoyable and insightful read. 5/5
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews

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