What do you think?
Rate this book
Crazy
Fifteen-year-old Jason has fallen upon bad times—his mother has died and his father has succumbed to mental illness. As he tries to hold his crazy father and their crumbling home together, Jason relies on a host of imaginary friends for guidance as he stumbles along trying not to draw attention to his father’s deteriorating condition.
Both heartbreaking and funny, Crazy lives up to the intense and compelling characters Han Nolan is praised for. As Jason himself teeters on the edge of insanity, Nolan uncovers the clever coping system he develops for himself and throws him a lifeline in the guise of friendship.
Both heartbreaking and funny, Crazy lives up to the intense and compelling characters Han Nolan is praised for. As Jason himself teeters on the edge of insanity, Nolan uncovers the clever coping system he develops for himself and throws him a lifeline in the guise of friendship.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published September 13, 2010
140 people are currently reading
5687 people want to read
About the author
Han Nolan
15 books223 followersHan Nolan is widely acclaimed for her evocative language, her gritty subject matter, and her ability to plumb the psyche of her characters. Her books include Dancing on the Edge, which won the National Book Award, Send Me own a Miracle, a finalist for the National Book Award, Born Blue, A Summer of Kings, and several other acclaimed novels. She and her husband live on the East Coast.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 429 reviews
September 28, 2012
Crazy ass book.
Crazy ass ride.
Crazy ass plot.
Crazy ass characters.
Crazy ass story.
This book was CRAZY.
If you want the perfect description of this book, then all you have to do is look at the title.
Not crazy in a bad way, really. The bad parts, weren't bad. They were so bad, that it was sooo good.
It sounds weird and maybe even funny. But there is so much more to the story. Its heartbreaking, tender, loving, injust, revealing.
It was all done and written in a way, that keeps you engaged, interested, invested. Oh so invested.
I got somewhat the same feeling while reading Flat-Out Love, but Crazy has a slighter darker vibe, because of the subject matter.
How did it manage to still be humorous and a bit fun, while dealing with the subject matter? By the amazing talents of its author.
She sort of sneaks up on you, really. Here we are, reading about an extremly hard sittuation and how a devoted son deals with it the best way he can. And all of a sudden, we're introduced to incredible side characters, a great support system and strangers who end up feeling like family.
"I feel like that violing, only my strings are loosening, unwinding from the pegs, and I feel strange this way. I feel that maybe it isn't safe to laugh, to let go of my vigilance over my dad, over my self, but I can hardly help it because it feels so good.
It just feels so good."
My dear friend, Wendy, has been praising the heck out of this book. And now I understand why.
This book has been neglected enough! Read this people. Why are you punishing yourselves, reading other duds, when yo can be in bliss if you read this one?
Now go. Read this, and then come back and thank me for pushing this on you reading list!
Crazy ass ride.
Crazy ass plot.
Crazy ass characters.
Crazy ass story.
This book was CRAZY.
If you want the perfect description of this book, then all you have to do is look at the title.
Not crazy in a bad way, really. The bad parts, weren't bad. They were so bad, that it was sooo good.
It sounds weird and maybe even funny. But there is so much more to the story. Its heartbreaking, tender, loving, injust, revealing.
It was all done and written in a way, that keeps you engaged, interested, invested. Oh so invested.
I got somewhat the same feeling while reading Flat-Out Love, but Crazy has a slighter darker vibe, because of the subject matter.
How did it manage to still be humorous and a bit fun, while dealing with the subject matter? By the amazing talents of its author.
She sort of sneaks up on you, really. Here we are, reading about an extremly hard sittuation and how a devoted son deals with it the best way he can. And all of a sudden, we're introduced to incredible side characters, a great support system and strangers who end up feeling like family.
"I feel like that violing, only my strings are loosening, unwinding from the pegs, and I feel strange this way. I feel that maybe it isn't safe to laugh, to let go of my vigilance over my dad, over my self, but I can hardly help it because it feels so good.
It just feels so good."
My dear friend, Wendy, has been praising the heck out of this book. And now I understand why.
This book has been neglected enough! Read this people. Why are you punishing yourselves, reading other duds, when yo can be in bliss if you read this one?
Now go. Read this, and then come back and thank me for pushing this on you reading list!
October 1, 2013
Oh, this book. Is there a word for a book that breaks your heart into tiny, tiny pieces? My favorite book in all the world is a book like that. So is this one. And it did it in an entirely believable way.
So let's count the ways Han Nolan stomped on my heart. There's the main character, Jason. His mother has passed away, leaving him to take care of his father, who is seriously mentally ill, and getting worse. They're drowning under the medical bills left behind when Jason's mother died. And Jason is dedicated to keeping himself invisible, unnoticed. Because if he is noticed, his father will be, too, and they'll take him away. Again. Not enough? Jason finds himself slotted into a support group at his school, for teens going through a rough time. There's Pete, and his drug-addicted father. There's Haze, whose parents are going through a very nasty divorce. Nasty enough that his father will write "whore" in huge letters all over the family house, and never consider how that will affect his twelve-year old daughter. And then there's Shelby. Shelby's mother is dying, rapidly. She has ALS, but the specifics of her illness matter much less than the fact that Shelby is losing her mother in pieces.
I felt for all of them, because they're decent and believably flawed and care about each other. Jason will probably be the character that most people connect to most strongly. He is the main character, even the viewpoint character. It seems like he just can't catch a break, and that things are getting worse and worse for him and for his father. And his one overriding, even overwhelming, motivation throughout the entire book is to take care of his father. But for me, I felt most connected to Shelby, for personal reasons. When she talks about how much she loves her mother, how lost she'll feel when she's gone, how she already misses her, but that sometimes she wishes it were all over already, for her mother's sake because she's suffering, but also for her own sake... I understand. I understand because I felt exactly the same way when I was eighteen and nineteen and losing my dad. For those of us who have been there, or are there, Shelby might well end up as the star.
All of the above doesn't mean that this is 300+ pages of downer. There's some humor, and more hope. As rough as things are with their families, Jason, Pete, Haze, and Shelby all still care about them, and about each other. There are no easy answers, no simple solutions. At the end of the book, everybody's circumstances have changed, probably for the better, but their problems aren't over, and Nolan never pretends that they are. But maybe they'll be able to handle them better. It isn't exactly a happily ever after, which is good. A neat, sunny ending wouldn't be fair to the rest of the book.
So yes, this book did hurt me. But it did it honestly, by telling a realistically tough story about characters that were very likeable, very easy to care about. That's a good thing, but I'm going to need something much lighter to follow it up.
So let's count the ways Han Nolan stomped on my heart. There's the main character, Jason. His mother has passed away, leaving him to take care of his father, who is seriously mentally ill, and getting worse. They're drowning under the medical bills left behind when Jason's mother died. And Jason is dedicated to keeping himself invisible, unnoticed. Because if he is noticed, his father will be, too, and they'll take him away. Again. Not enough? Jason finds himself slotted into a support group at his school, for teens going through a rough time. There's Pete, and his drug-addicted father. There's Haze, whose parents are going through a very nasty divorce. Nasty enough that his father will write "whore" in huge letters all over the family house, and never consider how that will affect his twelve-year old daughter. And then there's Shelby. Shelby's mother is dying, rapidly. She has ALS, but the specifics of her illness matter much less than the fact that Shelby is losing her mother in pieces.
I felt for all of them, because they're decent and believably flawed and care about each other. Jason will probably be the character that most people connect to most strongly. He is the main character, even the viewpoint character. It seems like he just can't catch a break, and that things are getting worse and worse for him and for his father. And his one overriding, even overwhelming, motivation throughout the entire book is to take care of his father. But for me, I felt most connected to Shelby, for personal reasons. When she talks about how much she loves her mother, how lost she'll feel when she's gone, how she already misses her, but that sometimes she wishes it were all over already, for her mother's sake because she's suffering, but also for her own sake... I understand. I understand because I felt exactly the same way when I was eighteen and nineteen and losing my dad. For those of us who have been there, or are there, Shelby might well end up as the star.
All of the above doesn't mean that this is 300+ pages of downer. There's some humor, and more hope. As rough as things are with their families, Jason, Pete, Haze, and Shelby all still care about them, and about each other. There are no easy answers, no simple solutions. At the end of the book, everybody's circumstances have changed, probably for the better, but their problems aren't over, and Nolan never pretends that they are. But maybe they'll be able to handle them better. It isn't exactly a happily ever after, which is good. A neat, sunny ending wouldn't be fair to the rest of the book.
So yes, this book did hurt me. But it did it honestly, by telling a realistically tough story about characters that were very likeable, very easy to care about. That's a good thing, but I'm going to need something much lighter to follow it up.
October 22, 2015
Ok I have thought about this for about a day and keep fluctuating back and forth from 4 to 5 stars for this book, but since it has stuck with me I will go with the higher rating. I was not sure about this book at first, I mean a boy who talks to imaginary friends seemed a little out there, but now that I read it I am glad I did. I work with teens who have parents with mental illness and I felt this was an acurate betrayal of the myriad of emotions they go through on a daily basis (guilt, love, anger, sadness). I am so glad there were people out there to help and support the main character in this book, because to many times these kids suffer in silence. I think there are too many YA books out there that play down to their audience, or just don't understand them, so it is nice when one gets it right.
August 11, 2013
Fair warning: this review is entirely incoherent. I wouldn't be surprised if it made no sense at all to anyone.
I have no idea how to review this book. There's just no way that my thoughts can come together in a coherent manner. I'll just put it this way: this is the strongest emotional experience I've ever had in reading a book. It seems that my life and this book corresponded to create something horrifyingly sad, but also hopeful. That's the thing: this book is just as hopeful as it is sad. Because of the real life stuff (which I don't want to talk about with you unless I've met you in person, so don't ask), not everyone will feel as strongly as I did, but... well, I did.
Have you been reading a book and suddenly come across a moment that strikes you in particular as very human, as applying to your life in a way that you've never seen before? I'll use an example you're all likely to be familiar with: remember in Catching Fire when Katniss says that she came up with an entire long speech in her head for Gale and never got to use it - they never addressed the issue? That was one of the first that I was aware of. Anyway, those moments are pretty rare, but even rarer is when you find an entire book full of them. This has only happened a few times, but I found it in The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Will Grayson Will Grayson, A Monster Calls, and basically anything that Megan Crewe puts her name on. This is another one of those books - it was just so authentic in that way, and I'm not sure if I can describe it without going into hyperbole. But there were tons of those moments. Anything involving Shelby's mother, for example. And any time Jason's imaginary voices (look, I'm not explaining the premise, just read the freaking blurb, okay?) tell him that he's making his home situation clear, because even without knowing why, Jason thinks it's an automatically bad thing for people to know that he's not okay. Or when Jason starts talking about how it's not fair, the way that some people get problems given to them even though they didn't do anything.
It's moments like this that make books worth reading. That's what I read for, and I think that's what a lot of people read for, whether they know it or not - to see something honest reflected back at them, something authentic to how the world works. In that regard - in most regards, actually - this is one of the best books I've ever read.
Jason is one of the most interesting narrators I've ever read. He was a real person, as were all the other characters. But what really made his narration interesting, of course, were his imaginary friends talking to him, and we're really not entirely sure how aware he is of their nonexistence. It really gives the book a unique dimension, and it makes things a lot more interesting to read, certainly. I'm also pretty appreciative of the fact that Nolan was willing to write a boy as a narrator, despite being a woman herself. In the wake of Twilight and The Hunger Games, it's getting harder and harder to find a nuanced boy in any of YA, particularly in a contemporary problem novel where the standard assumption is that girls are the target audience. But Nolan writes a realistic and nuanced boy with Jason - she's not even afraid to make his gaze distinctly male at times. (Describing Shelby as looking like a pincushion with boobs? TOTALLY COMPLETELY ENTIRELY UNREALISTIC HOW COULD YOU ACCUSE ANY BOY OF THINKING LIKE THAT?)
This is one of the best books I've ever read. I could go on and on about what makes it so great, but the point is, it is authentic, it's a realistic portrayal of freaking EVERYTHING, it's well-written (Jason's voice is entirely believable and never awkward), its dramatic structure works great, and it's thematically strong. It's themes are really the part that apply to my life, and that's what makes it so powerful. Other than a single scene with cissexist undertones, this book is entirely flawless. And yet... it has less than a thousand ratings on GoodReads. We must change this! This is a great book that deserves to be read by everyone - so read it. I can't recommend it strongly enough.
I have no idea how to review this book. There's just no way that my thoughts can come together in a coherent manner. I'll just put it this way: this is the strongest emotional experience I've ever had in reading a book. It seems that my life and this book corresponded to create something horrifyingly sad, but also hopeful. That's the thing: this book is just as hopeful as it is sad. Because of the real life stuff (which I don't want to talk about with you unless I've met you in person, so don't ask), not everyone will feel as strongly as I did, but... well, I did.
Have you been reading a book and suddenly come across a moment that strikes you in particular as very human, as applying to your life in a way that you've never seen before? I'll use an example you're all likely to be familiar with: remember in Catching Fire when Katniss says that she came up with an entire long speech in her head for Gale and never got to use it - they never addressed the issue? That was one of the first that I was aware of. Anyway, those moments are pretty rare, but even rarer is when you find an entire book full of them. This has only happened a few times, but I found it in The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Will Grayson Will Grayson, A Monster Calls, and basically anything that Megan Crewe puts her name on. This is another one of those books - it was just so authentic in that way, and I'm not sure if I can describe it without going into hyperbole. But there were tons of those moments. Anything involving Shelby's mother, for example. And any time Jason's imaginary voices (look, I'm not explaining the premise, just read the freaking blurb, okay?) tell him that he's making his home situation clear, because even without knowing why, Jason thinks it's an automatically bad thing for people to know that he's not okay. Or when Jason starts talking about how it's not fair, the way that some people get problems given to them even though they didn't do anything.
It's moments like this that make books worth reading. That's what I read for, and I think that's what a lot of people read for, whether they know it or not - to see something honest reflected back at them, something authentic to how the world works. In that regard - in most regards, actually - this is one of the best books I've ever read.
Jason is one of the most interesting narrators I've ever read. He was a real person, as were all the other characters. But what really made his narration interesting, of course, were his imaginary friends talking to him, and we're really not entirely sure how aware he is of their nonexistence. It really gives the book a unique dimension, and it makes things a lot more interesting to read, certainly. I'm also pretty appreciative of the fact that Nolan was willing to write a boy as a narrator, despite being a woman herself. In the wake of Twilight and The Hunger Games, it's getting harder and harder to find a nuanced boy in any of YA, particularly in a contemporary problem novel where the standard assumption is that girls are the target audience. But Nolan writes a realistic and nuanced boy with Jason - she's not even afraid to make his gaze distinctly male at times. (Describing Shelby as looking like a pincushion with boobs? TOTALLY COMPLETELY ENTIRELY UNREALISTIC HOW COULD YOU ACCUSE ANY BOY OF THINKING LIKE THAT?)
This is one of the best books I've ever read. I could go on and on about what makes it so great, but the point is, it is authentic, it's a realistic portrayal of freaking EVERYTHING, it's well-written (Jason's voice is entirely believable and never awkward), its dramatic structure works great, and it's thematically strong. It's themes are really the part that apply to my life, and that's what makes it so powerful. Other than a single scene with cissexist undertones, this book is entirely flawless. And yet... it has less than a thousand ratings on GoodReads. We must change this! This is a great book that deserves to be read by everyone - so read it. I can't recommend it strongly enough.
May 13, 2011
It's so hard to review some books. I'm just not sure what I can say to make people see what I see in certain books.
Crazy was... crazy, ha. Jason, the protag, was quirky and vulnerable. His battles hurt to read. I just wished as I was reading that if I could pray hard enough it would fix his life for him. That it would make his mom come back and his Dad's illness vanish. The descriptions of his father's mental illness, and his own internal struggles as he tried to cope felt so real. I just wanted someone to help him.
Enter Haze, Pete and Shelby. The way the four of them banded together; it was exactly what Jason needed. And through these three friends and Dr. Gomez and all the new people who enter his life to help him heal, we as the reader get front row seats for his transformation.
I can't tell you how many times I cried. I know that I cried at work, which has never happened. But more importantly, I was sure when I picked up this book that it was going to be an intense but depressing read. I was wrong; it was so much more then that. It was a book about staying strong and always fighting, and it was about hope and family.
The bottom line is that this book is worth owning in print, for you to reread again.
Thank you to the people who recommended it to me.
Crazy was... crazy, ha. Jason, the protag, was quirky and vulnerable. His battles hurt to read. I just wished as I was reading that if I could pray hard enough it would fix his life for him. That it would make his mom come back and his Dad's illness vanish. The descriptions of his father's mental illness, and his own internal struggles as he tried to cope felt so real. I just wanted someone to help him.
Enter Haze, Pete and Shelby. The way the four of them banded together; it was exactly what Jason needed. And through these three friends and Dr. Gomez and all the new people who enter his life to help him heal, we as the reader get front row seats for his transformation.
I can't tell you how many times I cried. I know that I cried at work, which has never happened. But more importantly, I was sure when I picked up this book that it was going to be an intense but depressing read. I was wrong; it was so much more then that. It was a book about staying strong and always fighting, and it was about hope and family.
The bottom line is that this book is worth owning in print, for you to reread again.
Thank you to the people who recommended it to me.
August 11, 2010
Like, crazy man. This little dude has voices in his head. He's even named them. One is Fat Bald Guy (a.k.a. FBG) who is like the theater accent-on-critic in the back row. One is Sexy Lady who keeps assuring the lad he's "hot." One is Aunt Bee. That's right -- that Aunt Bee -- who provides all manner of Mayberry nurturing and motherly reassurance. One is Crazy Glue, the punk who accidentally glued two fingers together. And one is familiar to all television viewers (er... listeners), Laugh Track. On cue, now: Ha, ha, ha, ha (etc.)!
But seriously, Jason is 15 and in a bad way. He lost his mother to a stroke and now is living with a dad who is going nuts. In fact, Dad is a former writer and expert on the Greek classics, who become part of his psychosis. He thinks the Furies are after him. So he does things like listen to electric radios while wearing football helmets in the bathtub (they can't get you if you can't hear them coming, you see). He also steals violins and plays them in snowstorms. You know. The usual stuff.
Enter "the system": social workers, psychologists, hospital personnel, courtroom judges, et. al. Jason does his best to keep them at bay, but it's tough when the going gets so rough that not only his father but his own health is on the brink.
Cavalry coming over the hill? This is in the form of Jason's real-life support group (as opposed to the voices inside), school psychologist Dr. Gomez's group, consisting of Shelby (her mom is dying), Haze, and Pete. Also in the mix? A foster family. And so it goes.
If you are interested in the terrain we know as the brain, the characterization in this new novel will appeal to you. The plot? Not so much. It's really a people book, one that keeps a sense of humor despite a not-very-funny premise. I also enjoyed the quest to define "crazy." As we all know, such words are all relative and, in reality, all around us. Sometimes "the system" is as crazy as a man who is being chased by ancient Furies. But you knew that.
Fat Bald Guy: End of review, thank God.
Sexy Lady: This reviewer is HOT (for his age).
Crazy Glue: They can count that high?
Aunt Bee: Come, now. The nice reviewer is doing his best here. Cut him some slack and sit up straight like a good boy, will you?
Laugh Track: Ha, ha, ha, ha, etc.
But seriously, Jason is 15 and in a bad way. He lost his mother to a stroke and now is living with a dad who is going nuts. In fact, Dad is a former writer and expert on the Greek classics, who become part of his psychosis. He thinks the Furies are after him. So he does things like listen to electric radios while wearing football helmets in the bathtub (they can't get you if you can't hear them coming, you see). He also steals violins and plays them in snowstorms. You know. The usual stuff.
Enter "the system": social workers, psychologists, hospital personnel, courtroom judges, et. al. Jason does his best to keep them at bay, but it's tough when the going gets so rough that not only his father but his own health is on the brink.
Cavalry coming over the hill? This is in the form of Jason's real-life support group (as opposed to the voices inside), school psychologist Dr. Gomez's group, consisting of Shelby (her mom is dying), Haze, and Pete. Also in the mix? A foster family. And so it goes.
If you are interested in the terrain we know as the brain, the characterization in this new novel will appeal to you. The plot? Not so much. It's really a people book, one that keeps a sense of humor despite a not-very-funny premise. I also enjoyed the quest to define "crazy." As we all know, such words are all relative and, in reality, all around us. Sometimes "the system" is as crazy as a man who is being chased by ancient Furies. But you knew that.
Fat Bald Guy: End of review, thank God.
Sexy Lady: This reviewer is HOT (for his age).
Crazy Glue: They can count that high?
Aunt Bee: Come, now. The nice reviewer is doing his best here. Cut him some slack and sit up straight like a good boy, will you?
Laugh Track: Ha, ha, ha, ha, etc.
June 13, 2023
Honestly, this book was a wild ride! It was so fast paced and kept me engaged throughout the entire plot. Would definitely recommend this! It’s so wild that Jason voices in his head. Also amazing plot twists!!!
Overall, if you’re seeing this and you were thinking about reading this book, definitely read it is way better than the synopsis leads you to think!
Overall, if you’re seeing this and you were thinking about reading this book, definitely read it is way better than the synopsis leads you to think!
January 1, 2019
Crazy is one of the most emotional books that I have ever read! The book enforces the importance of asking for help and standing up for what you believe in. Many people are afraid to ask for help or are ashamed that they need it, but this book clearly illustrates the power of friendship and support that can be provided. I believe that hope is the most powerful asset that Crazy has. Through the sad times and the angry times, and the almost-giving-up times, hope still shined through, inspiring optimism. Read my full review at http://pagesforthoughts.blogspot.com/...
September 17, 2012
CRAZY is one part funny and two parts sad.
But, overall an intense read which just so happens to be my kind of story. It’s one where the protagonist lives a messy life, and is not having an easy time of it up to the very last because the realizations were slow to take. Jason is a good kid, he loves his father but sometimes loves his father too much, because big things are placed on him all of which he takes it all on willingly, more often than not to his detriment.
A smart aleck too, it is in fact what people notice at first: he likes middles but not beginnings and ends, dates are arbitrary he says. But dig deeper and one sees how reluctant, angry even, to accept any interference… though that’s what he gets. Well-meaning, that’s how the lot of them are, but it’s this that he cannot see past what he has got to lose.
So, it’s sad then funny then sad.
Compound all that with the people in his head, who liven things up… unlike those who are actually around him; it’s the latter’s help that felt more than just intrusive to the boy, and I totally got where he was coming from… especially judging from my teary reception of what was going on. Boy, did I sob! Because just when I thought things looking up, only more things sprang up, things to handle; things that had him clam up.
But, like I said, he’s a good kid and he loves his father. So what he cops to, what he admits made him a little bit more sad in my eyes.
Intense.
I loved it.
4/5
But, overall an intense read which just so happens to be my kind of story. It’s one where the protagonist lives a messy life, and is not having an easy time of it up to the very last because the realizations were slow to take. Jason is a good kid, he loves his father but sometimes loves his father too much, because big things are placed on him all of which he takes it all on willingly, more often than not to his detriment.
A smart aleck too, it is in fact what people notice at first: he likes middles but not beginnings and ends, dates are arbitrary he says. But dig deeper and one sees how reluctant, angry even, to accept any interference… though that’s what he gets. Well-meaning, that’s how the lot of them are, but it’s this that he cannot see past what he has got to lose.
So, it’s sad then funny then sad.
Compound all that with the people in his head, who liven things up… unlike those who are actually around him; it’s the latter’s help that felt more than just intrusive to the boy, and I totally got where he was coming from… especially judging from my teary reception of what was going on. Boy, did I sob! Because just when I thought things looking up, only more things sprang up, things to handle; things that had him clam up.
But, like I said, he’s a good kid and he loves his father. So what he cops to, what he admits made him a little bit more sad in my eyes.
Intense.
I loved it.
4/5
February 20, 2015
AAAAAHHHHH!!!
Please please please go do me a favor and go read this book right now!! Go! If you've already read the book.... go read it again!!
Oh my gosh. Oh jeez. Oh my goodness. This book. I... I... wow.
Never have I read a book as crazy as Crazy before.
Never have I enjoyed a book like this as much as Crazy before.
Never have I been in love with a book like Crazy before.
It's.... it's crazy!!!
Okay. Let's see if I can get myself together here. Oh. After just finishing the book, I am blown away by its awesomeness. I am blown off my feet.
Crazy starts off with Jason Apollo Papadopoulos, a fifteen year old boy with no friends, a dead mother, and a mentally ill father.
CRAZY GLUE: Hey! Don't forget about us!
Oh. Yes.
You see, Jason has these imaginary friends. I wouldn't really call them 'imaginary friends', but as Jason explains it, they're an 'imaginary audience' who follow him around and watch him like Jason is the star of a movie. They're there to talk to him, to help him make decisions, to tell him to calm down, to stay sane.
To me, I just think of them as voices in his head. Have you ever heard of those people who go crazy, clutch at their heads and moan, "The voices!!!!" Uh, yeah it's not that extreme.
There's Crazy Glue, Fat Bald Guy With A Mustache, Aunt Bee, Sexy Lady, Laugh Track, and You. You aren't a part of anything just yet. But You are there, another part of the audience that watches Jason's life.
LAUGH TRACK: (Laughter).
But anyways, Jason talks to them and they talk back. Let me remind you that he's fifteen years old and knows that these voices aren't real.
But that isn't even the crazy part.
It's Jason's dad. You see, Dad thinks that the Furies, Greek/Roman mythological goddesses from the underworld are out to kill him. When Jason was only six, Dad took him outside in the middle of the night and tried to bury him alive to keep him safe from the Furies. Dad doesn't remember that. On and off he is sick, but most of the time he gets better. When Jason's Mom got sick, had a stroke, and died, Dad went crazy again, went off of his meds, and he and Jason have been mess ever since.
"'So it's like every morning when I leave for school, he thinks I'm Jason of Jason and the Argonauts, off to capture the Golden Fleece, but in the afternoon he thinks I'm Apollo —that's my middle name— and I'm just home from the war. He thinks the Furies, or uh, the goddesses of the underworld, blame him for my mom's death.'"
Pretty crazy, huh?
That's not the end of it. Dad cannot fend for himself, and it is Jason who has to force him to eat and try to get him to take his pills. With all of their money gone from paying for Mom's hospital bills, their house is in very bad shape, and Jason is just one step closer to falling into insanity like his father.
But then he meets friends. Haze, Shelby, and Pete. They understand Jason, and each other. And they're ready to help Jason and his father, because they obviously need help. But will things get better, or worse?
LAUGH TRACK: Uh-oh!
AUNT BEE: Oh dear.
SEXY LADY: Jason will still be hot, no matter what.
This book is amazing, okay? A-ma-zing! I fell in love with all of the characters, all of them! Everybody was so intriguing to read about, and isn't everybody a little crazy in the inside, just a little?
I looooove Jason and his Dad's relationship. I love how Jason tolerates his Dad, and loves him so much, through all of the times he's been sick. It's amazing how one minute their relationship can seem very funny, and the next, very tragic. They were the best characters to me. My favorites, definitely!
Here is one of my favorite parts of the book.
"'Dad, would you stop it already?'
'A clamor of Furies to paralyse reason! To paralyse reason! To paralyse reason!'
I shove Pete's sandwich toward him. 'Here. Eat this.'
Dad takes the sandwich and shoves it into his mouth, plastic wrap and all.
LAUGH TRACK: (laughter).
***
Twenty minutes later Dad has eaten Pete's lunch. The good food calms him. I help him of his wet clothes, and when I get to his undershirt and pull it off, I find a long red zigzag running the length of his chest. I touch it. It looks like my mom's nail polish.
'Dad? What is this?'
'A wound,' he says. He puts his hand over his chest.
'What wound?'
'All wounds. The world's wounds. I'm all wound up in the wounds of the world. They told me to do it.'
I ease the helmet off his head, and Dad draws in his breath as if he's in great pain.
'Don't listen those Furies, Dad. Just because you hear them doesn't mean you have to obey.'
He puts his hands over his ears..."
I love that part. I really do.
Here's a part that made me laugh and tear up at the same time.
"The first thing Dad says when I walk in the door is, 'Have you seen my violin? The Furies have eaten it, I'm afraid.'"
Towards the end of the book, I was crying. Oh, it was terrible; this wasn't your typical —single melodramatic tear rolls down the cheek— type of cry. No this was full on tears streaming down the cheeks type of crying. No sound; just tears.
It's hard, I guess, to accept that some things in your life, you just can't control. There are going to be times where things won't go your way, and you just don't have control of it. Heck, some people can't even control themselves. I just don't think it's fair, I guess. But that is how life goes, and you've got to accept it. As the end got closer and closer, I just got sadder and sadder, but by the end, it was okay. Once you read it, you'll be okay too. It's a great feeling.
I've got to confess something: When I first picked up the book, I flipped through the pages, and I got sucked in, and I started reading the pages out of order and I couldn't stop! I think I might've read the whole book out of order! Aah! How could I! It's a habit to read at a part I'm not at, but jeez I really outdid it on this book!
*slap* Bad, reader, bad!!!
CRAZY GLUE: Okay, that's enough. I think you're boring everybody to death with this review! Just finish it already!
Okay, okay!
Crazy was one of the best books I've read, because it had literally everything I love in a book in this book. It made me laugh and it made me cry. It made me cringe and shiver and feel empathetic towards each character.
"'Hey, have you seen my violin?' Dad asks."
Would I recommend it to anybody? Uh, look at the beginning of the review! Why are you still reading this!? Go! Go read Crazy!
FBG WITH A MUSTACHE: It's worth it. Go read it.
Go! Go read it!
"'Jason,' he says.
I turn around.
'Will the pain never end?' He stares up at me, his eyes burning with fever.
I pat his shoulder. 'The aspirin will start to work soon.'
'No!' Dad lifts his head. 'Not that pain; the pain of us. Every time I look at you, I see the pain of us.'
His words startle me.'"
Please please please go do me a favor and go read this book right now!! Go! If you've already read the book.... go read it again!!
Oh my gosh. Oh jeez. Oh my goodness. This book. I... I... wow.
Never have I read a book as crazy as Crazy before.
Never have I enjoyed a book like this as much as Crazy before.
Never have I been in love with a book like Crazy before.
It's.... it's crazy!!!
Okay. Let's see if I can get myself together here. Oh. After just finishing the book, I am blown away by its awesomeness. I am blown off my feet.
Crazy starts off with Jason Apollo Papadopoulos, a fifteen year old boy with no friends, a dead mother, and a mentally ill father.
CRAZY GLUE: Hey! Don't forget about us!
Oh. Yes.
You see, Jason has these imaginary friends. I wouldn't really call them 'imaginary friends', but as Jason explains it, they're an 'imaginary audience' who follow him around and watch him like Jason is the star of a movie. They're there to talk to him, to help him make decisions, to tell him to calm down, to stay sane.
To me, I just think of them as voices in his head. Have you ever heard of those people who go crazy, clutch at their heads and moan, "The voices!!!!" Uh, yeah it's not that extreme.
There's Crazy Glue, Fat Bald Guy With A Mustache, Aunt Bee, Sexy Lady, Laugh Track, and You. You aren't a part of anything just yet. But You are there, another part of the audience that watches Jason's life.
LAUGH TRACK: (Laughter).
But anyways, Jason talks to them and they talk back. Let me remind you that he's fifteen years old and knows that these voices aren't real.
But that isn't even the crazy part.
It's Jason's dad. You see, Dad thinks that the Furies, Greek/Roman mythological goddesses from the underworld are out to kill him. When Jason was only six, Dad took him outside in the middle of the night and tried to bury him alive to keep him safe from the Furies. Dad doesn't remember that. On and off he is sick, but most of the time he gets better. When Jason's Mom got sick, had a stroke, and died, Dad went crazy again, went off of his meds, and he and Jason have been mess ever since.
"'So it's like every morning when I leave for school, he thinks I'm Jason of Jason and the Argonauts, off to capture the Golden Fleece, but in the afternoon he thinks I'm Apollo —that's my middle name— and I'm just home from the war. He thinks the Furies, or uh, the goddesses of the underworld, blame him for my mom's death.'"
Pretty crazy, huh?
That's not the end of it. Dad cannot fend for himself, and it is Jason who has to force him to eat and try to get him to take his pills. With all of their money gone from paying for Mom's hospital bills, their house is in very bad shape, and Jason is just one step closer to falling into insanity like his father.
But then he meets friends. Haze, Shelby, and Pete. They understand Jason, and each other. And they're ready to help Jason and his father, because they obviously need help. But will things get better, or worse?
LAUGH TRACK: Uh-oh!
AUNT BEE: Oh dear.
SEXY LADY: Jason will still be hot, no matter what.
This book is amazing, okay? A-ma-zing! I fell in love with all of the characters, all of them! Everybody was so intriguing to read about, and isn't everybody a little crazy in the inside, just a little?
I looooove Jason and his Dad's relationship. I love how Jason tolerates his Dad, and loves him so much, through all of the times he's been sick. It's amazing how one minute their relationship can seem very funny, and the next, very tragic. They were the best characters to me. My favorites, definitely!
Here is one of my favorite parts of the book.
"'Dad, would you stop it already?'
'A clamor of Furies to paralyse reason! To paralyse reason! To paralyse reason!'
I shove Pete's sandwich toward him. 'Here. Eat this.'
Dad takes the sandwich and shoves it into his mouth, plastic wrap and all.
LAUGH TRACK: (laughter).
***
Twenty minutes later Dad has eaten Pete's lunch. The good food calms him. I help him of his wet clothes, and when I get to his undershirt and pull it off, I find a long red zigzag running the length of his chest. I touch it. It looks like my mom's nail polish.
'Dad? What is this?'
'A wound,' he says. He puts his hand over his chest.
'What wound?'
'All wounds. The world's wounds. I'm all wound up in the wounds of the world. They told me to do it.'
I ease the helmet off his head, and Dad draws in his breath as if he's in great pain.
'Don't listen those Furies, Dad. Just because you hear them doesn't mean you have to obey.'
He puts his hands over his ears..."
I love that part. I really do.
Here's a part that made me laugh and tear up at the same time.
"The first thing Dad says when I walk in the door is, 'Have you seen my violin? The Furies have eaten it, I'm afraid.'"
Towards the end of the book, I was crying. Oh, it was terrible; this wasn't your typical —single melodramatic tear rolls down the cheek— type of cry. No this was full on tears streaming down the cheeks type of crying. No sound; just tears.
It's hard, I guess, to accept that some things in your life, you just can't control. There are going to be times where things won't go your way, and you just don't have control of it. Heck, some people can't even control themselves. I just don't think it's fair, I guess. But that is how life goes, and you've got to accept it. As the end got closer and closer, I just got sadder and sadder, but by the end, it was okay. Once you read it, you'll be okay too. It's a great feeling.
I've got to confess something: When I first picked up the book, I flipped through the pages, and I got sucked in, and I started reading the pages out of order and I couldn't stop! I think I might've read the whole book out of order! Aah! How could I! It's a habit to read at a part I'm not at, but jeez I really outdid it on this book!
*slap* Bad, reader, bad!!!
CRAZY GLUE: Okay, that's enough. I think you're boring everybody to death with this review! Just finish it already!
Okay, okay!
Crazy was one of the best books I've read, because it had literally everything I love in a book in this book. It made me laugh and it made me cry. It made me cringe and shiver and feel empathetic towards each character.
"'Hey, have you seen my violin?' Dad asks."
Would I recommend it to anybody? Uh, look at the beginning of the review! Why are you still reading this!? Go! Go read Crazy!
FBG WITH A MUSTACHE: It's worth it. Go read it.
Go! Go read it!
"'Jason,' he says.
I turn around.
'Will the pain never end?' He stares up at me, his eyes burning with fever.
I pat his shoulder. 'The aspirin will start to work soon.'
'No!' Dad lifts his head. 'Not that pain; the pain of us. Every time I look at you, I see the pain of us.'
His words startle me.'"
January 14, 2018
I'm just crying at three in the morning after finishing this, it's fine. So many things... Hits close to home I guess, not to that extreme but in some ways I feel very similar to Jason. Not being able to trust people after being betrayed and learning to trust people again, finding people who really, truly care about you is really scary, but it's totally worth it to take that plunge.
March 18, 2013
What was the hardest thing you’ve had to go through and how did you recover from it?
Everybody’s been through difficult times where they felt like they’d never be okay again. The most important thing to remember from times like that is how you got better and how you recovered when you never thought you would.
Crazy by Han Nolan is a kind of fiction book that gives us an inspirational lesson on getting better and making changes to improve one’s quality of life.
The main character Jason, wants to help his dad get better and provide for him but he is financially unfit to do so, so he accepts the help that is given to him in order to improve his and his dad’s quality of life. An excerpt from the book that illustrates Jason getting relief is “I feel like that violin, only my strings are loosening, unwinding from the pegs, and I feel strange this way. I feel that maybe it isn’t safe to laugh, to let go of my vigilance over my dad, over myself, but I can hardly help it because it feels so good. It just feels so good,” (Nolan, 127) He is expressing that he is ridding his burdens and feeling better. He is truly feeling relief for the first time in a long time and it’s a big moment for him. It gives the reader a sense that he is on the path to recovery. The book is full of emotional triumphs and makes for a remarkable tear jerking journey.
If you like this book, you may also like Mindblind by Jennifer Roy because it also tells a story of a boy who has to deal with unique and difficult struggles, internally and externally.
I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars because it is an excellent novel to read due to its unique writing style and strong emotional response.
Read
November 4, 2024This is an amazing book from viewpoint of middle school boy whose mother has died and whose father is seriously mentally ill. In flashback we learn that Jason’s mother was the one who provided what emotional and physical stability there was in their family. Following her unexpected death Jason, at 15, feels responsible for taking care of and protecting his father from authorities who might separate
them.
As the stress of the unreasonable position in which Jason finds himself mounts and his father’s illness severely deteriorates Jason finds himself inexplicably calling attention to himself at school. He is put into a “therapy-type” group of fellow students with the school counselor due to his behavior.
Though skeptical at first, eventually he begins to open up to the other kids and they find out about his father. What follows is their disclosure of his situation—rightfully so—to the counselor and the ensuing intervention of the System. The story is accurate in both its description of the mental health/child welfare/psychological portrayal of the kids and of the adults involved.
Jason’s concerns about his own sanity in relation to his father’s illness as well as his anger (and consequent guilt over the anger) surrounding losing his mother and having to deal with his father and his father’s illness are superbly addressed.
The voice of the young narrator is remarkably genuine. It’s an extremely moving, forceful book which will resonate with those who have dealt with any of the related situations and will give new insight to those who have not.
them.
As the stress of the unreasonable position in which Jason finds himself mounts and his father’s illness severely deteriorates Jason finds himself inexplicably calling attention to himself at school. He is put into a “therapy-type” group of fellow students with the school counselor due to his behavior.
Though skeptical at first, eventually he begins to open up to the other kids and they find out about his father. What follows is their disclosure of his situation—rightfully so—to the counselor and the ensuing intervention of the System. The story is accurate in both its description of the mental health/child welfare/psychological portrayal of the kids and of the adults involved.
Jason’s concerns about his own sanity in relation to his father’s illness as well as his anger (and consequent guilt over the anger) surrounding losing his mother and having to deal with his father and his father’s illness are superbly addressed.
The voice of the young narrator is remarkably genuine. It’s an extremely moving, forceful book which will resonate with those who have dealt with any of the related situations and will give new insight to those who have not.
June 13, 2017
This book revolves around fourteen-year-old Jason, whose father is having severe struggles with mental illness since the death of Jason’s mother. Jason is dedicated to keeping his father sane the way his mother used to, but his dad’s condition just keeps getting worse. The death of his mother has left them very poor, so Jason isn’t just facing the struggle of taking care of his father; he also has money problems.
So why did I only give this book two stars? Han Nolan’s writing style didn’t speak to me at all. I found that she didn’t describe the characters enough, so they remained really flat to me; I couldn’t relate to them, nor imagine them as real human beings. Jason could switch from the maturity level of an eight-year-old to being very mature in just a few pages, which confused me a lot. The plot didn’t make much sense to me either, it simply felt unrealistic. How could a boy live in a house like that, with a father that ill without anyone noticing? I just can’t imagine that happening.
I think a lot of people would love this book, because it’s something incredibly unique. It isn’t bad in any way, really, but the characters just didn’t work for me. I loved the way Han Nolan featured humor in what could otherwise have been a really depressing book, though.
So why did I only give this book two stars? Han Nolan’s writing style didn’t speak to me at all. I found that she didn’t describe the characters enough, so they remained really flat to me; I couldn’t relate to them, nor imagine them as real human beings. Jason could switch from the maturity level of an eight-year-old to being very mature in just a few pages, which confused me a lot. The plot didn’t make much sense to me either, it simply felt unrealistic. How could a boy live in a house like that, with a father that ill without anyone noticing? I just can’t imagine that happening.
I think a lot of people would love this book, because it’s something incredibly unique. It isn’t bad in any way, really, but the characters just didn’t work for me. I loved the way Han Nolan featured humor in what could otherwise have been a really depressing book, though.
January 14, 2013
This was the best book I've read in a long time and the first I've read in one day in a long time, too. Easily 5 stars.
The format of the book was perfect for making me feel like I was inside Jason's head. Boy, did he ever have a lot of stuff thrown at him, as did his friends. No 15 year old should have to deal with all that, but it happens and they do.
This was an excellent portrayal of the kinds of things that happen in some kids' lives and the different ways they find of handling it. Even though a lot of it was heartbreaking, it was also funny and uplifting at the same time. Highly recommended--I'm off to look for more books by Han Nolan...
The format of the book was perfect for making me feel like I was inside Jason's head. Boy, did he ever have a lot of stuff thrown at him, as did his friends. No 15 year old should have to deal with all that, but it happens and they do.
This was an excellent portrayal of the kinds of things that happen in some kids' lives and the different ways they find of handling it. Even though a lot of it was heartbreaking, it was also funny and uplifting at the same time. Highly recommended--I'm off to look for more books by Han Nolan...
September 30, 2014
This is an amazing book. It is a little chalenging to follow but still an amazing read.
December 23, 2014
" I love my Dad. If you love someone, you stand by him, forever, no matter what.."
Well. Pass me the hanky. *sniff sniff*
Well. Pass me the hanky. *sniff sniff*
January 7, 2020
This book was something that I truly didn't expect. When I first started to read this book, my heart broke for Jason, the main character, and his tough situation. As the story went on, I found myself being immersed in the book and fully feeling so many emotions--including sadness and sometimes happiness. What made me truly love this book was how it was written. The way that Han Nolan takes the format and makes it almost chaotic--with so much happening, and so many voices to be keeping track of--really makes you feel for Jason and how is mind is always running. I find that the underlying theme of not being afraid to ask for help when you need it, is really what makes this book great. I recommend this book to anyone who loves an emotional rollercoaster.
June 29, 2017
This is one of those books that got under my skin, completely.
Jason is fifteen, living as a career for his mentally ill father and also trying to adjust to life without his mother.
I feel it's hard to summarise this book without giving away too much. The main character and the events that he describes are beyond most people's experiences. I was in equal measure horrified and fascinated.
Throughout there is a horrible sense of inevitability to Jason's life and I lived every moment of this book.
Jason is fifteen, living as a career for his mentally ill father and also trying to adjust to life without his mother.
I feel it's hard to summarise this book without giving away too much. The main character and the events that he describes are beyond most people's experiences. I was in equal measure horrified and fascinated.
Throughout there is a horrible sense of inevitability to Jason's life and I lived every moment of this book.
December 16, 2019
We do a book exchange for Christmas at work, and one of my friends brought this one. It’s about a boy named Jason who has recently lost his mother to a stroke, and who is trying to keep his father alive because his dad has schizophrenia.
I felt so bad for Jason for feeling like he had to do everything alone. The beginning of the book was hard for me to get into, with the switching between voices, and I wasn’t sure I would enjoy it if it continued. But as Jason let’s more real people in, the voices feature less and less, which worked.
It is scary and devastating to know that sometimes there are mental illnesses that can make it so hard for people to function. I was glad Jason received help and was able to recognize that he deserved a life that was not as hard and stressful as it had been. The scenes where Jason had an emotional breakthrough got to me the most.
I felt so bad for Jason for feeling like he had to do everything alone. The beginning of the book was hard for me to get into, with the switching between voices, and I wasn’t sure I would enjoy it if it continued. But as Jason let’s more real people in, the voices feature less and less, which worked.
It is scary and devastating to know that sometimes there are mental illnesses that can make it so hard for people to function. I was glad Jason received help and was able to recognize that he deserved a life that was not as hard and stressful as it had been. The scenes where Jason had an emotional breakthrough got to me the most.
July 6, 2022
This book was really good!
August 17, 2016
Surprise! The cover of “Crazy” by Han Nolan couldn’t look much more plain and the synopsis on the back sounded interesting, but nothing really grabbed my attention. I didn’t realize when I started reading this book that Han Nolan is actually the author of one of my favorite Holocaust books, “If I Die Before I Wake.” Had I known that, I probably would have started this book with a lot more enthusiasm. However, I had picked it to read simply because I knew it wouldn’t automatically draw students’ attention with its looks, so I wanted to be able to give a personal recommendation. I’m SO GLAD I picked it, now. This book ROCKED- even though it made me sob!
Let me back up. You see...
Jason has been trying to dodge the “crap” life has been throwing at him for a long time now, but it seems (in his words) that he’s not doing a very good job at ducking… because a lot of it seems to be hitting him square in the face. A few months ago, his mother finally passed away after being in a stroke-induced coma for months. His house has no heat (it’s January), holes in the roof, crumbling plaster in the ceilings, and no food in the fridge or cupboards. And his father, who has been suffering from mental illness since he was 18, has now gone absolutely crazy. His mom could always get him to eat right, take his medicine, and stay on this side of sane, but now that she’s gone, Jason just can’t seem to bring his father back from the brink. To top it all off, his antics in school have gotten him sentenced to twice-weekly lunchtime counseling sessions with the school psychologist. Jason is doing all he can to take care of his father and his dilapidated house and then his father wanders off. When he finally comes home, he’s got a violin that he’s stolen. Even though the violin gets returned, everything that has been going on finally draws the attention of school and state authorities. Jason knows that if anyone sees what life is like in his home, his dad will be institutionalized and he’ll be put in foster care. And Jason can’t allow that to happen. But, when authorities show up at his door, it looks like the decisions may be out of his hands.
I’ll keep this brief. I loved every part of “Crazy”. The characters, both real and the ones in Jason’s head, are hilarious, heartwarming, honest, and believable. Additionally, the characters demonstrate that we, as humans, have the ability to overcome seemingly insurmountable challenges with grace and dignity. They are a testament to the resilience of the human spirit. And the plot is amazing. The book is well over 300 pages, but I turned each one anxious to find out what happened on the next. The ending, while not what I wanted or expected, was “right.” I won’t give too much away, but the book ended the way it would (probably) in real life – maybe not the way we want, but a way that is okay. I respect that in books. Sometimes, I like it when a book gives me what I want even though I know it isn’t realistic, but I really respect authors who have the guts to tell it like it is. Authors who are willing to risk some disappointed readers to be true to the genre of realistic fiction. “Crazy” and author Han Nolan do that. Bravo!
“Crazy” is a heartbreaking, honest story about a boy trying to hold on to his family and his own sanity. It is about a boy alone in this world who doesn’t want to be alone any more. It will make you laugh and cry. And you may look at the world and the people around you differently after reading it.
Let me back up. You see...
Jason has been trying to dodge the “crap” life has been throwing at him for a long time now, but it seems (in his words) that he’s not doing a very good job at ducking… because a lot of it seems to be hitting him square in the face. A few months ago, his mother finally passed away after being in a stroke-induced coma for months. His house has no heat (it’s January), holes in the roof, crumbling plaster in the ceilings, and no food in the fridge or cupboards. And his father, who has been suffering from mental illness since he was 18, has now gone absolutely crazy. His mom could always get him to eat right, take his medicine, and stay on this side of sane, but now that she’s gone, Jason just can’t seem to bring his father back from the brink. To top it all off, his antics in school have gotten him sentenced to twice-weekly lunchtime counseling sessions with the school psychologist. Jason is doing all he can to take care of his father and his dilapidated house and then his father wanders off. When he finally comes home, he’s got a violin that he’s stolen. Even though the violin gets returned, everything that has been going on finally draws the attention of school and state authorities. Jason knows that if anyone sees what life is like in his home, his dad will be institutionalized and he’ll be put in foster care. And Jason can’t allow that to happen. But, when authorities show up at his door, it looks like the decisions may be out of his hands.
I’ll keep this brief. I loved every part of “Crazy”. The characters, both real and the ones in Jason’s head, are hilarious, heartwarming, honest, and believable. Additionally, the characters demonstrate that we, as humans, have the ability to overcome seemingly insurmountable challenges with grace and dignity. They are a testament to the resilience of the human spirit. And the plot is amazing. The book is well over 300 pages, but I turned each one anxious to find out what happened on the next. The ending, while not what I wanted or expected, was “right.” I won’t give too much away, but the book ended the way it would (probably) in real life – maybe not the way we want, but a way that is okay. I respect that in books. Sometimes, I like it when a book gives me what I want even though I know it isn’t realistic, but I really respect authors who have the guts to tell it like it is. Authors who are willing to risk some disappointed readers to be true to the genre of realistic fiction. “Crazy” and author Han Nolan do that. Bravo!
“Crazy” is a heartbreaking, honest story about a boy trying to hold on to his family and his own sanity. It is about a boy alone in this world who doesn’t want to be alone any more. It will make you laugh and cry. And you may look at the world and the people around you differently after reading it.
March 8, 2017
This was a great book! How the author, Han Nolan, told and explained the story was awesome. The detail he used to explain this boys bad to good life was awesome. And what added it was that he made it feel like your in his life because he had imaginary "Co-stars" and were the audience. This was a great book!
December 26, 2014
*marked spoiler for vague spoilers*
For fifteen-year-old Jason Papadopoulos, life has been one raw deal after another. His mother, that one bastion of normalcy in his childhood, died of a stroke, leaving him to fend for himself with his increasingly unstable father. Contrary to what Jason needs to believe to cope with his harrowing home situation, his father has never been normal. One of his first memories, an incident at age six that continues to haunt him, completely undermines Jason's claim that his father was ever well.
There are no medical diagnoses in this book. Nolan hints at schizophrenia (e.g., Dad's hastily scribbled word salad on page 47), but never mentions it by name. The DSM-IV-TR is incidental here. When things finally come to a head with Jason's father, the narrative tells us that Dad smells like nail polish remover (suggestive of blood sugar irregularity, possibly even ketoacidosis); however, the story never pursues this angle. What matters is that Jason goes to bed hungry most nights, is doing poorly in school because he spends so much time cleaning up after his delusional father, and keeps the world at arm's length to avoid confronting his increasingly unmanageable situation. His only outlet is his hidden identity as the school newspaper's blunt advice columnist, paradoxically named "Mouse."
So when Jason reluctantly joins a support group for troubled kids during his lunch hours, he isn't about to divulge any sordid details. After all, who needs human friends when you can have an audience of characters chattering inside your mind 24/7? Yes, that's right. An entire audience inhabits Jason's mind. They are not manifestations of psychosis, but defense mechanisms. They are Jason's support group when he has none. In fact, you, the reader, are a member of that audience; this narrative pokes at, and sometimes busts through, that pesky fourth wall.
There are some implausibilities in this book. If Jason's father has been on medication, why hasn't his doctor noticed how unfit he is as a parent and reported him to authorities? When Jason lashes out during a lunchtime support group meeting, why doesn't Dr. Gomez report it to the principal, who shows up to investigate the commotion? (Dr. Gomez emphasizes Jason's need to work through his grief and anger, but the episode gets pretty violent and the other students must restrain Jason.) When Jason's mother died in the middle of the night, why didn't Jason find out until he went to the hospital the next morning? Wouldn't the hospital have called? Had their phone already been disconnected at that point?
Still, this is a powerful story. Within a span of a few weeks, Jason's father's illness comes to a head, he is removed from his home, and moves in with a foster family who is everything to him that his father can't be. He finds a new family in his school therapy group, one who advocates for him even when he won't do so for himself.
(Disclaimer: I received the galley proofs of this title from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for review.)
For fifteen-year-old Jason Papadopoulos, life has been one raw deal after another. His mother, that one bastion of normalcy in his childhood, died of a stroke, leaving him to fend for himself with his increasingly unstable father. Contrary to what Jason needs to believe to cope with his harrowing home situation, his father has never been normal. One of his first memories, an incident at age six that continues to haunt him, completely undermines Jason's claim that his father was ever well.
There are no medical diagnoses in this book. Nolan hints at schizophrenia (e.g., Dad's hastily scribbled word salad on page 47), but never mentions it by name. The DSM-IV-TR is incidental here. When things finally come to a head with Jason's father, the narrative tells us that Dad smells like nail polish remover (suggestive of blood sugar irregularity, possibly even ketoacidosis); however, the story never pursues this angle. What matters is that Jason goes to bed hungry most nights, is doing poorly in school because he spends so much time cleaning up after his delusional father, and keeps the world at arm's length to avoid confronting his increasingly unmanageable situation. His only outlet is his hidden identity as the school newspaper's blunt advice columnist, paradoxically named "Mouse."
So when Jason reluctantly joins a support group for troubled kids during his lunch hours, he isn't about to divulge any sordid details. After all, who needs human friends when you can have an audience of characters chattering inside your mind 24/7? Yes, that's right. An entire audience inhabits Jason's mind. They are not manifestations of psychosis, but defense mechanisms. They are Jason's support group when he has none. In fact, you, the reader, are a member of that audience; this narrative pokes at, and sometimes busts through, that pesky fourth wall.
There are some implausibilities in this book. If Jason's father has been on medication, why hasn't his doctor noticed how unfit he is as a parent and reported him to authorities? When Jason lashes out during a lunchtime support group meeting, why doesn't Dr. Gomez report it to the principal, who shows up to investigate the commotion? (Dr. Gomez emphasizes Jason's need to work through his grief and anger, but the episode gets pretty violent and the other students must restrain Jason.) When Jason's mother died in the middle of the night, why didn't Jason find out until he went to the hospital the next morning? Wouldn't the hospital have called? Had their phone already been disconnected at that point?
Still, this is a powerful story. Within a span of a few weeks, Jason's father's illness comes to a head, he is removed from his home, and moves in with a foster family who is everything to him that his father can't be. He finds a new family in his school therapy group, one who advocates for him even when he won't do so for himself.
(Disclaimer: I received the galley proofs of this title from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for review.)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 23, 2012
Sarah's review of Crazy by Han Nolan
Judged by the Cover: Insanely Perfect
Finally, a book that actually looks like it could belong to a more adult genre. No crazy headless models, no photo shopped nightmares, nothing that could make me fear to be seen with this book. The black background and stripes of colors gives it a nice contrast, and the typography makes the book stand out. Plus, now that I like the author's style, I can go read the other book advertised in caps lock.
What's Up?
Jason's world is falling apart around him. His mother died after falling into a coma, and his father is so mentally ill, he believes that the Greek furies are after him. All Jason has, is the voices inside his head, and even those are starting to freak him out. Until, of course, he's slammed into therapy, with three other kids whose lives are just as messed up as his. And when Jason's well constructed lies about his life begin to crack, they might be the only ones he can turn to.
Time of Day: Are you for real?
Oh holy exploding bunnies, I LOVED JASON! And that's saying something, considering he's, well, a 15 year old guy. I was torn between cheering for him, and wanting to give him a hug, for almost the entire book. The fact that he was tried to keep his dad from falling apart, while still trying to put up a normal front for school showed a lot more maturity on his part then you see in most adults. He was strong to the promint of stubborn, but, without contest, he was one of the best male narrators I've read about.*
Head Over Heels: Eeeepp!!
This wasn't exactly a book I expected to find romance in. From a teenage boy,lust maybe, but definitely not love. BUT THE AUTHOR CUT ME OFF.JUST WHEN THEY WERE ABOUT TO KISS!!!! NOOOOO!!!
Bonus Features: Mental Illness
Not that I'm advocating that you should go and find some way to contract schizophrenia, but it made for a really interesting theme in the book. The fact that Jason has a running conversation with about six different personalities in his head, gives a humorous perspective. It's almost like the angel/demon on your shoulder in the cartoons.**
Friendship
I have to give bonus points to any book with a group of friends this dedicated to each other. (Can't imagine where I would find people like that.....)
Greek Mythology
One of the delusions Jason's dad had, was that he believed in the things that happened in Greek mythology. Jason and his friends represented the Argonauts. The 'voices' in his head, were the furies, and only music could keep them away.
Felt like a throwback to the Percy Jackson series.
Final Flavor: Brownies made from a mix
This book had a lot of potential, including great characters, a good plot, and awesome side features. The only problem was, the author's writhing style was rough, almost as if this was her first book. It isn't that it was bad, I just wished some of it had been tightened up in editing. I'd like to read more from this author, but I also want to see her develop more.
Judged by the Cover: Insanely Perfect
Finally, a book that actually looks like it could belong to a more adult genre. No crazy headless models, no photo shopped nightmares, nothing that could make me fear to be seen with this book. The black background and stripes of colors gives it a nice contrast, and the typography makes the book stand out. Plus, now that I like the author's style, I can go read the other book advertised in caps lock.
What's Up?
Jason's world is falling apart around him. His mother died after falling into a coma, and his father is so mentally ill, he believes that the Greek furies are after him. All Jason has, is the voices inside his head, and even those are starting to freak him out. Until, of course, he's slammed into therapy, with three other kids whose lives are just as messed up as his. And when Jason's well constructed lies about his life begin to crack, they might be the only ones he can turn to.
Time of Day: Are you for real?
Oh holy exploding bunnies, I LOVED JASON! And that's saying something, considering he's, well, a 15 year old guy. I was torn between cheering for him, and wanting to give him a hug, for almost the entire book. The fact that he was tried to keep his dad from falling apart, while still trying to put up a normal front for school showed a lot more maturity on his part then you see in most adults. He was strong to the promint of stubborn, but, without contest, he was one of the best male narrators I've read about.*
Head Over Heels: Eeeepp!!
This wasn't exactly a book I expected to find romance in. From a teenage boy,lust maybe, but definitely not love. BUT THE AUTHOR CUT ME OFF.JUST WHEN THEY WERE ABOUT TO KISS!!!! NOOOOO!!!
Bonus Features: Mental Illness
Not that I'm advocating that you should go and find some way to contract schizophrenia, but it made for a really interesting theme in the book. The fact that Jason has a running conversation with about six different personalities in his head, gives a humorous perspective. It's almost like the angel/demon on your shoulder in the cartoons.**
Friendship
I have to give bonus points to any book with a group of friends this dedicated to each other. (Can't imagine where I would find people like that.....)
Greek Mythology
One of the delusions Jason's dad had, was that he believed in the things that happened in Greek mythology. Jason and his friends represented the Argonauts. The 'voices' in his head, were the furies, and only music could keep them away.
Felt like a throwback to the Percy Jackson series.
Final Flavor: Brownies made from a mix
This book had a lot of potential, including great characters, a good plot, and awesome side features. The only problem was, the author's writhing style was rough, almost as if this was her first book. It isn't that it was bad, I just wished some of it had been tightened up in editing. I'd like to read more from this author, but I also want to see her develop more.
October 25, 2010
Jason is trying his best to cope. His mother died of a sudden stroke, leaving him caring for his mentally-ill father. With no money coming in, Jason struggles to feed them both and heat the house. There is no time for caring for the house itself or even for himself. Jason has no friends and is spending a lot of time with the imaginary friends in his head. He can’t tell anyone about them though, because he’s afraid that they are proof that he is crazy like his father. He is also very frightened that if anyone finds out his father’s condition, they will put him away and Jason will have no one. After another run-in with a teacher, Jason is required to spend his lunches with the school’s counselor and a small group of students. Jason finds himself slowly opening up to them, and even allowing them to help him when his father disappears one wintry night. But his fears may not have been unjustified as Jason’s carefully constructed world falls apart around him. Written with great humor and warmth, this is a compelling story about a boy struggling under the tremendous weight of mental illness.
Nolan writes in punchy sentences that carry so much more emotion than one might expect. Jason’s imaginary friends add a large amount of humor to the book, despite the fact that they may be a symptom of mental illness. Readers will related to Jason as a character, understand his motivations immediately. He is a likable and believable protagonist who has survived amazingly well. The three friends he makes are also very interesting characters, a girl dealing with her mother dying, a boy trying to handle his parent’s brutal divorce, and another boy dealing with a parent’s addiction. Each gives readers a glimpse of their own situation. Nolan nicely equates mental illness with other issues, exposing what can be considered a shameful secret alongside those that are more accepted in our society.
I don’t want to give much of the story away, but Nolan deals very well with the aid that Jason receives both at school and outside of school. This book offers a view of the system that is often lacking: it is a system with rules but that can also work to remove a teen from an impossible situation into a much improved one. She offers hope here. Both a hope for true friends and a hope for family.
Highly recommended, this is a book of despair and hope. Pair this with another great read about parental mental illness: A Blue So Dark. Appropriate for ages 14-17.
Nolan writes in punchy sentences that carry so much more emotion than one might expect. Jason’s imaginary friends add a large amount of humor to the book, despite the fact that they may be a symptom of mental illness. Readers will related to Jason as a character, understand his motivations immediately. He is a likable and believable protagonist who has survived amazingly well. The three friends he makes are also very interesting characters, a girl dealing with her mother dying, a boy trying to handle his parent’s brutal divorce, and another boy dealing with a parent’s addiction. Each gives readers a glimpse of their own situation. Nolan nicely equates mental illness with other issues, exposing what can be considered a shameful secret alongside those that are more accepted in our society.
I don’t want to give much of the story away, but Nolan deals very well with the aid that Jason receives both at school and outside of school. This book offers a view of the system that is often lacking: it is a system with rules but that can also work to remove a teen from an impossible situation into a much improved one. She offers hope here. Both a hope for true friends and a hope for family.
Highly recommended, this is a book of despair and hope. Pair this with another great read about parental mental illness: A Blue So Dark. Appropriate for ages 14-17.
September 2, 2014
So, I reviewed this in March 2013, but unlike my other ones, I slightly liked this review, it just needs editing. So I'll just edit the review a bit and post the original one using the spoiler tag. Okay? Okay.
Okay, so, I'd rate this book about a 20%LOWER, ROSE......to be honest, I picked it out based on the title, and I didn't really like it.
This book was about a 15 year-old boy named Jason Apollo PapadopouloswhateverIforgot. His mom is dead and his mom is a little mentally ill. Okay, a LOT mentally ill. And Jason has these voices in his head. Not like crazy voices. Not like crazy voices, just like an audience watching a movie.
The worst part? It had some Greek mythology references, and we all know how much I *love* Jason from Heroes Of Olympus (not). Throughout the story I found myself thinking:
-What?
-No!
-STOP! I DON'T LIKE YOU!
-Who's the attractive one NOW, Piper?
-Isn't your dad Zeus...sorry "Jupiter"
-Can't you fly?
-Why don't you get Leo to track him down?
-When are you going to start killing monsters?
That's when I realized it wasn't a Heroes of Olympus book. Oops!
I'd love to tell you more, but that's honestly all I can remember. It was just THAT bad.
My gods that wasmostly idiotic. And now, for the original review...
Okay, so, I'd rate this book about a 20%LOWER, ROSE......to be honest, I picked it out based on the title, and I didn't really like it.
This book was about a 15 year-old boy named Jason Apollo PapadopouloswhateverIforgot. His mom is dead and his mom is a little mentally ill. Okay, a LOT mentally ill. And Jason has these voices in his head. Not like crazy voices. Not like crazy voices, just like an audience watching a movie.
The worst part? It had some Greek mythology references, and we all know how much I *love* Jason from Heroes Of Olympus (not). Throughout the story I found myself thinking:
-What?
-No!
-STOP! I DON'T LIKE YOU!
-Who's the attractive one NOW, Piper?
-Isn't your dad Zeus...sorry "Jupiter"
-Can't you fly?
-Why don't you get Leo to track him down?
-When are you going to start killing monsters?
That's when I realized it wasn't a Heroes of Olympus book. Oops!
I'd love to tell you more, but that's honestly all I can remember. It was just THAT bad.
My gods that was
August 10, 2010
4.5 stars easily. Wow! I loved this one!
Crazy is about Jason, who takes care of his mentally ill dad. They're all they've got. You'd think Crazy would be sad and heartbreaking - and it is, but there is so much more to it. It's funny and heartwarming. It's not sappy or anything like that, it's just good. Really, really good.
Jason has this imaginary audience in his head. It consists of a few characters. There's the critic AKA FBG (fat bald guy) with mustache and Crazy Glue, the crazy kid. There's Aunt Bee, the motherly/sympathetic type, and Sexy Lady, who tells Jason how hot he is all the time. Oh, and then there's You (us, the reader). Don't worry, We don't say much in the book.
At first I was worried about the imaginary friends getting in the way, but it worked for this story. The author does a great job at putting us inside Jason's head. When he got furious, I was fuming. When he was sad, so was I. I was happy when he was happy. Not too many books can connect that well, this one did.
I got mad at how the system was so eager to that things between him and his dad. I didn't like that. It was interesting to compare my (very little) experience as a foster parents to some of the things that happened with Jason. I am glad that he had friends and adults who were willing to help him - even when he didn't think he needed it.
All Jason wants to do is help his dad get better. His home life is suffering because he has to take care of his dad and himself. They live in a house with no food and little heat. He's falling behind in his schoolwork.
It's nice to have friends who care and will go with you through the good and the bad. His friends were all Shelby (in the beginning I did not like her. I thought she was a loudmouth hothead) grew on me over time. She had a different way of dealing with her moms condition. Pete was sweet, with his own problems. Haze was a good friend too. They all had their problems but they still were there for one another.
I am so glad I read this one. I couldn't stop reading it once I started. It's fairly clean, too. So younger teens are ok to read it. It has a few cuss words (use of BS) but they are understandable given the circumstances. If you get the chance to read this one please do NOT pass it up!
Crazy is about Jason, who takes care of his mentally ill dad. They're all they've got. You'd think Crazy would be sad and heartbreaking - and it is, but there is so much more to it. It's funny and heartwarming. It's not sappy or anything like that, it's just good. Really, really good.
Jason has this imaginary audience in his head. It consists of a few characters. There's the critic AKA FBG (fat bald guy) with mustache and Crazy Glue, the crazy kid. There's Aunt Bee, the motherly/sympathetic type, and Sexy Lady, who tells Jason how hot he is all the time. Oh, and then there's You (us, the reader). Don't worry, We don't say much in the book.
At first I was worried about the imaginary friends getting in the way, but it worked for this story. The author does a great job at putting us inside Jason's head. When he got furious, I was fuming. When he was sad, so was I. I was happy when he was happy. Not too many books can connect that well, this one did.
I got mad at how the system was so eager to that things between him and his dad. I didn't like that. It was interesting to compare my (very little) experience as a foster parents to some of the things that happened with Jason. I am glad that he had friends and adults who were willing to help him - even when he didn't think he needed it.
All Jason wants to do is help his dad get better. His home life is suffering because he has to take care of his dad and himself. They live in a house with no food and little heat. He's falling behind in his schoolwork.
It's nice to have friends who care and will go with you through the good and the bad. His friends were all Shelby (in the beginning I did not like her. I thought she was a loudmouth hothead) grew on me over time. She had a different way of dealing with her moms condition. Pete was sweet, with his own problems. Haze was a good friend too. They all had their problems but they still were there for one another.
I am so glad I read this one. I couldn't stop reading it once I started. It's fairly clean, too. So younger teens are ok to read it. It has a few cuss words (use of BS) but they are understandable given the circumstances. If you get the chance to read this one please do NOT pass it up!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 429 reviews