My Heart and Other Black Holes

Aysel and Roman have nothing in common- except for one thing. They both want to die. To make sure they go through with it, they set a date to do it together. In the time they have left, they get to know eachother, their lives and why they want to end it. But as time passes and the date gets closer, Aysel isn't so sure that she wants to go through with their plan anymore. This was my favorite book when I was about the same age as the protagonists. Now that I'm older and have re-read it, I have some critique. Since this is a young adult novel, there is a romance aspect. This could come across wrong, like love could somehow cure depression. Although this wasn't the case for every character, it is still something I noticed. What I love and appreciate about this book is the portrayal of mental health. I've never read a more spot-on discription on what depression feels like. The way Jasmine Warga writes about the day-to-day feelings and thoughts of someone with depression to me feels very accurate. Both Aysel and Roman have very unique personalities with an original backstory. They are extremly likable, which makes your heart break for them even more. When I first read it, I though the ending would be predictable but there were definetly shocking things I didn't expect. I think it's incredibly important for young readers to see topics like depression represented in young adult books. It can help normalize conversations about mental health and remind readers that they are not alone with their feelings and this book does just that.