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Challenger Deep
Alternate Cover Edition for ASIN B00M70ESPO
Caden Bosch is on a ship that's headed for the deepest point on Earth: Challenger Deep, the southern part of the Marianas Trench.
Caden Bosch is a brilliant high school student whose friends are starting to notice his odd behaviour.
Caden Bosch is designated the ship's artist in residence to document the journey with images.
Caden Bosch pretends to join the school track team but spends his days walking for miles, absorbed by the thoughts in his head.
Caden Bosch is split between his allegiance to the captain and the allure of mutiny.
Caden Bosch is torn.
Caden Bosch is on a ship that's headed for the deepest point on Earth: Challenger Deep, the southern part of the Marianas Trench.
Caden Bosch is a brilliant high school student whose friends are starting to notice his odd behaviour.
Caden Bosch is designated the ship's artist in residence to document the journey with images.
Caden Bosch pretends to join the school track team but spends his days walking for miles, absorbed by the thoughts in his head.
Caden Bosch is split between his allegiance to the captain and the allure of mutiny.
Caden Bosch is torn.
320 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 21, 2015
About the author
Neal Shusterman
86 books27.9k followersAward-winning author Neal Shusterman grew up in Brooklyn, New York, where he began writing at an early age. After spending his junior and senior years of high school at the American School of Mexico City, Neal went on to UC Irvine, where he made his mark on the UCI swim team, and wrote a successful humor column. Within a year of graduating, he had his first book deal, and was hired to write a movie script.
In the years since, Neal has made his mark as a successful novelist, screenwriter, and television writer. As a full-time writer, he claims to be his own hardest task-master, always at work creating new stories to tell. His books have received many awards from organizations such as the International Reading Association, and the American Library Association, as well as garnering a myriad of state and local awards across the country. Neal's talents range from film directing (two short films he directed won him the coveted CINE Golden Eagle Awards) to writing music and stage plays – including book and lyrical contributions to “American Twistory,” which is currently playing in Boston. He has even tried his hand at creating Games, having developed three successful "How to Host a Mystery" game for teens, as well as seven "How to Host a Murder" games.
As a screen and TV writer, Neal has written for the "Goosebumps" and “Animorphs” TV series, and wrote the Disney Channel Original Movie “Pixel Perfect”. Currently Neal is adapting his novel Everlost as a feature film for Universal Studios.
Wherever Neal goes, he quickly earns a reputation as a storyteller and dynamic speaker. Much of his fiction is traceable back to stories he tells to large audiences of children and teenagers -- such as his novel The Eyes of Kid Midas. As a speaker, Neal is in constant demand at schools and conferences. Degrees in both psychology and drama give Neal a unique approach to writing. Neal's novels always deal with topics that appeal to adults as well as teens, weaving true-to-life characters into sensitive and riveting issues, and binding it all together with a unique and entertaining sense of humor.
Of Everlost, School Library Journal wrote: “Shusterman has reimagined what happens after death and questions power and the meaning of charity. While all this is going on, he has also managed to write a rip-roaring adventure…”
Of What Daddy Did, Voice of Youth Advocates wrote; "This is a compelling, spell-binding story... A stunning novel, impossible to put down once begun.
Of The Schwa Was Here, School Library Journal wrote: “Shusterman's characters–reminiscent of those crafted by E. L. Konigsburg and Jerry Spinelli–are infused with the kind of controlled, precocious improbability that magically vivifies the finest children's classics.
Of Scorpion Shards, Publisher's Weekly wrote: "Shusterman takes an outlandish comic-book concept, and, through the sheer audacity and breadth of his imagination makes it stunningly believable. A spellbinder."
And of The Eyes of Kid Midas, The Midwest Book Review wrote "This wins our vote as one of the best young-adult titles of the year" and was called "Inspired and hypnotically readable" by School Library Journal.
Neal Shusterman lives in Southern California with his children Brendan, Jarrod, Joelle, and Erin, who are a constant source of inspiration!
In the years since, Neal has made his mark as a successful novelist, screenwriter, and television writer. As a full-time writer, he claims to be his own hardest task-master, always at work creating new stories to tell. His books have received many awards from organizations such as the International Reading Association, and the American Library Association, as well as garnering a myriad of state and local awards across the country. Neal's talents range from film directing (two short films he directed won him the coveted CINE Golden Eagle Awards) to writing music and stage plays – including book and lyrical contributions to “American Twistory,” which is currently playing in Boston. He has even tried his hand at creating Games, having developed three successful "How to Host a Mystery" game for teens, as well as seven "How to Host a Murder" games.
As a screen and TV writer, Neal has written for the "Goosebumps" and “Animorphs” TV series, and wrote the Disney Channel Original Movie “Pixel Perfect”. Currently Neal is adapting his novel Everlost as a feature film for Universal Studios.
Wherever Neal goes, he quickly earns a reputation as a storyteller and dynamic speaker. Much of his fiction is traceable back to stories he tells to large audiences of children and teenagers -- such as his novel The Eyes of Kid Midas. As a speaker, Neal is in constant demand at schools and conferences. Degrees in both psychology and drama give Neal a unique approach to writing. Neal's novels always deal with topics that appeal to adults as well as teens, weaving true-to-life characters into sensitive and riveting issues, and binding it all together with a unique and entertaining sense of humor.
Of Everlost, School Library Journal wrote: “Shusterman has reimagined what happens after death and questions power and the meaning of charity. While all this is going on, he has also managed to write a rip-roaring adventure…”
Of What Daddy Did, Voice of Youth Advocates wrote; "This is a compelling, spell-binding story... A stunning novel, impossible to put down once begun.
Of The Schwa Was Here, School Library Journal wrote: “Shusterman's characters–reminiscent of those crafted by E. L. Konigsburg and Jerry Spinelli–are infused with the kind of controlled, precocious improbability that magically vivifies the finest children's classics.
Of Scorpion Shards, Publisher's Weekly wrote: "Shusterman takes an outlandish comic-book concept, and, through the sheer audacity and breadth of his imagination makes it stunningly believable. A spellbinder."
And of The Eyes of Kid Midas, The Midwest Book Review wrote "This wins our vote as one of the best young-adult titles of the year" and was called "Inspired and hypnotically readable" by School Library Journal.
Neal Shusterman lives in Southern California with his children Brendan, Jarrod, Joelle, and Erin, who are a constant source of inspiration!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 5,942 reviews
February 25, 2018
WOW I am blown away by this novel. This is an intense, intense story that you really need to dedicate yourself to reading. It is a truly incredible work of literature and absolutely deserves the title of National Book Award Winner. Eye-opening, thought-provoking, all around amazing.
TW: schizophrenia, talk of suicide
This is genuinely one of the greatest books I have ever read about mental illness. It is accurate, well-rounded, authentic as raw. As someone who suffered from a form of psychosis similar to schizophrenia, Challenger Deep was so validating to read. I honestly don’t know how Neal Schusterman captured exactly what this condition is like. Through collaborating with his son who deals with Caden’s illness and the immense amount of research put in, he somehow took the thoughts, feelings, and experiences that millions of people have and put it to paper. Color me entirely impressed by the fantastic portrayal of mental illness.
I will say, Challenger Deep has an unconventional storytelling format. Half the story is told from Caden's perspective in his hometown and the other half is from Caden's perspective on a sailing ship. While I can attest to the many reviews suggesting this was confusing, I believe it is crucial to what makes Challenger Deep so unique and intense. I struggled a bit in the beginning as the two perspectives seem so disjointed but it quickly becomes easy to understand the intent behind these passages.
Overall, Challenger Deep was amazing. I cannot recommend it enough.
TW: schizophrenia, talk of suicide
This is genuinely one of the greatest books I have ever read about mental illness. It is accurate, well-rounded, authentic as raw. As someone who suffered from a form of psychosis similar to schizophrenia, Challenger Deep was so validating to read. I honestly don’t know how Neal Schusterman captured exactly what this condition is like. Through collaborating with his son who deals with Caden’s illness and the immense amount of research put in, he somehow took the thoughts, feelings, and experiences that millions of people have and put it to paper. Color me entirely impressed by the fantastic portrayal of mental illness.
I will say, Challenger Deep has an unconventional storytelling format. Half the story is told from Caden's perspective in his hometown and the other half is from Caden's perspective on a sailing ship. While I can attest to the many reviews suggesting this was confusing, I believe it is crucial to what makes Challenger Deep so unique and intense. I struggled a bit in the beginning as the two perspectives seem so disjointed but it quickly becomes easy to understand the intent behind these passages.
Overall, Challenger Deep was amazing. I cannot recommend it enough.
May 15, 2015
"Dead kids are put on pedestals, but mentally ill kids get hidden under the rug."
Thank you, Neal Shusterman, for portraying the pain, the horrors, and the light touches of hope that come with mental illness. I have read at least one book (looking at you, All the Bright Places) that glamorizes mental disorders, and as an aspiring psychologist, such inaccurate perceptions of these real diseases disturb me. Through Caden, Shusterman shows the delusions and doubts and episodes of emotional dysregulation that come with schizoaffective disorder, and he does so in a way that advances the plot while honoring the pain that pervades Caden's struggle.
Despite my enjoyment of the book, I do wonder how younger readers with less knowledge about mental illnesses will perceive Shusterman's dual narratives. He switches between Caden's deterioration as he enters a mental institute and Caden's hallucinations of serving as a crewmate on a ship with a terrifying captain. I often felt a disconnect from Caden when he experienced his hallucinatory episodes (which makes sense, because of just how powerful and real they feel to him), and I question how other readers will construe Shusterman's narrative structure in Challenger Deep. Either way, he never makes light of Caden's situation or makes the mistake of glorifying it, which already sets this book apart from others.
Overall, a gripping read and affecting novel about a boy torn between two realities. Recommended to those who enjoy contemporary YA, feel an interest about a book that centers on mental illness, and to fans of Shusterman's other works.
Thank you, Neal Shusterman, for portraying the pain, the horrors, and the light touches of hope that come with mental illness. I have read at least one book (looking at you, All the Bright Places) that glamorizes mental disorders, and as an aspiring psychologist, such inaccurate perceptions of these real diseases disturb me. Through Caden, Shusterman shows the delusions and doubts and episodes of emotional dysregulation that come with schizoaffective disorder, and he does so in a way that advances the plot while honoring the pain that pervades Caden's struggle.
Despite my enjoyment of the book, I do wonder how younger readers with less knowledge about mental illnesses will perceive Shusterman's dual narratives. He switches between Caden's deterioration as he enters a mental institute and Caden's hallucinations of serving as a crewmate on a ship with a terrifying captain. I often felt a disconnect from Caden when he experienced his hallucinatory episodes (which makes sense, because of just how powerful and real they feel to him), and I question how other readers will construe Shusterman's narrative structure in Challenger Deep. Either way, he never makes light of Caden's situation or makes the mistake of glorifying it, which already sets this book apart from others.
Overall, a gripping read and affecting novel about a boy torn between two realities. Recommended to those who enjoy contemporary YA, feel an interest about a book that centers on mental illness, and to fans of Shusterman's other works.
June 12, 2019
"Dead kids are put on pedestals, but mentally ill kids get hidden under the rug."
This had so many powerful moments and moving quotes throughout, but half of it just didn't do it for me, y'know? I appreciate everything this book did, especially the scenes set in reality- I just found myself uninterested in the actual scenes and setting during the character's delusions that take place at sea. It was such a raw and real story to share, so I want to take nothing away from that- I just personally felt abruptly disconnected too often throughout for my own reading tastes.
This had so many powerful moments and moving quotes throughout, but half of it just didn't do it for me, y'know? I appreciate everything this book did, especially the scenes set in reality- I just found myself uninterested in the actual scenes and setting during the character's delusions that take place at sea. It was such a raw and real story to share, so I want to take nothing away from that- I just personally felt abruptly disconnected too often throughout for my own reading tastes.
February 15, 2020
UPDATE: Neal Shusterman has won the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature for this book! OHMYGOD!
EDIT: So this book is longlisted on National Book Awards. Yay!!! http://www.newyorker.com/books/page-t...
This book is so deep I can see Adele rolling in it.
I know it's lame lol sorry. I sound like a 9gag commenter. Hahaha!
Kidding aside, Challenger Deep is a precious, beautiful book about the reality of mental illness. Confusing at first yet compelling until the end, this book conveyed an important message to the readers regarding with that sensitive matter.
I'm no expert but I think Neal Shusterman did a great job in depicting what is going on a mind of someone suffering from a mental illness. He masterfully crafted and told a story of a boy who's torn between the real and the imaginary without romanticizing it.
Challenger Deep is subtle and poignant. And me reviewing this book is like a betrayal since I can't give justice of how important this book is. I hope you can read it, too.
I really don't know what else to say but I think having a heartache and being teary-eyed while reading this book and typing this review will be enough to describe what I wanted to say.
EDIT: So this book is longlisted on National Book Awards. Yay!!! http://www.newyorker.com/books/page-t...
"We are, however, creatures of containment. We want all things in life packed into boxes that we can label. But just because we have the ability to label it, doesn't mean we really know what's in the box. It's kind of like religion. It gives us comfort to believe we have defined something that is, by its very nature, indefinable. As to whether or not we've gotten it right, well, it's all a matter of faith."
This book is so deep I can see Adele rolling in it.
I know it's lame lol sorry. I sound like a 9gag commenter. Hahaha!
Kidding aside, Challenger Deep is a precious, beautiful book about the reality of mental illness. Confusing at first yet compelling until the end, this book conveyed an important message to the readers regarding with that sensitive matter.
I'm no expert but I think Neal Shusterman did a great job in depicting what is going on a mind of someone suffering from a mental illness. He masterfully crafted and told a story of a boy who's torn between the real and the imaginary without romanticizing it.
Challenger Deep is subtle and poignant. And me reviewing this book is like a betrayal since I can't give justice of how important this book is. I hope you can read it, too.
I really don't know what else to say but I think having a heartache and being teary-eyed while reading this book and typing this review will be enough to describe what I wanted to say.
August 14, 2015
I adored this book. It was a little confusing to figure out what was going on right away, but once the two stories start overlapping it all comes together in this beautiful and emotion way. I loved it, and it hit me in the feels more than a few times. Probably the books that's made me cry the hardest, but so worth it.
April 28, 2017
My first impression of this book was also the one that lasted - While reading I often felt like I was drowning in it; and about as often like I was re-emerging.
I will try to write a review that does this magnificent book justice, but I am also fully aware of the fact that no matter what I say and how, I will not be able to encompass it all.
But let's start at the beginning - Normally, I avoid books about mental illness as I avoid books about cancer. Authors often spiral out of control and go crashing into banalities and sugarcoating.
Not this book.
I picked it up because of the reference to the Mariana Trench, I wanted to know whether it would end at the title or whether the author would explore it further and draw more parallels. In order to avoid spoilers I will not answer the question - find it out yourself.
What I will say however is - nothing could have prepared me for this.
Imagine this -you are underwater with your face turned towards the surface. Beneath you is the bottomless darkness and you know you are sinking, deeper and deeper, but you are not frightened. Instead you watch the sunrays dance on the surface, you watch the waves, you may even hear something happening above you though it is muted. Everything is muted. You are in some strange, undescribable vacuum or maybe limbo. You know you have to re-emerge soon, the sooner the better, but you are torn. A part of you wants to stay this way, the other desires to escape the water and never enter it again. Focus on what you are feeling, on what you are not feeling.
It is a strange state to be in, isn't it?
(I have no idea why, but this book reminded me of the atmosphere of 'Spirited Away' and especially No-Face. Maybe because both the mentioned character and this book had some unique imperturbability about them)
The author constantly switches between two settings, the reality and the delusion of Caden's life. Through the use of mostly brief and emotionally intense chapters the atmosphere changes rapidly leaving the reader more often than not somewhere between confused, shocked and heartbroken. There is certainly no action in this book - it is deeply introspective and psychological but not plot-driven. As I have already said, there is a calmness in it that is both stunning and scary.
It is very soon that the reader realises that it is about a scattered mind and follows Caden's journey, or rather journeys. Watches him losing himself to his delusions and getting more and more out of control until, finally, he is hospitalized. There are so many chapters that are entirely detached from reality and all of them are allegorical. In these chapters every phrase, every turn of the head, has a meaning and it is not always graspable, neither to the reader nor to Caden. Likewise, there are many chapters that are real and shocking, yet somewhat hopeful, because there are people in Caden's life who are willing to help him, who are there for him and support him during his difficult episodes.
The book is scary and confusing and moving and heartbreaking. And I loved every second of it and deeply appreciated the insight and the honesty behind it. Following the deterioration of Caden's sanity was both horrifying and enlightning and this is probably one of the very few books that will stay with me for a long, long time.
The author does not glamorize mental illness. Not even once - which makes it even more heart-wrenching. No one is put into boxes, there is no sugarcoating. There is however the truth, the way a person experienced mental illness first-hand.
This book carries an important, poignant message which is worth sharing and which should be spread. HIGHLY recommended.
P.S. Only now, after going through the review to check for mistakes do I realise in what an emotional turmoil this book left me. I am still not over it.
P.P.S. READ IT.
I will try to write a review that does this magnificent book justice, but I am also fully aware of the fact that no matter what I say and how, I will not be able to encompass it all.
But let's start at the beginning - Normally, I avoid books about mental illness as I avoid books about cancer. Authors often spiral out of control and go crashing into banalities and sugarcoating.
Not this book.
I picked it up because of the reference to the Mariana Trench, I wanted to know whether it would end at the title or whether the author would explore it further and draw more parallels. In order to avoid spoilers I will not answer the question - find it out yourself.
What I will say however is - nothing could have prepared me for this.
Imagine this -you are underwater with your face turned towards the surface. Beneath you is the bottomless darkness and you know you are sinking, deeper and deeper, but you are not frightened. Instead you watch the sunrays dance on the surface, you watch the waves, you may even hear something happening above you though it is muted. Everything is muted. You are in some strange, undescribable vacuum or maybe limbo. You know you have to re-emerge soon, the sooner the better, but you are torn. A part of you wants to stay this way, the other desires to escape the water and never enter it again. Focus on what you are feeling, on what you are not feeling.
It is a strange state to be in, isn't it?
(I have no idea why, but this book reminded me of the atmosphere of 'Spirited Away' and especially No-Face. Maybe because both the mentioned character and this book had some unique imperturbability about them)
The author constantly switches between two settings, the reality and the delusion of Caden's life. Through the use of mostly brief and emotionally intense chapters the atmosphere changes rapidly leaving the reader more often than not somewhere between confused, shocked and heartbroken. There is certainly no action in this book - it is deeply introspective and psychological but not plot-driven. As I have already said, there is a calmness in it that is both stunning and scary.
It is very soon that the reader realises that it is about a scattered mind and follows Caden's journey, or rather journeys. Watches him losing himself to his delusions and getting more and more out of control until, finally, he is hospitalized. There are so many chapters that are entirely detached from reality and all of them are allegorical. In these chapters every phrase, every turn of the head, has a meaning and it is not always graspable, neither to the reader nor to Caden. Likewise, there are many chapters that are real and shocking, yet somewhat hopeful, because there are people in Caden's life who are willing to help him, who are there for him and support him during his difficult episodes.
The book is scary and confusing and moving and heartbreaking. And I loved every second of it and deeply appreciated the insight and the honesty behind it. Following the deterioration of Caden's sanity was both horrifying and enlightning and this is probably one of the very few books that will stay with me for a long, long time.
The author does not glamorize mental illness. Not even once - which makes it even more heart-wrenching. No one is put into boxes, there is no sugarcoating. There is however the truth, the way a person experienced mental illness first-hand.
This book carries an important, poignant message which is worth sharing and which should be spread. HIGHLY recommended.
P.S. Only now, after going through the review to check for mistakes do I realise in what an emotional turmoil this book left me. I am still not over it.
P.P.S. READ IT.
February 15, 2021
I think I'm feeling more emotions than the first time I read it? If that's even possible?
✨ You can read my full review here on my blog, Starry Sky Books! This is one of my favorite reviews. If you're thinking about reading this book, I highly suggest you skim through my review, so you can find out some vital info about how the book is set up. (cw: mental illness, mental hospitals, mentions of self-harm, mentions of death, implication of suicide)
I would like to begin this review by saying two things: 1) This is a reread review. When I was younger, I used to give all of my favorite books 5 stars because I loved them, but also because I hadn’t read many books in general, other than my favorites. This one remains one of my favorites, and is the only 5 star review on this blog so far because of my history with it. But just because I love it, does not mean that you will! 2) Challenger Deep includes subjects which may not be for everyone. It can be difficult to read at times. Sometimes the story is slow or confusing, but the story is meant to be that way. This is one of those books which, unfortunately, requires you to understand the premise before reading, I’ve seen several negative reviews for this book, but a lot of them are due to the reviewers being confused for much of the book. Hopefully I can explain a little of this!
a little anecdote about this book:
When I found out about this book several years ago, it was because my school library had put up posters about it all over the place. Back in the good old days of 2015, Challenger Deep won the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature. Libraries (at least, in my area) were advertising it well and whenever they could, and because of this, there were at least three posters of the book in my school library alone.
These posters intrigued me. “What is this book about?” I asked myself. “Why does it look like he’s drowning in water on a string? Why are all of the librarians obsessed with this book, when no one I know has read it?”
I later looked up reviews on Goodreads. From these reviews, I learned something that the synopsis didn’t convey. Challenger Deep is a story about schizophrenia. This piece of vital information may be what keeps you from turning this book away. I won’t go into any more detail than that, but I believe knowing this part of the story is crucial to how one understands why the story unfolds the way it does.
on to the review:
Challenger Deep is told in an unusual way: the story unfolds through short, alternating chapters conveying the main character as both a regular teenage boy and a pirate on a ship. While this may seem strange to some people, this may have been one of the reasons why I loved it.
I can see why some people might have been confused while reading this book for the first time, but when I look back on my past experience, I don’t remember ever being out of the loop. This is why I gave that small bit of info in the beginning! You’re going to need it. Safe travels.
While the unique alternating realities are special, I also love that this story itself just feels so touching, heart-breakingly raw, and wildly separate from reality at the same time. There are certain scenes in this book which may seem crazy and unrealistic, but… if you keep on reading, everything will eventually fall into place. You’ll begin to understand all of the strange happenings, and why Caden sees the world in the way that he does. And if you’re still confused in the beginning… I suggest you wait until chapters 75-84. That’s when everything will start to click!
I’m usually hesitant about reading/talking about mental illness-related books, since some of them are not told by people who have experienced the mental illness themselves. However, Challenger Deep was heavily inspired by Neal Shusterman’s son, and his experiences with schizophrenia. Knowing this also helped me to understand the severity of this story, and how real it can be for some people.
Of course, everyone experiences mental illnesses differently. But unfortunately, in today’s world, a lot of people have no idea what to think about many mental illnesses. I’m ashamed that I grew up thinking schizophrenia was synonymous with “multiple personality disorder” (which is now referred to as Dissociative Identity Disorder). For some reason, the media often portrayed mental illnesses however they wanted and in a simplified manner, so that people like me were often sheltered from discovering what it was actually like to have those illnesses. While the media seems to have gotten better with the way this is handled, it’s still not good enough, and not much better at all.
Reading this book several years ago, and even now during this reread, opened my eyes to the struggles others endure in their every-day lives. It’s heartbreaking that many mental illnesses are often dismissed because they’re not as common as anxiety or depression, but books like Challenger Deep are important because they highlight some aspects of mental health which would otherwise not be shared.
Generally, I was riveted while reading this book. Even though I already knew how it was going to end, I still enjoyed the ride and sat at the edge of my seat. This book is very character/emotion driven, and if you’re more of an action/plot person, this book may not be for you. Challenger Deep is more about personal discoveries and emotional acceptance than anything else.
I would like to say, though, that the plot could have been possibly a bit better, and the ending could have been a tiny bit slower. But did I cry? Yes, of course. Did I love it? Still, yes.
my rating:
While I think it deserves something more like 4.5 stars, I already marked it as “5 Stars” on my Goodreads and I’m feeling generous/nostalgic today, so… 5 Stars it is!
✨ You can read my full review here on my blog, Starry Sky Books! This is one of my favorite reviews. If you're thinking about reading this book, I highly suggest you skim through my review, so you can find out some vital info about how the book is set up. (cw: mental illness, mental hospitals, mentions of self-harm, mentions of death, implication of suicide)
I would like to begin this review by saying two things: 1) This is a reread review. When I was younger, I used to give all of my favorite books 5 stars because I loved them, but also because I hadn’t read many books in general, other than my favorites. This one remains one of my favorites, and is the only 5 star review on this blog so far because of my history with it. But just because I love it, does not mean that you will! 2) Challenger Deep includes subjects which may not be for everyone. It can be difficult to read at times. Sometimes the story is slow or confusing, but the story is meant to be that way. This is one of those books which, unfortunately, requires you to understand the premise before reading, I’ve seen several negative reviews for this book, but a lot of them are due to the reviewers being confused for much of the book. Hopefully I can explain a little of this!
a little anecdote about this book:
When I found out about this book several years ago, it was because my school library had put up posters about it all over the place. Back in the good old days of 2015, Challenger Deep won the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature. Libraries (at least, in my area) were advertising it well and whenever they could, and because of this, there were at least three posters of the book in my school library alone.
These posters intrigued me. “What is this book about?” I asked myself. “Why does it look like he’s drowning in water on a string? Why are all of the librarians obsessed with this book, when no one I know has read it?”
I later looked up reviews on Goodreads. From these reviews, I learned something that the synopsis didn’t convey. Challenger Deep is a story about schizophrenia. This piece of vital information may be what keeps you from turning this book away. I won’t go into any more detail than that, but I believe knowing this part of the story is crucial to how one understands why the story unfolds the way it does.
on to the review:
Challenger Deep is told in an unusual way: the story unfolds through short, alternating chapters conveying the main character as both a regular teenage boy and a pirate on a ship. While this may seem strange to some people, this may have been one of the reasons why I loved it.
I can see why some people might have been confused while reading this book for the first time, but when I look back on my past experience, I don’t remember ever being out of the loop. This is why I gave that small bit of info in the beginning! You’re going to need it. Safe travels.
While the unique alternating realities are special, I also love that this story itself just feels so touching, heart-breakingly raw, and wildly separate from reality at the same time. There are certain scenes in this book which may seem crazy and unrealistic, but… if you keep on reading, everything will eventually fall into place. You’ll begin to understand all of the strange happenings, and why Caden sees the world in the way that he does. And if you’re still confused in the beginning… I suggest you wait until chapters 75-84. That’s when everything will start to click!
I’m usually hesitant about reading/talking about mental illness-related books, since some of them are not told by people who have experienced the mental illness themselves. However, Challenger Deep was heavily inspired by Neal Shusterman’s son, and his experiences with schizophrenia. Knowing this also helped me to understand the severity of this story, and how real it can be for some people.
Of course, everyone experiences mental illnesses differently. But unfortunately, in today’s world, a lot of people have no idea what to think about many mental illnesses. I’m ashamed that I grew up thinking schizophrenia was synonymous with “multiple personality disorder” (which is now referred to as Dissociative Identity Disorder). For some reason, the media often portrayed mental illnesses however they wanted and in a simplified manner, so that people like me were often sheltered from discovering what it was actually like to have those illnesses. While the media seems to have gotten better with the way this is handled, it’s still not good enough, and not much better at all.
Reading this book several years ago, and even now during this reread, opened my eyes to the struggles others endure in their every-day lives. It’s heartbreaking that many mental illnesses are often dismissed because they’re not as common as anxiety or depression, but books like Challenger Deep are important because they highlight some aspects of mental health which would otherwise not be shared.
Generally, I was riveted while reading this book. Even though I already knew how it was going to end, I still enjoyed the ride and sat at the edge of my seat. This book is very character/emotion driven, and if you’re more of an action/plot person, this book may not be for you. Challenger Deep is more about personal discoveries and emotional acceptance than anything else.
I would like to say, though, that the plot could have been possibly a bit better, and the ending could have been a tiny bit slower. But did I cry? Yes, of course. Did I love it? Still, yes.
my rating:
While I think it deserves something more like 4.5 stars, I already marked it as “5 Stars” on my Goodreads and I’m feeling generous/nostalgic today, so… 5 Stars it is!
Read
July 4, 2018I’m not sure what to rate this book.
On one hand, there were so many moments where I had the overwhelming urge to cry, because the depiction of mental health in the story was so raw, brutally honest and to a certain extend, relatable.
On the other hand, I had quite a few moments where I couldn’t connect with the story and the overwhelming symbolism would throw me off.
It might have been better had I taken more time with it, since it required some effort on my part to fully grasp the meanings.
The story is powerful though and I do recommend it. It felt personal as some aspects were based on his son's experience with schizophrenia. The chapters are short and interchange between the present and diving into the mind of the character who suffers from schizophrenia and the world he has build for himself. Or more correctly, his delusions. And those two correlating viewpoints colliding.
On one hand, there were so many moments where I had the overwhelming urge to cry, because the depiction of mental health in the story was so raw, brutally honest and to a certain extend, relatable.
On the other hand, I had quite a few moments where I couldn’t connect with the story and the overwhelming symbolism would throw me off.
It might have been better had I taken more time with it, since it required some effort on my part to fully grasp the meanings.
The story is powerful though and I do recommend it. It felt personal as some aspects were based on his son's experience with schizophrenia. The chapters are short and interchange between the present and diving into the mind of the character who suffers from schizophrenia and the world he has build for himself. Or more correctly, his delusions. And those two correlating viewpoints colliding.
November 15, 2019
Starts slow but strengthens, matures, and astounds with every turn of a page.
June 19, 2021
Q: Blank pages scream at me to be filled with crap from my brain. (c) I have a feeling that's the experience that brought this book into existence.
Q: And when the abyss looks into you—and it will—may you look back unflinching. (c) This one I do like.
Q: “‘Look into the abyss and the abyss looks into you... Let’s hope the abyss finds nothing of interest.” (c)
Deliria diary. Undewhelming and all.
Some kids are travelling by some ship to some deepwater place to do some strange stuff. Turns out,
While I do appreciate the and the allegory of deep water lonely submerging... poetic, isn't it? The book's amounting to basically a haphasard bunch notes hastily thrown together. Not what I usually look for.
Q:
I wonder if pushing my thoughts down that line the way I just did could be a dangerous thing. Could my thoughts be magnified in the heat and pressure of the earth and come out the other side as an earthquake? (c)
Q:
“Where does this hallway go?”
She looks at me with suspicion. “It doesn’t go anywhere, it stays right here.” (c)
Q:
“Jumpers do what jumpers do. It’s our job to applaud their pluck and celebrate their lives.” (c)
Q:
So what does it say about me if beating the crap out of myself is one of my better moments? (c)
Q:
So what happens when your universe begins to get off balance, and you don’t have any experience with bringing it back to center? All you can do is fight a losing battle, waiting for those walls to collapse, and your life to become one huge mystery ashtray. (c)
Q:
other. It occurs to me that parrots always appear to have a pleasant smile, kind of like dolphins, so you never truly know what they’re thinking. A dolphin might be thinking of ripping your heart out, or poking you to death with its bottlenose, the way it might do to a shark, but since it’s always smiling, you think it’s your friend. It makes me think about the dolphins I painted on my sister’s bedroom wall. Does she know they may want to kill her? Have they already? (с)
Q:
Please rate the following statements from one to five using the scale below:1 strongly agree 2 totally agree 3 agree emphatically4 in absolute agreement 5 how did you know?
I sometimes worry that the ship might sink.
1 2 3 4 5
My fellow crewmen are hiding biological weapons.
1 2 3 4 5
Energy drinks allow me to fly.
1 2 3 4 5
I am God, and God does not fill out questionnaires.
1 2 3 4 5
I enjoy the company of brightly colored birds.
1 2 3 4 5
Death tends to leave me hungry.
1 2 3 4 5
My shoes are too tight, and my heart two sizes too small.
1 2 3 4 5
I believe all the answers lie at the bottom of the sea.
1 2 3 4 5
I often find myself surrounded by soulless zombies.
1 2 3 4 5
Sometimes I hear voices from the Home Shopping Network.
1 2 3 4 5
I can breathe underwater.
1 2 3 4 5
I have visions of parallel and/or perpendicular universes.
1 2 3 4 5
I need more caffeine. Now.
1 2 3 4 5
I smell dead people. (c) Now, that's some questionnaire :)
Q:
Who is my father, really? What if he’s part of some secret society? (c)
Q:
... that living cloud in the corner of my mind that looks under the bed is now a ground fog spreading over my brain like the angel of death over the firstborn of Egypt. (c)
Q:
“You were not given permission to have talent,” the captain tells me. “It may offend the other crewmen who have none.”
And although talent comes whether you ask permission or not, I bow my head and ask, “Please, sir . . . may I be allowed the talent to draw?”
“I will consider it.” (c)
Q:
“Excellent! You’ll visit the crow’s nest twice a day.”
“What if I don’t want to visit the crow’s nest?” I ask him.
He winks at me. “Then the crow’s nest will visit you.” (c)
Q:
“Burn all your bridges,” the captain says. “Preferably before you cross them.” (c)
Q:
“There is nothing to fear but fear itself,” the captain announces from the helm, “and the occasional man-eating monster.” (c)
Q:
Forget solar energy—if you could harness denial, it would power the world for generations. (c)
Q:
I see things. Not so much see, but feel. Patterns of connection between the people I pass. Between the birds that swoop from the trees. There is meaning out there, if only I can find it. (c)
Q:
“There are things going on behind my back, aren’t there?” she asks—and since she’s the figurehead of the ship, the answer is, of course, “Yes.” (c)
Q:
Everyone on deck is occupied in their own particular obsession. (c)
Q:
After another hour of conversation, I got him to agree that he would stop slapping arses. We shook hands on it. ‘But compliments, I think I’m still gonna do,’ he said. (c) LOL. An hour well spent.
Q:
I have a file in the counselor’s office? Who else has a copy of my file? Who gets to put things in and take things out? Is it in any way related to my permanent record? What is a permanent record? When does it stop following you? Will I have to spend my life looking over my shoulder for my permanent record? ...
Historically? I’m being studied like history? Are they filling out Scantrons about me somewhere? Are they giving letter grades on the subject of me, or is it pass/fail? (c)
Q:
“Have you ever considered how lonely it is to be the girl on a pedestal?” (c)
Q:
“So . . . what happens to the brainless sailors?” ...
“Oh, the captain finds something to fill their heads with ...(c)
Q:
“What we perceive as art, the universe perceives as directions,” he proclaims. Directions to where, however, neither of you is sure. (c)
Q: And when the abyss looks into you—and it will—may you look back unflinching. (c) This one I do like.
Q: “‘Look into the abyss and the abyss looks into you... Let’s hope the abyss finds nothing of interest.” (c)
Deliria diary. Undewhelming and all.
Some kids are travelling by some ship to some deepwater place to do some strange stuff. Turns out,
While I do appreciate the and the allegory of deep water lonely submerging... poetic, isn't it? The book's amounting to basically a haphasard bunch notes hastily thrown together. Not what I usually look for.
Q:
I wonder if pushing my thoughts down that line the way I just did could be a dangerous thing. Could my thoughts be magnified in the heat and pressure of the earth and come out the other side as an earthquake? (c)
Q:
“Where does this hallway go?”
She looks at me with suspicion. “It doesn’t go anywhere, it stays right here.” (c)
Q:
“Jumpers do what jumpers do. It’s our job to applaud their pluck and celebrate their lives.” (c)
Q:
So what does it say about me if beating the crap out of myself is one of my better moments? (c)
Q:
So what happens when your universe begins to get off balance, and you don’t have any experience with bringing it back to center? All you can do is fight a losing battle, waiting for those walls to collapse, and your life to become one huge mystery ashtray. (c)
Q:
other. It occurs to me that parrots always appear to have a pleasant smile, kind of like dolphins, so you never truly know what they’re thinking. A dolphin might be thinking of ripping your heart out, or poking you to death with its bottlenose, the way it might do to a shark, but since it’s always smiling, you think it’s your friend. It makes me think about the dolphins I painted on my sister’s bedroom wall. Does she know they may want to kill her? Have they already? (с)
Q:
Please rate the following statements from one to five using the scale below:1 strongly agree 2 totally agree 3 agree emphatically4 in absolute agreement 5 how did you know?
I sometimes worry that the ship might sink.
1 2 3 4 5
My fellow crewmen are hiding biological weapons.
1 2 3 4 5
Energy drinks allow me to fly.
1 2 3 4 5
I am God, and God does not fill out questionnaires.
1 2 3 4 5
I enjoy the company of brightly colored birds.
1 2 3 4 5
Death tends to leave me hungry.
1 2 3 4 5
My shoes are too tight, and my heart two sizes too small.
1 2 3 4 5
I believe all the answers lie at the bottom of the sea.
1 2 3 4 5
I often find myself surrounded by soulless zombies.
1 2 3 4 5
Sometimes I hear voices from the Home Shopping Network.
1 2 3 4 5
I can breathe underwater.
1 2 3 4 5
I have visions of parallel and/or perpendicular universes.
1 2 3 4 5
I need more caffeine. Now.
1 2 3 4 5
I smell dead people. (c) Now, that's some questionnaire :)
Q:
Who is my father, really? What if he’s part of some secret society? (c)
Q:
... that living cloud in the corner of my mind that looks under the bed is now a ground fog spreading over my brain like the angel of death over the firstborn of Egypt. (c)
Q:
“You were not given permission to have talent,” the captain tells me. “It may offend the other crewmen who have none.”
And although talent comes whether you ask permission or not, I bow my head and ask, “Please, sir . . . may I be allowed the talent to draw?”
“I will consider it.” (c)
Q:
“Excellent! You’ll visit the crow’s nest twice a day.”
“What if I don’t want to visit the crow’s nest?” I ask him.
He winks at me. “Then the crow’s nest will visit you.” (c)
Q:
“Burn all your bridges,” the captain says. “Preferably before you cross them.” (c)
Q:
“There is nothing to fear but fear itself,” the captain announces from the helm, “and the occasional man-eating monster.” (c)
Q:
Forget solar energy—if you could harness denial, it would power the world for generations. (c)
Q:
I see things. Not so much see, but feel. Patterns of connection between the people I pass. Between the birds that swoop from the trees. There is meaning out there, if only I can find it. (c)
Q:
“There are things going on behind my back, aren’t there?” she asks—and since she’s the figurehead of the ship, the answer is, of course, “Yes.” (c)
Q:
Everyone on deck is occupied in their own particular obsession. (c)
Q:
After another hour of conversation, I got him to agree that he would stop slapping arses. We shook hands on it. ‘But compliments, I think I’m still gonna do,’ he said. (c) LOL. An hour well spent.
Q:
I have a file in the counselor’s office? Who else has a copy of my file? Who gets to put things in and take things out? Is it in any way related to my permanent record? What is a permanent record? When does it stop following you? Will I have to spend my life looking over my shoulder for my permanent record? ...
Historically? I’m being studied like history? Are they filling out Scantrons about me somewhere? Are they giving letter grades on the subject of me, or is it pass/fail? (c)
Q:
“Have you ever considered how lonely it is to be the girl on a pedestal?” (c)
Q:
“So . . . what happens to the brainless sailors?” ...
“Oh, the captain finds something to fill their heads with ...(c)
Q:
“What we perceive as art, the universe perceives as directions,” he proclaims. Directions to where, however, neither of you is sure. (c)
April 27, 2015
This is the third gorgeously written book with positive representation of mental illness I’ve read this month. Third! It looks like YA is finally going there, endeavoring to explore the unexplorable. Neal Shusterman’s new book, Challenger Deep is the latest and brightest attempt to shed some light onto the struggles of people with mental disorders.
Challenger Deep is a magical book – smart and funny, intelligent and poignant, frightening and thought provoking – all at once. The mood changes with each extremely brief chapter, and the rapid changes serve not only to manipulate our mood, but also to truly impress upon us that we’ve entered a scattered mind. This time, Shusterman writes from experience; his own son struggled with mental illness and the illustrations included in his book are Brendan’s from those times.
I suppose if you don’t know what to expect, Challenger Deep can be a bit tricky at first. Some chapters are accessible and realistic, and then there are those that are completely detached from reality. To add to that, the unrealistic chapters are deeply allegorical, and although it quickly becomes clear what they represent, getting to that point can be a bit trying. But everything you have to go through to fully experience this book is more than worth it. While it can be challenging at times, it’s also extremely rewarding.
The story has no less than three layers: the more or less healthy family life from Caiden’s memories, the rapid deterioration of his sanity and finally his life on the ship, an obvious metaphor and a sign of sanity lost. The whole decline is simply heartbreaking, but Shusterman still manages to make it all run smoothly.
Understanding mental illness and stopping discrimination against people who struggle with it is the next important step this society needs to take. Each decade has its own civil rights fight, and I truly hope we tackle this next. Books like Challenger Deep are extremely important in that regard and as someone whose family battled those same issues, I thank Neal and Brendan Shusterman from the bottom of my heart.
Every YA reader out there knows Neal Shusterman’s name, and if they don’t, I can honestly say they should. This is an author who constantly pushes the limits, who turns YA into something new and entirely unexpected each time. He should be celebrated far and wide and his work, more specifically this book, should get the accolades it deserves.
Challenger Deep is a magical book – smart and funny, intelligent and poignant, frightening and thought provoking – all at once. The mood changes with each extremely brief chapter, and the rapid changes serve not only to manipulate our mood, but also to truly impress upon us that we’ve entered a scattered mind. This time, Shusterman writes from experience; his own son struggled with mental illness and the illustrations included in his book are Brendan’s from those times.
I suppose if you don’t know what to expect, Challenger Deep can be a bit tricky at first. Some chapters are accessible and realistic, and then there are those that are completely detached from reality. To add to that, the unrealistic chapters are deeply allegorical, and although it quickly becomes clear what they represent, getting to that point can be a bit trying. But everything you have to go through to fully experience this book is more than worth it. While it can be challenging at times, it’s also extremely rewarding.
The story has no less than three layers: the more or less healthy family life from Caiden’s memories, the rapid deterioration of his sanity and finally his life on the ship, an obvious metaphor and a sign of sanity lost. The whole decline is simply heartbreaking, but Shusterman still manages to make it all run smoothly.
Understanding mental illness and stopping discrimination against people who struggle with it is the next important step this society needs to take. Each decade has its own civil rights fight, and I truly hope we tackle this next. Books like Challenger Deep are extremely important in that regard and as someone whose family battled those same issues, I thank Neal and Brendan Shusterman from the bottom of my heart.
Every YA reader out there knows Neal Shusterman’s name, and if they don’t, I can honestly say they should. This is an author who constantly pushes the limits, who turns YA into something new and entirely unexpected each time. He should be celebrated far and wide and his work, more specifically this book, should get the accolades it deserves.
December 6, 2022
No to było COŚ
Tak wyjątkowe COŚ, że aż nie wiem, jak o tym CZYMŚ mogę mówić
Tak wyjątkowe COŚ, że aż nie wiem, jak o tym CZYMŚ mogę mówić
February 10, 2023
Nie wiem jak ją ocenić, więc jak na razie dam 3⭐️
Książka jest trudna, momentami smutna, zagmatwana ale też ważna i potrzebna.
Książka jest trudna, momentami smutna, zagmatwana ale też ważna i potrzebna.
May 27, 2018
No combination of twenty-six letters can express what this book did to me.
I’ve never been diagnosed with any kind of mental illness. I’ve had bad days - days when I felt like I was the only living being in the planet and everyone else was plotting against me. I’ve had suicidal thoughts for three days at a stretch. I secretly used to think that I might have survived depression once. Those thoughts feel laughable now. I thought I knew mental illness. I could usually connect with mentally ill characters in books and I used to think I knew what it felt like. APPARENTLY NOT.
This book just changed my life.
Shusterman’s story is brilliantly crafted, original, and well researched and the artworks are real . It is an exemplar for mental illness books. He has captured so well what it is like to be mentally ill, drawing from his own experiences as well as his son's, who had been schizophrenic.
Honestly, why isn’t anyone reading this instead of Scythe? Like, this is IMPORTANT. This is EXTRAORDINARY. This is a MUST READ.
Caden Bosch is fifteen. He is schizophrenic and maybe schizoaffective. He is in a ship that sails to nowhere. He also goes to school and has two best friends who have been recently thrown off by his strange behavior. He’s in search of the depth of Marianas Trench in the Pacific Ocean. He can see things others can’t. He knows what people are thinking when they don’t know themselves. He knows truth about this universe no one has yet discovered. He is mentally ill. And this, is his story.
This book did to me what no other book has. I can’t really explain. I had an intense head-ache while reading it. I began to see things that weren’t there. The only time I had hallucinations was this one time when I was fifteen and sick. I’d stayed awake all night staring at the dark ceiling, feeling that the ceiling fan was dropping monsters at me, the room was trying to shrink into me, that I was falling into an abyss I couldn’t escape from. I might have puked a few times that night. I can’t begin to imagine what it would be like to live like that all the time. I experienced it now. I deeply resonated with Caden Bosch and his thoughts. I had to stop reading at times, scared to continue, thinking that maybe I’m becoming schizophrenic myself. I felt like I was floating an inch from the ground, like I had lost all purpose. I honestly couldn’t sleep well at all. That is how deep and intensely vivid Shusterman’s writing is. It speaks directly to your brain. It consumes you in whole.
That was mostly for the first half of the book. The second half sometimes felt dragged on. I particularly didn’t enjoy the ship scenes much. Mostly because I was confused on what was going on.
But then, it becomes all too clear.
I teared up at times.
I related to Caden.
I became scared.
I worried.
I even thought of DNFing the book just to end turmoil it was putting me through.
But in the end, I just marveled at how deeply and intensely this book affected me.
Please people, GO AND READ THIS BOOK. It is going to change your perspective on life, and you’ll never read a mental-illness rep the same way ever again. Not that I wish anyone to go through what I did while reading it, but I want everybody to read this book and have their eyes open.
°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°
I’m deeply grateful to Laura for recommending me this book. I know I wouldn’t have discovered this otherwise. Thanks lovely! xD
I’ve never been diagnosed with any kind of mental illness. I’ve had bad days - days when I felt like I was the only living being in the planet and everyone else was plotting against me. I’ve had suicidal thoughts for three days at a stretch. I secretly used to think that I might have survived depression once. Those thoughts feel laughable now. I thought I knew mental illness. I could usually connect with mentally ill characters in books and I used to think I knew what it felt like. APPARENTLY NOT.
This book just changed my life.
Shusterman’s story is brilliantly crafted, original, and well researched and the artworks are real . It is an exemplar for mental illness books. He has captured so well what it is like to be mentally ill, drawing from his own experiences as well as his son's, who had been schizophrenic.
“I push through the granite, the sludge, the bones, the dirt, the worms, and the termites, until I’m bursting through into some rice paddy field in China, proving that there’s no such thing as down, because eventually down is up.”
Honestly, why isn’t anyone reading this instead of Scythe? Like, this is IMPORTANT. This is EXTRAORDINARY. This is a MUST READ.
“It’s not like I can control these feelings. It’s not like I mean to think these thoughts. They’re just there, unwanted birthday gifts that you can’t give back.”
Caden Bosch is fifteen. He is schizophrenic and maybe schizoaffective. He is in a ship that sails to nowhere. He also goes to school and has two best friends who have been recently thrown off by his strange behavior. He’s in search of the depth of Marianas Trench in the Pacific Ocean. He can see things others can’t. He knows what people are thinking when they don’t know themselves. He knows truth about this universe no one has yet discovered. He is mentally ill. And this, is his story.
“Do you know how it feels, to be free from yourself and terrified by it? You feel both invincible and targeted, as if the world – as if the universe – doesn’t want you to feel this dizzying enlightenment. And you know there are forces out there that want to crush your spirit like a gas filling all available space. Now the voices are loud, almost as loud as your mother as she calls you down for dinner for the third time. You know it’s the third time even though you don’t remember hearing the first two times. Even though you don’t even remember going up to your room.”
This book did to me what no other book has. I can’t really explain. I had an intense head-ache while reading it. I began to see things that weren’t there. The only time I had hallucinations was this one time when I was fifteen and sick. I’d stayed awake all night staring at the dark ceiling, feeling that the ceiling fan was dropping monsters at me, the room was trying to shrink into me, that I was falling into an abyss I couldn’t escape from. I might have puked a few times that night. I can’t begin to imagine what it would be like to live like that all the time. I experienced it now. I deeply resonated with Caden Bosch and his thoughts. I had to stop reading at times, scared to continue, thinking that maybe I’m becoming schizophrenic myself. I felt like I was floating an inch from the ground, like I had lost all purpose. I honestly couldn’t sleep well at all. That is how deep and intensely vivid Shusterman’s writing is. It speaks directly to your brain. It consumes you in whole.
That was mostly for the first half of the book. The second half sometimes felt dragged on. I particularly didn’t enjoy the ship scenes much. Mostly because I was confused on what was going on.
But then, it becomes all too clear.
I teared up at times.
I related to Caden.
I became scared.
I worried.
I even thought of DNFing the book just to end turmoil it was putting me through.
But in the end, I just marveled at how deeply and intensely this book affected me.
“And that knowledge is so magnificent you can’t hold it in, and it drives you to share it – but you don’t have the words to describe it, and without the words, without a way to share the feeling, it breaks you, because your mind just isn’t large enough to hold what you’ve tried to fit into it…”
Please people, GO AND READ THIS BOOK. It is going to change your perspective on life, and you’ll never read a mental-illness rep the same way ever again. Not that I wish anyone to go through what I did while reading it, but I want everybody to read this book and have their eyes open.
°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°
I’m deeply grateful to Laura for recommending me this book. I know I wouldn’t have discovered this otherwise. Thanks lovely! xD
September 22, 2016
Neal Shusterman writes like he’s a wizard and Challenger Deep is his spellbook. The prose is enthralling, think Truman Capote meets Junot Diaz--world class stuff here, honestly.
He puts you through a child’s mental illness by taking you on a voyage across the sea, on a pirate sheep, to the depths of Challenger Deep. The mysterious way Caden ends up on this ship, and how strange the inhabitants are give the book a nonsensical feel, like Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, but with a twist of mystery that just keeps you DYING to learn more.
The story unfolds in these very short, vignette-y scenes that are almost poetic. But like poetry, and maybe as the name implies, it’s quite the challenging read. The story unfolds in a way that feels as insane as the narrator. And at the end, it never quite fits together, like the metaphorical puzzle Caden and his friends never finish.
Regardless, there’s something magical about this book. The pirate ship was the most interesting thing I’ve read in a long time, and even though I wish the whole book was about that journey and had nothing to do with mental illness, Neal Shusterman really blew me away with the book as a whole. Very satisfying, unique read.
He puts you through a child’s mental illness by taking you on a voyage across the sea, on a pirate sheep, to the depths of Challenger Deep. The mysterious way Caden ends up on this ship, and how strange the inhabitants are give the book a nonsensical feel, like Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, but with a twist of mystery that just keeps you DYING to learn more.
The story unfolds in these very short, vignette-y scenes that are almost poetic. But like poetry, and maybe as the name implies, it’s quite the challenging read. The story unfolds in a way that feels as insane as the narrator. And at the end, it never quite fits together, like the metaphorical puzzle Caden and his friends never finish.
Regardless, there’s something magical about this book. The pirate ship was the most interesting thing I’ve read in a long time, and even though I wish the whole book was about that journey and had nothing to do with mental illness, Neal Shusterman really blew me away with the book as a whole. Very satisfying, unique read.
Read
November 13, 2022DNF @ 30%
I think this book is probably really powerful and necessary, but it just wasn't for me!
I think this book is probably really powerful and necessary, but it just wasn't for me!
August 14, 2023
این کتاب وضعیت خاصی داره
کاملاً میفهمم که چقدر جملههاش خوب نوشته شده و چقدر میتونه برای یک سری مخاطب عالی باشه. جوری که کسی ممکنه این کتاب رو بخونه و حس کنه شوسترمن برای اون این داستان رو نوشته. نه که لزوماً چون بیماری روانی شخصیت اصلی رو داشته، بیشتر به این خاطر که خیلی از ما به نحوی ولی نه به این شدت این بیگانگی و عدم اتصال به زندگی رو تجربه میکنیم
برای من اما در تمام مدت کتاب حس جدایی از داستان و علاقمند نبودن به ماجرا و کاراکتر اصلی وجود داشت. شاید استعاره های سنگینش باع�� این موضوع شد و شاید کلا این داستان برای من نبود. چون من کلاً در فیلم و کتاب از پرسه زدن در ذهن، چه در خواب باشه و چه در توهم، واقعا بیزارم و آشفتهم میکنه
خلاصه که صوتیش عالیه، خودش هم میتونه برای یکی دیگه عالی باشه، ولی من واقعا برای خواندنش تقلا کردم
کانال تلگرام ریویوها و دانلود کتابها و صوتیشون
Maede's Books
۱۴۰۲/۵/۲۲
کاملاً میفهمم که چقدر جملههاش خوب نوشته شده و چقدر میتونه برای یک سری مخاطب عالی باشه. جوری که کسی ممکنه این کتاب رو بخونه و حس کنه شوسترمن برای اون این داستان رو نوشته. نه که لزوماً چون بیماری روانی شخصیت اصلی رو داشته، بیشتر به این خاطر که خیلی از ما به نحوی ولی نه به این شدت این بیگانگی و عدم اتصال به زندگی رو تجربه میکنیم
برای من اما در تمام مدت کتاب حس جدایی از داستان و علاقمند نبودن به ماجرا و کاراکتر اصلی وجود داشت. شاید استعاره های سنگینش باع�� این موضوع شد و شاید کلا این داستان برای من نبود. چون من کلاً در فیلم و کتاب از پرسه زدن در ذهن، چه در خواب باشه و چه در توهم، واقعا بیزارم و آشفتهم میکنه
خلاصه که صوتیش عالیه، خودش هم میتونه برای یکی دیگه عالی باشه، ولی من واقعا برای خواندنش تقلا کردم
کانال تلگرام ریویوها و دانلود کتابها و صوتیشون
Maede's Books
۱۴۰۲/۵/۲۲
February 24, 2023
To była szalenie ciekawa podróż. Metafora morza, statku oraz piratów wydawała się szalenie adekwatna.
Jest to historia chłopaka, który w swoim życiu musi mierzyć się z problemami psychicznymi.
Jego choroba jest bardzo istotnym elementem. Bez tej świadomości lektura ta może wydawać Wam się zupełnie niezrozumiała.
Ostatnie dwa akapity są jednocześnie potwornie brutalne, szczere, ale jednocześnie niosą ze sobą pewnego rodzaju nadzieję.
Ocena: 4,0.
Jest to historia chłopaka, który w swoim życiu musi mierzyć się z problemami psychicznymi.
Jego choroba jest bardzo istotnym elementem. Bez tej świadomości lektura ta może wydawać Wam się zupełnie niezrozumiała.
Ostatnie dwa akapity są jednocześnie potwornie brutalne, szczere, ale jednocześnie niosą ze sobą pewnego rodzaju nadzieję.
Ocena: 4,0.
September 19, 2019
3.5/5 stars
(Goodreads please give us half stars soon please, and thank you!)
“I used to be afraid of dying. Now I’m afraid of not living. There’s a difference. We go through life planning for a future, but sometimes that future never comes.”
This was one of the hardest books I've ever read. I spent about three weeks on it, because I had to keep putting it down - the emotions of this book kept drowning me. I will be honest - if I didn't read other, more light hearted books while I was also reading this, I'd be plunged into the pits of the deepest depression by now.
"Schizophrenia, schizoaffective, bipolar I, bipolar II, major depression, psychotic depression, obsessive/compulsive, and on, and on. The labels mean nothing, because no two cases are ever exactly alike. Everyone presents differently, and responds to meds differently, and no prognosis can truly be predicted."
The premise of the book, the idea and the message were fantastic. I also really recommend reading the footnote by the author, Neil Shusterman, as he explains how the topic of his book and his family are intimately related. That brought a whole new level of depth to the book.
So why only 3.5 stars? The book was great - there were so many amazing and quotable moments, if this wasn't a library copy, I'd have been highlighting the crap out of it. But where it was full of emotions it lacked in plot (for me at least). I found myself losing attention at the metaphoric parts and wanting to get to the real life parts. Later on in the book they merge and connect, but prior to that I have to admit, it was a bit confusing.
“You see demons in the eyes of the world, and the world sees a bottomless pit in yours.”
The book also deals with prejudice and wrong accusations. How people see somebody who is different and immediately assume that person is a drug addict. And when they realize what's happening it is often way too late.
I believe that this book will help many people - it will show them that they are not alone, that no matter what they might be feeling, no matter how ludicrous it may be, there is somebody out there who had felt the same way, or still is.
But I also believe that this book might trigger many others. The emotions in the book were so real you can feel them dripping off the pages. Caden's fears and his paranoia are contagious, and if you are not careful enough it will get you. It didn't help that I am already a hypochondriac and an ocd (self diagnosed, of course, but these things you just know). I kept thinking - am I going to spiral down one day? I have some symptoms, so is it a challenger deep for me too?
Nobody ever likes to feel powerless, but when I read Challenger Deep I felt it - inability to help Caden, or others like Caiden - because only they can help themselves. Sure, doctors and nurses and medicine stabilize people, but in the end the journey is only that person's to take.
Challenger Deep also gave me a new perspective on brain altering medicine. I still don't exactly know how I feel about it, but I do realize now that sometimes that is all doctors have - their best is just a guess, and sometimes that guess works and sometimes it doesn't.
“The fear of not living is a deep, abiding dread of watching your own potential decompose into irredeemable disappointment when 'should be' gets crushed by what is. Sometimes I think it would be easier to die than to face that, because 'what could have been' is much more highly regarded than 'what should have been.' Dead kids are put on pedestals, but mentally ill kids get hidden under the rug.”
I'd definitely recommend this book, but I will also say - be ready, this is not the easiest journey you will ever read through. And it will stay with you forever.
My WEBSITE
My INSTAGRAM
My WORDPRESS BLOG
(Goodreads please give us half stars soon please, and thank you!)
“I used to be afraid of dying. Now I’m afraid of not living. There’s a difference. We go through life planning for a future, but sometimes that future never comes.”
This was one of the hardest books I've ever read. I spent about three weeks on it, because I had to keep putting it down - the emotions of this book kept drowning me. I will be honest - if I didn't read other, more light hearted books while I was also reading this, I'd be plunged into the pits of the deepest depression by now.
"Schizophrenia, schizoaffective, bipolar I, bipolar II, major depression, psychotic depression, obsessive/compulsive, and on, and on. The labels mean nothing, because no two cases are ever exactly alike. Everyone presents differently, and responds to meds differently, and no prognosis can truly be predicted."
The premise of the book, the idea and the message were fantastic. I also really recommend reading the footnote by the author, Neil Shusterman, as he explains how the topic of his book and his family are intimately related. That brought a whole new level of depth to the book.
So why only 3.5 stars? The book was great - there were so many amazing and quotable moments, if this wasn't a library copy, I'd have been highlighting the crap out of it. But where it was full of emotions it lacked in plot (for me at least). I found myself losing attention at the metaphoric parts and wanting to get to the real life parts. Later on in the book they merge and connect, but prior to that I have to admit, it was a bit confusing.
“You see demons in the eyes of the world, and the world sees a bottomless pit in yours.”
The book also deals with prejudice and wrong accusations. How people see somebody who is different and immediately assume that person is a drug addict. And when they realize what's happening it is often way too late.
I believe that this book will help many people - it will show them that they are not alone, that no matter what they might be feeling, no matter how ludicrous it may be, there is somebody out there who had felt the same way, or still is.
But I also believe that this book might trigger many others. The emotions in the book were so real you can feel them dripping off the pages. Caden's fears and his paranoia are contagious, and if you are not careful enough it will get you. It didn't help that I am already a hypochondriac and an ocd (self diagnosed, of course, but these things you just know). I kept thinking - am I going to spiral down one day? I have some symptoms, so is it a challenger deep for me too?
Nobody ever likes to feel powerless, but when I read Challenger Deep I felt it - inability to help Caden, or others like Caiden - because only they can help themselves. Sure, doctors and nurses and medicine stabilize people, but in the end the journey is only that person's to take.
Challenger Deep also gave me a new perspective on brain altering medicine. I still don't exactly know how I feel about it, but I do realize now that sometimes that is all doctors have - their best is just a guess, and sometimes that guess works and sometimes it doesn't.
“The fear of not living is a deep, abiding dread of watching your own potential decompose into irredeemable disappointment when 'should be' gets crushed by what is. Sometimes I think it would be easier to die than to face that, because 'what could have been' is much more highly regarded than 'what should have been.' Dead kids are put on pedestals, but mentally ill kids get hidden under the rug.”
I'd definitely recommend this book, but I will also say - be ready, this is not the easiest journey you will ever read through. And it will stay with you forever.
My WEBSITE
My INSTAGRAM
My WORDPRESS BLOG
April 21, 2015
(Source: I received a digital copy of this book for free on a read-to-review basis. Thanks to HarperCollins and Edelweiss.)
“Count your blessings,” the captain says, “And if you count less than ten, cut off the remaining fingers.”
This story was just plain weird, and while I figured out after a while that it was actually about mental illness, it was still pretty weird.
“Where does this hallway go?”
She looks at me with suspicion. “It doesn’t go anywhere, it stays right here.”
Caden was a boy who had obviously got problems, the hallucinations that the was experiencing were so vivid that he actually believed that they were really happening to him, and his delusions about a boy at school who he had never spoken to wanting to kill him, did come across as a symptom of possible schizophrenia.
“well, it’s just that… there’s this kid at school.”
“Yes?”
“Of course I can’t be sure…”
“Yes?”
“Well… I think he wants to kill me.”
The storyline in this was split in two, half of the time we were following Caden as he lived on a ship (which was very strange), and the other half of the time we saw Caden at home with his family, and experienced the strange ideas he came out with, and his admission to a mental health care facility. This was all a bit confusing though, and after a while I started to get a bit sick of the repetativeness of the story.
“Cartilage of cow,” he tells, “and spine of black beetle.”
“Beetles have no spines,” I point out. “They’re invertebrates.”
“Exactly. That’s why it’s so rare.”
The ending to this was okay, and I appreciated what the author had tried to do with this story, I just struggled to really enjoy this though.
6 out of 10
“Count your blessings,” the captain says, “And if you count less than ten, cut off the remaining fingers.”
This story was just plain weird, and while I figured out after a while that it was actually about mental illness, it was still pretty weird.
“Where does this hallway go?”
She looks at me with suspicion. “It doesn’t go anywhere, it stays right here.”
Caden was a boy who had obviously got problems, the hallucinations that the was experiencing were so vivid that he actually believed that they were really happening to him, and his delusions about a boy at school who he had never spoken to wanting to kill him, did come across as a symptom of possible schizophrenia.
“well, it’s just that… there’s this kid at school.”
“Yes?”
“Of course I can’t be sure…”
“Yes?”
“Well… I think he wants to kill me.”
The storyline in this was split in two, half of the time we were following Caden as he lived on a ship (which was very strange), and the other half of the time we saw Caden at home with his family, and experienced the strange ideas he came out with, and his admission to a mental health care facility. This was all a bit confusing though, and after a while I started to get a bit sick of the repetativeness of the story.
“Cartilage of cow,” he tells, “and spine of black beetle.”
“Beetles have no spines,” I point out. “They’re invertebrates.”
“Exactly. That’s why it’s so rare.”
The ending to this was okay, and I appreciated what the author had tried to do with this story, I just struggled to really enjoy this though.
6 out of 10
November 24, 2015
This is probably one of the most manipulative books I've ever read. Not on purpose or anything, but I just feel like if I don't rate it high it means that don't care about people with mental illness and their struggles. But I think I am going to go ahead and give it 2 stars because I, myself, did not particularly enjoy reading this. This is definitely an important book and one of the best portrayals of mental illness i have ever read and I would TOTALLY recommend it to anyone who wanted to read about mental illness in YA. I was just bored the majority of the time. I think it was beautifully written, but it just wasn't really for me.
April 9, 2018
“And you know the darkness beyond despair, just as intimately as you know the soaring heights. Because in this and all universes, there is balance. You can't have the one without facing the other. And sometimes you think you can take it because the joy is worth the despair, and sometimes you know you can't take it and how did you ever think you could?”
This review will be filled with quotes, because almost everything in this book was quote-worthy. That is how beautiful it is. I will gush about it constantly, this book feels at par with We Are The Ants , and I loved that one. It will be one that keeps coming to mind over and over again.
This is one of the few stories I've read, were the portrayal of mental illness is done so brilliantly that I can find no fault. It shows that although mental illness cannot be cured, it can be managed. This is the story of a boy's descent into schizophrenia, and his dabbles between the reality of it all, and the muddled allegories presented to him during his medicine and "bouts of insanity."
“And when the abyss looks into you - and it will - may you look back unflinching.”
When I read this quote, I knew that the connection that I barely need or seek from a book had been achieved. It felt like an inspiration had been given to me, to stare back at the monster that may haunt my nightmares, and be not afraid. And for this, I could do nothing but recommend it to as many people as I can. People that duffer from mental illnesses are often told that they are weak for being ill, that it is their fault they are the way they are, that no one will ever love them because they cannot love themselves, this quote feels strong enough to give people the valor to start digging themselves out of the whole that varied and differing reasons have dug for them. At least as much as I've read in Young-Adult literature.
“I used to be afraid of dying. Now I’m afraid of not living. There’s a difference. We go through life planning for a future, but sometimes that future never comes.” and “Seeing monsters everywhere and realizing there aren't enough slingshots in the world to get rid of them.”
One of the strongest things, which I had issues with in Thirteen Reasons Why and All the Bright Places, was that mental illness is not romanticized. This story tells it like it is, without presuming that as soon as someone finds love, their illness will be cured, or how their disorder makes them all quirky and adorable, or how a suicide is the pinnacle of leaving earth. I like that, it makes it real, it is not eliminating the struggles which people have to endure in order to provide romance to a targeted audience. (notice that these books are targeted at teens that suffer the illnesses, but they are usually misrepresented, and their illness becomes the plot around romance)
“The fear of not living is a deep, abiding dread of watching your own potential decompose into irredeemable disappointment when 'should be' gets crushed by what is. Sometimes I think it would be easier to die than to face that, because 'what could have been' is much more highly regarded than 'what should have been.' Dead kids are put on pedestals, but mentally ill kids get hidden under the rug.”
I live in America, and in this country, mental illness is not treated as the serious issue that deserves better medical coverage. And I know that is a gross generalization by saying that our mass-school shootings speak for themselves when it comes to this subject, but it is an affront to human decency to not provide any help for people that have a mental illness. Our media also has a big part in wrongly portraying it, mostly using it to present misguided and stereotypical views, which affects the culture, and how everyday people see it. I had a person once tell me that depression was just someone feeling down for a bit, and all they need to do is find a partner and that then they would be fine. I never stayed close to that person again to hear such idiocy come out of their mouth.
There is also the very issue that if someone commits suicide, they are put in a pedestal, they are shown as tragic heroes, they are shown as spokespersons for anti-bulling campaigns, and although I see why it is important to highlight how bullying is a huge issue within our community, they also suffered the after effects of it via a mental illness. But no one talks about it, they choose to ignore it, in the hopes that if no one mentions it, it will go away. But it never does.
“We always look for the signs we missed when something goes wrong. We become like detectives trying to solve a murder, because maybe if we uncover the clues, it gives us some control. Sure, we can’t change what happened, but if we can string together enough clues, we can prove that whatever nightmare has befallen us, we could have stopped it, if only we had been smart enough. I suppose it’s better to believe in our own stupidity than it is to believe that all the clues in the world wouldn’t have changed a thing.”
All I have to say is thank you Neal Shusterman, this book gave the emotional ride that few books have ever done. This is one I will read and read over and over, until I am probably dead.
“To name her is to sink her,” he told me. “That which we name takes greater weight than the sea it displaces. Ask any shipwreck.”“I know exactly what he means. I had overheard Poirot talking to my parents. He was using words like "psychosis" and "schizophrenic". Words that people feel they have to whisper, or not repeat at all. The Mental-Illness-That-Must-Not-Be-Named.”
Once you make a Harry Potter reference that stands on its own, you've got me.
This review will be filled with quotes, because almost everything in this book was quote-worthy. That is how beautiful it is. I will gush about it constantly, this book feels at par with We Are The Ants , and I loved that one. It will be one that keeps coming to mind over and over again.
This is one of the few stories I've read, were the portrayal of mental illness is done so brilliantly that I can find no fault. It shows that although mental illness cannot be cured, it can be managed. This is the story of a boy's descent into schizophrenia, and his dabbles between the reality of it all, and the muddled allegories presented to him during his medicine and "bouts of insanity."
“And when the abyss looks into you - and it will - may you look back unflinching.”
When I read this quote, I knew that the connection that I barely need or seek from a book had been achieved. It felt like an inspiration had been given to me, to stare back at the monster that may haunt my nightmares, and be not afraid. And for this, I could do nothing but recommend it to as many people as I can. People that duffer from mental illnesses are often told that they are weak for being ill, that it is their fault they are the way they are, that no one will ever love them because they cannot love themselves, this quote feels strong enough to give people the valor to start digging themselves out of the whole that varied and differing reasons have dug for them. At least as much as I've read in Young-Adult literature.
“I used to be afraid of dying. Now I’m afraid of not living. There’s a difference. We go through life planning for a future, but sometimes that future never comes.” and “Seeing monsters everywhere and realizing there aren't enough slingshots in the world to get rid of them.”
One of the strongest things, which I had issues with in Thirteen Reasons Why and All the Bright Places, was that mental illness is not romanticized. This story tells it like it is, without presuming that as soon as someone finds love, their illness will be cured, or how their disorder makes them all quirky and adorable, or how a suicide is the pinnacle of leaving earth. I like that, it makes it real, it is not eliminating the struggles which people have to endure in order to provide romance to a targeted audience. (notice that these books are targeted at teens that suffer the illnesses, but they are usually misrepresented, and their illness becomes the plot around romance)
“The fear of not living is a deep, abiding dread of watching your own potential decompose into irredeemable disappointment when 'should be' gets crushed by what is. Sometimes I think it would be easier to die than to face that, because 'what could have been' is much more highly regarded than 'what should have been.' Dead kids are put on pedestals, but mentally ill kids get hidden under the rug.”
I live in America, and in this country, mental illness is not treated as the serious issue that deserves better medical coverage. And I know that is a gross generalization by saying that our mass-school shootings speak for themselves when it comes to this subject, but it is an affront to human decency to not provide any help for people that have a mental illness. Our media also has a big part in wrongly portraying it, mostly using it to present misguided and stereotypical views, which affects the culture, and how everyday people see it. I had a person once tell me that depression was just someone feeling down for a bit, and all they need to do is find a partner and that then they would be fine. I never stayed close to that person again to hear such idiocy come out of their mouth.
There is also the very issue that if someone commits suicide, they are put in a pedestal, they are shown as tragic heroes, they are shown as spokespersons for anti-bulling campaigns, and although I see why it is important to highlight how bullying is a huge issue within our community, they also suffered the after effects of it via a mental illness. But no one talks about it, they choose to ignore it, in the hopes that if no one mentions it, it will go away. But it never does.
“We always look for the signs we missed when something goes wrong. We become like detectives trying to solve a murder, because maybe if we uncover the clues, it gives us some control. Sure, we can’t change what happened, but if we can string together enough clues, we can prove that whatever nightmare has befallen us, we could have stopped it, if only we had been smart enough. I suppose it’s better to believe in our own stupidity than it is to believe that all the clues in the world wouldn’t have changed a thing.”
All I have to say is thank you Neal Shusterman, this book gave the emotional ride that few books have ever done. This is one I will read and read over and over, until I am probably dead.
“To name her is to sink her,” he told me. “That which we name takes greater weight than the sea it displaces. Ask any shipwreck.”“I know exactly what he means. I had overheard Poirot talking to my parents. He was using words like "psychosis" and "schizophrenic". Words that people feel they have to whisper, or not repeat at all. The Mental-Illness-That-Must-Not-Be-Named.”
Once you make a Harry Potter reference that stands on its own, you've got me.
October 6, 2018
Challenger Deep is a brilliant and imaginative account of an adolescent’s descent into mental illness and his recovery. The author takes us into the disturbed mind of 15-year-old Caden Bosch and we perceive what it means to live in a world where reality keeps shifting and there is no true North. Caden is distracted by things he cannot see but can feel, such as termites he claims he can hear. I steeled myself for a difficult read, and it was difficult and longer than I liked it to be, but what I did not expect was to be entertained by the humor and zaniness that bubble up from a hidden place left seemingly intact within this battered youth.
Having schizophrenia is likened to being on a pirate ship with a one-eyed captain wearing an eye patch and a one-eyed parrot also wearing an eye patch and an additional safety badge. On board ship is the crow’s nest where crewmen like Caden go to get their colorful cocktail a few times a day. Except that Caden’s drink glows like a lava lamp and is concocted from cartilage of cow and spine of black beetle! Caden is on a mission to the Challenger Deep, the deepest point on Earth, the southern icy end of the Marianas Trench.
The captain is a mocking tyrant, regards Caden as a ‘malnourished pup’, and cuts off the limbs of crewmen who displease him. Caden is a budding artist but the captain informs him that he has no permission to have a talent. The parrot is no better; he is malevolent, too, but funny. The captain and the parrot behave like rivals in competition for Caden’s loyalty. It is hard to know if they are on Caden's side. There are some laughable interactions on board ship, which takes the weight off a book whose subject matter concerns the dark corners of the human mind.
Caden is disturbed but has good insight when the oompah-loompas bouncing around his brain subside. On blue sky days, he recognizes he has more caring parents than his roommate. He feels his parents’ helplessness in their quest to save him. ‘The two of them are in a lifeboat, together, but so alone. Miles from shore, yet miles from me. The boat leaks, and they must bail in tandem to keep themselves afloat. It must be exhausting.’ He can be unkindly honest and straight-talking during group therapy when participants are unhelpfully going in circles of revisiting past abuse week after week. Shusterman created a young hero we want to root for.
Structurally, the chapters are very short and alternate between Caden on the pirate ship and Caden in a juvenile psychiatric ward. Interspersed between the chapters are the sketches and art work of a troubled soul. One of the first signs of hope is when the captain says to Caden, ‘This ship is more alive than you think, boy. She feels pain. She can be hurt but can also heal.’ And Caden does heal over time.
Challenger Deep is an ingenious way of illustrating the trials faced by individuals seeking help in a mental health care facility. It also subtly but respectfully reveals the limitations of antipsychotic medication and the delicacy of the group psychotherapy process.
I was moved to learn that Challenger Deep is borne of Neal Shusterman’s own experience of having journeyed with his son who suffered a mental disorder. The art work in the book were drawn by his son when he was ill. That this book is not fiction lends it an authentic and powerful voice. It is the well-deserved recipient of the 2015 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature. This sensitive and sympathetic insider story of a fragmented mind that can become whole again is highly recommended.
Having schizophrenia is likened to being on a pirate ship with a one-eyed captain wearing an eye patch and a one-eyed parrot also wearing an eye patch and an additional safety badge. On board ship is the crow’s nest where crewmen like Caden go to get their colorful cocktail a few times a day. Except that Caden’s drink glows like a lava lamp and is concocted from cartilage of cow and spine of black beetle! Caden is on a mission to the Challenger Deep, the deepest point on Earth, the southern icy end of the Marianas Trench.
The captain is a mocking tyrant, regards Caden as a ‘malnourished pup’, and cuts off the limbs of crewmen who displease him. Caden is a budding artist but the captain informs him that he has no permission to have a talent. The parrot is no better; he is malevolent, too, but funny. The captain and the parrot behave like rivals in competition for Caden’s loyalty. It is hard to know if they are on Caden's side. There are some laughable interactions on board ship, which takes the weight off a book whose subject matter concerns the dark corners of the human mind.
Caden is disturbed but has good insight when the oompah-loompas bouncing around his brain subside. On blue sky days, he recognizes he has more caring parents than his roommate. He feels his parents’ helplessness in their quest to save him. ‘The two of them are in a lifeboat, together, but so alone. Miles from shore, yet miles from me. The boat leaks, and they must bail in tandem to keep themselves afloat. It must be exhausting.’ He can be unkindly honest and straight-talking during group therapy when participants are unhelpfully going in circles of revisiting past abuse week after week. Shusterman created a young hero we want to root for.
Structurally, the chapters are very short and alternate between Caden on the pirate ship and Caden in a juvenile psychiatric ward. Interspersed between the chapters are the sketches and art work of a troubled soul. One of the first signs of hope is when the captain says to Caden, ‘This ship is more alive than you think, boy. She feels pain. She can be hurt but can also heal.’ And Caden does heal over time.
Challenger Deep is an ingenious way of illustrating the trials faced by individuals seeking help in a mental health care facility. It also subtly but respectfully reveals the limitations of antipsychotic medication and the delicacy of the group psychotherapy process.
I was moved to learn that Challenger Deep is borne of Neal Shusterman’s own experience of having journeyed with his son who suffered a mental disorder. The art work in the book were drawn by his son when he was ill. That this book is not fiction lends it an authentic and powerful voice. It is the well-deserved recipient of the 2015 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature. This sensitive and sympathetic insider story of a fragmented mind that can become whole again is highly recommended.
December 31, 2020
RTC
BUT....I completed this book before 2020!!
Buddy read with Mr.Stark
Dr.Strange
Captain America AND
Thor
What could go wrong in this BR???!!
Definitely not my go-to genre BUT I am surprised that I am enjoying decoding the sentences and their meaning
BUT
YUP!!! Now I am a fan of Sherlock too xD
BUT....I completed this book before 2020!!
Buddy read with Mr.Stark
Dr.Strange
Captain America AND
Thor
What could go wrong in this BR???!!
Definitely not my go-to genre BUT I am surprised that I am enjoying decoding the sentences and their meaning
BUT
YUP!!! Now I am a fan of Sherlock too xD
December 31, 2020
Buddy read with Joker, Harley Quinn, James Gordon and Harvey Dent.
April 19, 2017
"Dead kids are put on pedestals, but mentally ill kids get hidden under the rug.”
This book is incredible. It’s the brave and harrowing, but above all brutally honest story of what it feels like to suffer from schizophrenia. Alongside Caden we confront it all: the delusions, the mania, the constant fear and doubts - but also the lights on the horizon and the support from friends and family. Challenger Deep is based on the experience of Shusterman’s best friend and own son with this mental illness, which made this story all the more powerful.
In this book we follow Caden Bosch, a 15-year-old teenage boy who's mind slowly gets taking over by terrifying hallucinations and intrusive thoughts. It starts out very small – him thinking there are termites living in the walls of his home – but when Caden starts to roam the streets in fear of /a boy he suspects is going to kill him/earthquakes/painted dolphins/SOMETHING!/ his parents admit him to a mental hospital.
In there Caden spends his time with group therapy sessions, medication cocktails, and talks with his psychiatrist. In his mind however, Caden is part of a ship’s crew, lead by a terrifying captain in search of Challenger Deep, an oceanic trench where the darkest monsters of all reside.
Reading this book was a challenge, in more ways than one. A lot of chapters namely are about how Caden is trapped in the delusions of his own mind, where things from reality and his imagination come together on the ship. First I didn’t understand the chapters on the ship at all, but after 1/3 of the book things click and will start making sense.
The chapters spend in reality are more clear, but maybe more painful to read because the reader, alongside Caden, experiences the fear and anxiety while he slowly loses control of his own mind. The boy realises that his fears aren’t real, but he can’t help it: he HAS to run from the things that are chasing him.
“Don Quixote - the famous literary madman - fought windmills. People think he saw giants when he looked at them, but those of us who've been there know the truth. He saw windmills, just like everyone else - but he believed they were giants. The scariest thing of all is never knowing what you're suddenly going to believe.”
This book offers a very positive and realistic view on medication and mental health clinics. In many (mental-health) books mental hospitals are demonized and described as prisons and mental torture houses run by cruel doctors and orderlies. This is incredibly damaging and harmful for the image of mental health as a whole, because in most cases (let’s be realistic), hospitals aren’t like that at all. Shusterman actively shows you how the medication and therapy sessions work by making the writing and the story more coherent the longer Caden stays in the clinic. Slowly you figure out who the ship’s crewmembers are, and whose words you can trust.
But meds don’t make an illness disappear. A girl in the clinic comments that “at home they all think medicine should be magic, and they become mad at me when it’s not.” Not all the children in the clinic improve while they are there. A mental disorder, wherever it’s schizophrenia, depression, or OCD, can’t be cured: it’s something that you have to fight again and again and again. This struggle is incredibly difficult, but seeing how all the kids fight their inner demons with the support of each other, the doctors, and their family, is heart wrenching but very powerful.
In the author’s note, Shusterman tells that “he hopes that this book will comfort those who have been there, letting them know they are not alone. We also hope that it will help others empathize, and to understand what it’s like to sail the dark, unpredictable waters of mental illness.” The aim of this book isn’t therefore only to entertain, but also to educate and make us aware of how mental illness can affect someone's life and the lives of others.
I’m very happy that I’ve read this book and will recommend it to anyone who is interested in reading books about mental health wherein nothing gets glamorized, or those who want to read an impactful story. Because this certainly made an impact on me.
This is the third book that I read for the #DiverseAThon, which ran from the 22nd to the 29th of January 2017.
This book is incredible. It’s the brave and harrowing, but above all brutally honest story of what it feels like to suffer from schizophrenia. Alongside Caden we confront it all: the delusions, the mania, the constant fear and doubts - but also the lights on the horizon and the support from friends and family. Challenger Deep is based on the experience of Shusterman’s best friend and own son with this mental illness, which made this story all the more powerful.
In this book we follow Caden Bosch, a 15-year-old teenage boy who's mind slowly gets taking over by terrifying hallucinations and intrusive thoughts. It starts out very small – him thinking there are termites living in the walls of his home – but when Caden starts to roam the streets in fear of /a boy he suspects is going to kill him/earthquakes/painted dolphins/SOMETHING!/ his parents admit him to a mental hospital.
In there Caden spends his time with group therapy sessions, medication cocktails, and talks with his psychiatrist. In his mind however, Caden is part of a ship’s crew, lead by a terrifying captain in search of Challenger Deep, an oceanic trench where the darkest monsters of all reside.
Reading this book was a challenge, in more ways than one. A lot of chapters namely are about how Caden is trapped in the delusions of his own mind, where things from reality and his imagination come together on the ship. First I didn’t understand the chapters on the ship at all, but after 1/3 of the book things click and will start making sense.
The chapters spend in reality are more clear, but maybe more painful to read because the reader, alongside Caden, experiences the fear and anxiety while he slowly loses control of his own mind. The boy realises that his fears aren’t real, but he can’t help it: he HAS to run from the things that are chasing him.
“Don Quixote - the famous literary madman - fought windmills. People think he saw giants when he looked at them, but those of us who've been there know the truth. He saw windmills, just like everyone else - but he believed they were giants. The scariest thing of all is never knowing what you're suddenly going to believe.”
This book offers a very positive and realistic view on medication and mental health clinics. In many (mental-health) books mental hospitals are demonized and described as prisons and mental torture houses run by cruel doctors and orderlies. This is incredibly damaging and harmful for the image of mental health as a whole, because in most cases (let’s be realistic), hospitals aren’t like that at all. Shusterman actively shows you how the medication and therapy sessions work by making the writing and the story more coherent the longer Caden stays in the clinic. Slowly you figure out who the ship’s crewmembers are, and whose words you can trust.
But meds don’t make an illness disappear. A girl in the clinic comments that “at home they all think medicine should be magic, and they become mad at me when it’s not.” Not all the children in the clinic improve while they are there. A mental disorder, wherever it’s schizophrenia, depression, or OCD, can’t be cured: it’s something that you have to fight again and again and again. This struggle is incredibly difficult, but seeing how all the kids fight their inner demons with the support of each other, the doctors, and their family, is heart wrenching but very powerful.
In the author’s note, Shusterman tells that “he hopes that this book will comfort those who have been there, letting them know they are not alone. We also hope that it will help others empathize, and to understand what it’s like to sail the dark, unpredictable waters of mental illness.” The aim of this book isn’t therefore only to entertain, but also to educate and make us aware of how mental illness can affect someone's life and the lives of others.
I’m very happy that I’ve read this book and will recommend it to anyone who is interested in reading books about mental health wherein nothing gets glamorized, or those who want to read an impactful story. Because this certainly made an impact on me.
This is the third book that I read for the #DiverseAThon, which ran from the 22nd to the 29th of January 2017.
May 28, 2017
I recently asked someone, "Would you rather travel into outer space or the deepest depths of the ocean?" He said, "There's nothing underwater. Outer space, there's so much out there." Yeah, if you're interested in flying rocks! My answer: The depths of the ocean, because there's so much fascinating life down where the sun cannot reach. But both would be too scary for me to actually attempt, because your vessel of choice could depressurize and turn your head inside out.
Shortly after that thought experiment, I read the blurb for this book: "Caden Bosch is on a ship that's headed for the deepest point on Earth: Challenger Deep, the southern part of the Marianas Trench."
Serendipity! I immediately put in an ILL at my library.
I should have kept reading, or, if I did, actually paid attention to what I read. The blurb continues, "Caden Bosch is a brilliant high school student whose friends are starting to notice his odd behavior." Okay, this is a kids' book. He could be on a ship and in school. That type of things happens in fiction. (In bad fiction!, I'd have said if I were paying attention.)
The blurb continues, "Caden Bosch is designated the ship's artist in residence, to document the journey with images." Okay, this could be interesting, I'd think.
Furthermore, "Caden Bosch pretends to join the school track team but spends his days walking for miles, absorbed by the thoughts in his head." Uhh, I guess you gotta keep moving when you're underwater. You wouldn't want all the fluid going to your legs or something, right?
Finally, "Caden Bosch is split between his allegiance to the captain and the allure of mutiny." Ooh, drama! (Also, I hate when blurbs repeatedly name the character like I'm going to start chanting it as if he's my cult leader.)
The way this blurb is written, I expected something akin to The Abyss. Deep sea exploration breeds paranoia and insecurity. Unfortunately, it's the opposite. Normal high school kid is grappling with schizophrenia. He hallucinates being on a weird ship, which only increases his all-too-real sense of paranoia.
This story could be fascinating if written differently. There is no consistent structure. Chapters are very short, one- or two-pages long. The first five chapters are either dream sequences, rambling thoughts, or set on the ship. The next two chapters are in the character's reality, where he interacts with his mom and dad, his sister, and feels disconnected from his friends at school. Chapters 9-11 are set in the ship. 12-13 are reality. 14-17: ship. 18-19: reality. 20-21: ship. 22-24: reality? The chapters are sometimes punctuated by illustrations only a dad could love (the illustrator is Shusterman's son, and Shusterman says about his son's doodles, "There is no greater artwork in the world.")
There is no rhythm to the chapter structure. I feel like the intent is to create "instability" in the narrative. "Being schizophrenic is confusing!" someone might say to justify this lack of structure, but it feels like Shusterman is using the inherent instability of mental illness as an excuse to not give his book a coherent rhythm or structure. Plus, the ship sequences are absurd. There's a magic talking parrot; the captain speaks in riddles; the crow's nest is bigger on the inside than the outside... and for what purpose? "It's an allegory!" someone might say to justify the incoherent contents of these chapters, but as a reader, I don't need 200 pages of allegory, and "allegory" isn't an excuse to throw stream-of-consciousness writing on the page and call it a novel.
I started skipping the ship chapters and reading only the reality chapters. I didn't feel lost as a reader at all, but I did feel bored. I didn't find the writing particularly compelling. One entire chapter where the narrator morosely ponders the meaning of the phrase "a penny for your thoughts" grated on me. "If pennies become worthless, does that devalue our thoughts to less than nothing?" Ugh.
I read the last few chapters to confirm that If this book were about half the length, I may have gone on this journey into the depths. But, kind of like a twisted combination of my initial question that caused my attraction to this book, I've dove into the water and found only rocks.
Shortly after that thought experiment, I read the blurb for this book: "Caden Bosch is on a ship that's headed for the deepest point on Earth: Challenger Deep, the southern part of the Marianas Trench."
Serendipity! I immediately put in an ILL at my library.
I should have kept reading, or, if I did, actually paid attention to what I read. The blurb continues, "Caden Bosch is a brilliant high school student whose friends are starting to notice his odd behavior." Okay, this is a kids' book. He could be on a ship and in school. That type of things happens in fiction. (In bad fiction!, I'd have said if I were paying attention.)
The blurb continues, "Caden Bosch is designated the ship's artist in residence, to document the journey with images." Okay, this could be interesting, I'd think.
Furthermore, "Caden Bosch pretends to join the school track team but spends his days walking for miles, absorbed by the thoughts in his head." Uhh, I guess you gotta keep moving when you're underwater. You wouldn't want all the fluid going to your legs or something, right?
Finally, "Caden Bosch is split between his allegiance to the captain and the allure of mutiny." Ooh, drama! (Also, I hate when blurbs repeatedly name the character like I'm going to start chanting it as if he's my cult leader.)
The way this blurb is written, I expected something akin to The Abyss. Deep sea exploration breeds paranoia and insecurity. Unfortunately, it's the opposite. Normal high school kid is grappling with schizophrenia. He hallucinates being on a weird ship, which only increases his all-too-real sense of paranoia.
This story could be fascinating if written differently. There is no consistent structure. Chapters are very short, one- or two-pages long. The first five chapters are either dream sequences, rambling thoughts, or set on the ship. The next two chapters are in the character's reality, where he interacts with his mom and dad, his sister, and feels disconnected from his friends at school. Chapters 9-11 are set in the ship. 12-13 are reality. 14-17: ship. 18-19: reality. 20-21: ship. 22-24: reality? The chapters are sometimes punctuated by illustrations only a dad could love (the illustrator is Shusterman's son, and Shusterman says about his son's doodles, "There is no greater artwork in the world.")
There is no rhythm to the chapter structure. I feel like the intent is to create "instability" in the narrative. "Being schizophrenic is confusing!" someone might say to justify this lack of structure, but it feels like Shusterman is using the inherent instability of mental illness as an excuse to not give his book a coherent rhythm or structure. Plus, the ship sequences are absurd. There's a magic talking parrot; the captain speaks in riddles; the crow's nest is bigger on the inside than the outside... and for what purpose? "It's an allegory!" someone might say to justify the incoherent contents of these chapters, but as a reader, I don't need 200 pages of allegory, and "allegory" isn't an excuse to throw stream-of-consciousness writing on the page and call it a novel.
I started skipping the ship chapters and reading only the reality chapters. I didn't feel lost as a reader at all, but I did feel bored. I didn't find the writing particularly compelling. One entire chapter where the narrator morosely ponders the meaning of the phrase "a penny for your thoughts" grated on me. "If pennies become worthless, does that devalue our thoughts to less than nothing?" Ugh.
I read the last few chapters to confirm that If this book were about half the length, I may have gone on this journey into the depths. But, kind of like a twisted combination of my initial question that caused my attraction to this book, I've dove into the water and found only rocks.
April 5, 2021
بالاخره تمومش کردم.
قرار بود تا سیزده فروردین ده تا کتاب بخونیم. الان شونزدهمه و من شیشمین کتاب رو تموم کردهم.
خیلی کتاب خوبی بود. واقعا این حالت پیچدرپیچی که برام داشت رو خیلی دوست داشتم. شخصیتها، فضاسازی، واقعا همهش برام خیلی قشنگ بود.
حجم زیادی هم نداشت، و از اون کتابهایی هم بود که دوست نداشتی بذاری پایین؛ واقعا نمیدونم چرا اینهمه طول کشید تا تمومش کنم.
قرار بود تا سیزده فروردین ده تا کتاب بخونیم. الان شونزدهمه و من شیشمین کتاب رو تموم کردهم.
خیلی کتاب خوبی بود. واقعا این حالت پیچدرپیچی که برام داشت رو خیلی دوست داشتم. شخصیتها، فضاسازی، واقعا همهش برام خیلی قشنگ بود.
حجم زیادی هم نداشت، و از اون کتابهایی هم بود که دوست نداشتی بذاری پایین؛ واقعا نمیدونم چرا اینهمه طول کشید تا تمومش کنم.
Shelved as 'own-tbr'
March 19, 2021Another pay day treat to myself 😊
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