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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 362.28092
EAN num: 9780060598662
ISBN number: 0060598662
Label: Harper Paperbacks
Manufacturer: Harper Paperbacks
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 336
Printing Date: May 01, 2006
Publishing house: Harper Paperbacks
Release Date: May 02, 2006
Sale Popularity Level: 1064183
Studio: Harper Paperbacks
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Product Description:
On March 11, 2001, seventeen-year-old Will ingested a near-fatal dose of his antidepressant medication, an event that would forever change his life and the lives of his family. In Will's Choice, his mother, Gail Griffith, tells the story of her family's struggle to renew Will's interest in life and to regain their equilibrium in the aftermath.
Griffith intersperses her own finely wrought prose with dozens of letters and journal entries from family and friends, including many from Will himself. A memoir with a social conscience, Will's Choice lays bare the social and political challenges that American families face in combating this most mysterious and stigmatized of illnesses. In Gail Griffith, depressed teens have found themselves a formidable advocate, and in the evocative and fiercely compelling narrative of Will's Choice, we all discover the promise of a second chance.
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Rated by buyers 
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When I very first bought this book I didn't expect much. But, as I read the book and followed the amazing journey Will had to make in the steps to keep control of his depression and not get the better of him the more I enjoyed it. This young man is a true inspiration for kids and young adults who suffer from depression that there are things like hope and a better quality of life awaiting us if we just keep holding on a bit longer to realize it ourselves.
Rated by buyers -
I enjoyed reading the book and felt like I was right there with the family going through this crisis. I rooted for Will all the way through and couldn't wait to hear of his improvements. But, in the end I was a little frustrated though at the fact that he never does appreciate all his parents do. They spent $5,000 a month on a therapy school only few can dream of. I was hoping to see in the end that he truly saw a light and I guess I just felt like the book ended with him still being depressed and immature.
Rated by buyers 
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What separate this story of a family's struggle with a son's suicidal depression are the son's and his girlfriend's own first-person accounts of their psychological torments. Maybe these accounts, together with author Griffith's lucidity, explain why so many young people seem to be seeking this book out. They certainly make the lack of mental health support this family found all the more shocking.
Rated by buyers -
Reading this book was one of the most affecting entertainment experiences I have ever had. I venture to say that not since the 12-hour 1973 TV documentary, 'An American Family', has there been -- in print or on video -- as fully realized a portrait of a family in crisis as is portrayed in this astonishing work. The story begins with the highest possible drama in recounting the near-fatal suicide endeavor of an exceptionally bright, seemingly well-adjusted 17-year-old boy in the bedroom of the upper middle class D.C. home he shared with two loving and dedicated parents. In fact, at the time of his attempt, Will was actually being raised by four remarkable parents, as both his mother (author Gail Griffith with whom he was living when he overdosed on anti-depressant drugs intending to die) and his father (with whom he was also extremely close) had each acquired a second spouse; not only had the respective step-parents embraced Will as if he were their natural child, but the four adults had achieved unusual harmony amongst themselves, beautifully integrating their extended families. No post-divorce rancor or other trauma, no major drug or alcohol problems, few dark clouds of any kind appeared to have unleashed the violent storm that nearly destroyed a promising young man. Partial answers to the riddle of why Will crashed are suggested by Griffith's history of her own lengthy depression and hospitalization, as well as her painfully detailed portrait of Will's girlfriend, Megan, who was also suffering from severe depression as well as an addiction to cutting her skin with razor blades and knives. Indeed, Griffith, in securing the right to publish contemporaneous letters and diary notes from young Megan Mathews (interspersed with those of Will and many other family members) tells a story of a second deeply-troubled self-mutilating teen, who, like Will, eventually manages to regain her mental health; not only does the quality of Megan's writing add an excellent further dimension to Griffith's story, but I feel certain that the excerpts from Megan are our introduction to an uncommonly talented writer -- whose own books I eagerly look forward to reading. As Will rallies from a 2-day coma, his family confronts their fears that he might endeavor a second try, as well as guilt and anger over the mystery of what led to the very first attempt. Griffith ably stitches together the story of Will's earlier years and then recounts the intensive family effort to locate what proves to be a rare and remarkable institution, Montana Academy, which accepts Will and shepards his year-long recovery to where he regains a strong will to live and resume normal life in the 'real' world. Griffith pauses throughout her narrative to alert parents to what she learned from this excruciating experience -- how to foretell suicide threats, how to diagnose and deal with depressed children, how to work with psychiatrists and other doctors, how to evaluate and manage anti-depressant drugs, and many other insights into preserving family mental health. Virtually no names are fictionalized in this book, which adds to its authenticity and underlines the courage of the many family members, friends, and others who cooperated in this supremely generous offering -- which no parent should miss the opportunity to learn from.
Rated by buyers -
The circumstances of Gail Griffith's story are too familiar to many of us who have shared the suffering of family members with mental illnesses. Congratulations to Will, Gail and their family and friends for finding a way out of the darkness and for their courage in showing others that it can be done.
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