The fascinating, shocking, and ultimately quite hopeful story of one teen’s downward spiral into mental illness by the bestselling author of Tweak.

Miles’s little brother Teddy is missing. The police believe he drowned at the beach—the very same day Miles had his first schizophrenic episode. But Miles knows better—Teddy is alive. Kidnapped. There was even a witness! Fueled by guilt, Miles sets off to rescue Teddy.

There is so much to overcome, though. The endless pills he must take. The girl who steals his heart and plays with it. The black crows that follow him.

As seen through Miles’s distorted perception, his world closes around him as he pushes to keep it open. What you think you know about his world is actually a blur of gray, though, and the sharp focus of reality proves startling.

The New York Times bestselling author of Tweak offers a fascinating and ultimately quite hopeful story of one teen’s downward spiral into mental illness.
 
Praise for SCHIZO:

Included in CNN.com's roundup of "new titles to feed your YA addiction"

“Readers fascinated by the dark side of the human mind in realistic fiction will enjoy this deft portrayal of a brain and a life spiraling out of control. Miles is an endearing character whose difficult journey will generate compassion and hope.” –School Library Journal

“[T]he crafting of the plot and the convergence of the different storylines keeps pages turning. Schizo is a thrilling read for teens.” –VOYA 

"[A}n insightful perspective on one teen’s struggle with mental illness." —Publishers Weekly

"Miles's clipped first-person narration is immediate and intimate." —Horn Book

"[A] heartbreaking story, but particularly important in the climate around mental illness today." –Bustle.com Gr 9 Up–Sheff’s novel reveals the painful and confusing world of teenage schizophrenia through the experience of Miles, a junior at a small San Francisco private school, where his mother works as a librarian. Miles’s few friends only barely understand his struggle to hold on to reality, a tenuous grasp maintained through a dizzying array of pills and the love of his family. Miles is consumed by guilt at the kidnapping or death of his little brother Teddy on the same day he had his first extreme breakdown in a beach bathroom. Two years before, Miles believes, he destroyed his family. Now he believes that if he can just track down Teddy, he can restore their happiness and perhaps move forward himself. His plan is complicated by the return of Eliza, a close childhood friend whom he came to love and who rebuffed him just before her family moved away for two years. She missed his diagnosis and tentative re-entry to high school, plagued by the effects of his medication and suffering through frequent visits to a psychiatrist his family can’t really afford. Now that she might actually return his feelings for her, Miles is distracted by Eliza when he needs to focus on Teddy’s kidnapper. His visions of menacing crows and some questionable decisions indicate that Miles may be falling deeper into mental illness. Readers fascinated by the dark side of the human mind in realistic fiction will enjoy this deft portrayal of a brain and a life spiraling out of control. Miles is an endearing character whose difficult journey will generate compassion and hope. -- School Library Journal

"[A}n insightful perspective on one teen’s struggle with mental illness."--Publishers Weekly

Praise for SCHIZO:

Included in CNN.com's roundup of "new titles to feed your YA addiction"

“Readers fascinated by the dark side of the human mind in realistic fiction will enjoy this deft portrayal of a brain and a life spiraling out of control. Miles is an endearing character whose difficult journey will generate compassion and hope.” –School Library Journal

“[T]he crafting of the plot and the convergence of the different storylines keeps pages turning. Schizo is a thrilling read for teens.” –VOYA 

"[A}n insightful perspective on one teen’s struggle with mental illness." –Publishers Weekly

"Miles’s clipped first-person narration is immediate and intimate." –Horn Book

"[A] heartbreaking story, but particularly important in the climate around mental illness today." –Bustle.com


 

"[A] heartbreaking story, but particularly important in the climate around mental illness today."--Bustle.com