Horn Book Review
(High School) Callie begins her story from her doctor's office at Sea Pines, a ""residential treatment facility,"" where Callie barely speaks. During long psychotherapy sessions spent mutely staring out the window, Callie remembers bits and pieces of the weeks leading up to her arrival, slowly filling in the picture of a family effectively incapacitated by her little brother's severe asthma. Callie distracts herself from her problems with detailed observations of daily hospital routines and of the other girls on her wing-""guests with food issues,"" ""guests with substance-abuse issues."" Callie's own method for coping with her pain is related in palpable but nongratuitous scenes that convey the depths of her desperation: as tension mounts during a terrible family visit, Callie withdraws to the restroom to rub her wrist on the teeth of the paper-towel dispenser, finding release only when blood appears. Though silent in group therapy, she finds herself drawn into the other girls' lives and longing for connection. Her slow progress reaches a climax when she approaches the terrifying memory of her brother's near death and her own overwhelming responsibility-and she runs away. Her father's quick appearance and his sudden awakening to Callie's situation come a bit too easily, but Callie's healing is earned realistically through her own hard work, making her an empathetic character. First-time author McCormick creates a sensitive portrayal of a young girl's illness and her difficult path to recovery. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
Sea Pines, a.k.a. Sick Minds, treats teenaged girls with food- and substance-abuse issues, and Callie, whose issue is self-mutilation. She will not talk about her dysfunctional family, her guilt toward her brother Sams severe asthma, or why she cuts herself. She will not talkperiod. Cut is Callies interior monologue that alternates between her interactions with her therapist and her interactions with the other residents, the staff, and her family. Her thought process reveals a girl who seems to have given up on life until one cut scares the life back into her. The ability to talk then becomes a metaphor for Callies ability to understand herself and to begin the healing process. Readers are also treated to the downfalls and triumphs of Callies peers, including a new resident who shares Callies affliction. First-timer McCormick tackles a side of mental illness that is rarely seen in young-adult literature in a believable and sensitive manner. Unlike other authors of this genre, she avoids stereotypes and blends gentle humor with this serious topic. McCormick ultimately portrays Callie as a normal teenager who yearns for a stable family structure and friends, and who also has a psychological problem. A thoughtful look at teenage mental illness and recovery. (Fiction. 13-15)
