Psychiatric Tales: Eleven Graphic Stories About Mental Illness HC
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA
Release Date: February 2011
Price: $15.00
Creator: Darryl Cunningham
Format: 160 pgs.; B&W; Hardcover
ISBN: 978-1-60819-278-6
Age Rating: Teen+
ICv2 Rating: 4.5 Stars out of 5

Using a stark, black-and-white art style and a frank, open voice which are both reminiscent of Scott McCloud’s seminal work Understanding Comics, Cunningham flings open the doors of a psychiatric ward and invites readers inside to get a sensitive glimpse into the misunderstood world of mental illness.  Rather than give a full retelling of all his years of experience in mental health--as a health care assistant on an acute psychiatric ward, as a student nurse studying psychiatry, and as a sufferer of severe depression--Cunningham tells stories that each highlight one aspect of an illness.  These stories enlighten readers to the hardships faced by suffers and to the prejudices forced upon them by the wider world, as well as give some background on the causes (if known) of different mental illnesses.  Though the images in a few panels seem unconnected to the larger story, overall Cunningham’s thin lined drawings and strong use of black are a perfect fit for his stories.  His use of both negative shading and of altered photos offers a nice counterpoint and keeps the panels from becoming static.  This moving work will speak to both teen and adult audiences, especially because of Cunningham’s final tale about his own personal struggles with mental illness.

--Snow Wildsmith: Writer and former teen librarian and ALA/YALSA committee member.