Reviewed by Kat
TITLE: Turn the World Upside Down
AUTHOR: Nyrae Dawn
PUBLISHER: Harmony Ink Press
LENGTH: 200 pages
RELEASE DATE: October 20, 2016
BLURB:
Hunter Donovan’s temper never used to be a problem. He lived the perfect life with the perfect family before the dark truth came spilling out. Now his dad’s in prison, and after Hunter explodes at school, accidentally hitting a teacher, his mom has him committed.
Hunter doesn’t belong at Better Days. He needs to be stronger, not sent to a well-dressed loony bin. If he’d been better, less selfish, he would have realized something was going on under his own roof. No amount of psychoanalyzing and group therapy can change the past.
But among the bullies, fights, and bad cafeteria food, Hunter meets a group of friends: anxiety-ridden Casey, wild and exciting Rosie, recovering bulimic Bethany, and Stray, a self-harmer who doesn’t think he belongs anywhere. Around this group of misfits, Hunter doesn’t feel so alone and angry anymore.
Still, as he’s making friends and falling in love with Stray, the guilt is always there. If Hunter can’t open up and find a way to deal with what happened, he might fall victim to his mental illness—and he won’t be the only casualty.
REVIEW:
This book got to me. It really got to the heart of what some of our most vulnerable members of society suffer through. One of the very best books that I have ever read about our struggling youth…the one’s who feel broken and considered misfits. Amazing book!
Kids are suppose to be able to trust their role models, especially if those role models are also their parents. That’s the way it is supposed to be. But, unfortunately, it isn’t always true. And bad things can happen to people we love. Hunter Donovan knows this better than most kids his age. He had the seemly picture-perfect family and life. The one’s just like on the television. Loving Mom, Dad that helps him with his passion…baseball. Little sister that is too coddled in his opinion. Even his being gay is totally accepted. Perfect life. But his whole life and his family’s lives are shattered when Hunter accidentally stumbles in on the ugly hidden secret. Now he is a very angry young man and doesn’t know how to deal with the aftermath. When he acts out at school, shattering the trophy case with all his awards shining back at him, taunting him. And when he regretfully punches a teacher in the process, his mom feels she has no choice but to get him the professional help he truly needs. So we start this book with him arriving at the last place he wants to be, Better Days, a residential youth facility, a kid loony bin in his mind. “Turn the World Upside Down” is the story of how Hunter learns to cope and live again, with the help of some seemingly misfit friends that need to learn that too.
I have read a lot of books in my years as an educator working with troubled youth. Unfortunately I have seen the Hunter’s, the Stray’s, the Rosie’s, the Bethany’s and the Casey’s firsthand. They are the ones that would wind up at our small alternative high school because no one really understood who they were and what they needed. They were the castaways, the throwaways. But this book really got them right. Tough on the outside but crumbling apart on the inside. The scared. The afraid. They really are the most vulnerable members of our community and way too many times the ones that are pushed aside because they are too much work or just so misunderstood. How I would have loved for a couple of my most vulnerable students to have had the opportunity to go to a place like Better Days for help.
I can’t recommend this book enough. To fellow educators that need insight into the traumas affecting our students. To parents that don’t understand what is happening. To fellow readers that can look a little differently at that strange kid with the blue hair and scars at the mall. To learn about their struggles and understand them more. It’s not a traditional love story. It’s gritty and deals with some harsh truths about our society. But, if you take the time to really read this you might just awaken something in you. To be able to see past the hair, the clothes, the scars, the tattoos, the piercings, and see the real person. The person who needs acceptance and caring the most. Absolutely fabulous book that I personally believe is a must read. I know I am contacting my former colleagues and recommending it to them immediately.
RATING: 
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