I've been following Ruby Elliot on social media for quite some time now and I've anxiously awaited this book. As a person who is struggling with mental illness herself, I always enjoyed her drawings and the very insightful blog posts she made from time to time.

I'm not even sure how to really describe it, but her work just means so much to me. Because it feels like she "gets it". In a way that is honest and unique and sometimes really sad, but also funny at the same time.

I have never in my life felt so terribly lonely as when I was so deeply depressed that I stopped functioning altogether. People no longer know how to talk to you and you are just ashamed and desperate and confused about what the fuck is happening to you. And then there are these brilliant people who talk about it, or draw about it, and they do it loudly and clearly, without apologizing for it. And these people mean the world to me. Because in a way, they give me back my own voice so I can start to explain what is hurting inside of me.

I really, really enjoyed this book. If you've been following Ruby's art, you will find quite a few drawings that are familiar to you, but there's also enough new stuff to discover. I really liked that there are different themes throughout the book, so her drawings tell a different story from chapter to chapter. There were a lot of moments where I recognized myself and my struggles and some of the drawings were able to explain my feelings better than I could have done it myself. I also admire the honesty with which Ruby talks about the many faces of mental illnesses and the impact that they can have on your life. I feel like this is a discussion that has to happen a lot more in our society and I'm grateful that Ruby decided to add her experiences, thoughts and opinions to this.