Recommendation Tuesday: Gramma

Recommendation Tuesday: Gramma by Leanne Ellul
Genre: Young Adult

Perhaps the biggest difficulty for those living with people who suffer from some mental illness is to understand just what the problem is. From the outside looking in the solution is often easy; all that someone who is feeling depressed has to do is to think positive thoughts, no? If only.

Gramma tackles this problem head on by delving into the thoughts of a young woman who is struggling with anorexia. It provides an internal monologue of the daily struggles that anyone who deals with mental issues such as this has to live with and through this simple mechanism manages to construct a novel that is delicate, touching and real.

As a genre, young adult writing in Maltese is still in its infancy but books like this help it find its voice.