City News
It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini
Review by Ella
Ned Vizzini’s novel, It’s Kind of a Funny Story, portrays an authentic story about the pressures placed on teenagers by a success-oriented society. Although the novel covers very heavy topics, the author’s playful, lighthearted title suggests that sometimes you need to laugh in a difficult moment to cope with your anxiety or depression.
The novel covers Craig Gilner, a gifted student at the prestigious Executive Pre-Professional HighSchool, and his spiral into depression. Like many modern teenagers, he constantly stresses about his GPA, extracurriculars, and his productivity. He feels unworthy and empty due to his effortlessly intelligent and diligent classmates. Gilner undergoes many therapy sessions with a string of therapists and finds little relief from his problems. He reveals his condition to his parents after attempting suicide and ending up in the emergency room. Craig, not understanding the situation, ends up agreeing to stay in a psychiatric ward for five days; because the adolescent unit is undergoing renovations, he is admitted to the adult ward.
Craig Gilner embodies the illnesses of Generation Z - well over 50% of them grapple with anxiety and depression. It causes youth to self-medicate, in the form of unrestricted screen time to vaping, and stops them from acting on their ambitions. In a fast-pace, success-oriented world, teenagers scramble to find their place in this world. People assume those with anxiety are lazy or lack aspiration, but it’s a lack of skills or tools to properly cope with daily stresses. Readers can see this through Craig’s experiences. He wants to be as effortlessly intelligent as his friend Aaron and go to a prestigious college; of course, eventually getting a well-paying job and a family. However, Gilner cannot admit to himself that perhaps he is not fit for Executive Pre-Professional HighSchool. His talents lie elsewhere in art. It is through his stay in the mental ward that he realizes life is too short to live for other people. Craig realizes that he does not need others' affirmation or praises.
Although the novel covers a sensitive topic, I would recommend this to anyone who struggles with finding happiness in themselves and their lives. Craig became depressed because he felt that he did not fit the mold of a conventionally successful person: someone who came out of high school with a 4.0 GPA with pages of extracurriculars, who goes to an IVY League college, and gets paid a six figure salary upon graduation. He finds happiness in his artistic talents and decides to pursue a career in that direction. Another lesson we can learn from Gilner is to take a break. He comes to terms with his condition and stays at the mental hospital and embraces his time there. He completely throws out conventional ideas that the modern world burdens teenagers with and befriends people of all races, ages, backgrounds, and psychological conditions.
Despite these heavy subjects, the book balances the dark with the light. It realistically portrays a teenager's fight with a mental disorder; not every moment is bad and not every moment is good. Ned Vizzini finds the humor in the struggle and shows everyone that it is okay to find help. You might be surprised by what happens and make new friends on the way.