Lily is a model high school student and athlete with dreams of heading to Berkeley for college. But she also has a lot of secrets, like the fact that her sister isn’t actually off at university but in an institution after a suicide attempt, and that Lily herself struggles with anxiety and OCD-type symptoms. When the new boy reveals that he knows Lily’s sister from the hospital, Lily worries that everyone will find out all her secrets, but as the two grow closer she needs to decide what her priorities are.

I read this one because it won a Schneider Award, and it sure reads like it was written solely with that goal in mind. A story about a teen struggling to make it through everyday situations while dealing with mental illness is one thing and I’m all for positive representations of such things in literature, especially YA lit, but to have three sisters all have some form of mental illness, *plus* the love interest, and then to have the main character constantly refer to her struggles with anxiety and OCD to the point that it overwhelms what little plot there was in the first place is just too much. ( )

A very intense, but necessary, book about mental illness, including discussion of or depiction of self-harm, suicide attempt, anxiety, OCD, depression, panic attacks, mania, and bipolar disorder. ( )

This book packed a punch. Anxiety, bipolar disorder, depression all mixed into one. It’s ok not to be perfect however, learning how to deal with everything coming at you at once, as a teenager, or even an adult, one needs to learn to ask for help. Lily uses words to express her stress and anxiety, as Micah uses art to help balance out his depression. This is one book I read late into the night because I wanted to see what happens to these characters. This was an amazingly well written book that dealt with very sensitive subjects in a poetic way. I love how the author had Lily express her anxiety through Found and Blackout Poetry. ( )

I enjoyed "Scars Like Wings" by Erin Stewart so when I discovered she had a new book out, I decided to give it a try. I must say, I enjoyed the author's unique take on mental illness and I loved the guerrilla poets - their words were raw, honest and brutal.

Lily was a likeable character at the start but I felt she became too self-absorbed as the novel progressed. I understood she was struggling with anxiety, her sister's suicide attempt and was putting unnecessary pressure on herself to be perfect but I didn't like the way she lied to Sam, her best friend, who bent over backwards for her. Micah was also delightful. Battling his own demons, he tried to help Lily fight hers. Despite the bullying he received, Micah remained true to himself and inspired others to find their strengths. I really liked the friendship he and Lily shared.

However, my favourite part of this novel was the writing. Ms Stewart certainly had a way with words and I was swept away by their beauty and poetry. Dealing with suicide, self-harm, depression and anxiety, "The Words We Keep" was not an easy read but I think many girls will be able to relate to Lily and her problems. ( )

Ever have that dream where you're running, desperately trying to stay ahead of some unknown/unseen entity? This is Lily's reality. Her mom died right after giving birth to her younger sister, she found her older sister, Alice, bleeding profusely after attempting suicide, she has obsessive thoughts and assumes everything is up to her, but she's the queen of denial.
She's trying to act 'normal' now that Alice is returning from an inpatient psychiatric facility, but Lily wouldn't recognize normal if it marched by wearing a hot pink feather boa.
Among the additional stressors she's experiencing are being partnered with Micah, who was at the same psychiatric facility as Alice, trying to keep her grades up, dealing with the terror of writer's block when an important project is due, improving her time on the track team so she can qualify for the state meet, feeling like she must be perfect to keep her family together. Well, you get the picture.
The more she gets to know Micah, the stronger her attraction is to him, but Lily seems to have an ability to do or say the absolute wrong thing when it's crunch time. As the story progresses, her frantic attempts to keep the ship afloat go from mildly irritating to forcing the reader to strongly empathize with her. Some might think her floundering and frantic behavior to be a caricature, but take it from someone who worked in the mental health field with adolescents, there are plenty of Lilys in the world.
This is an excellent and insightful story, one that deserves a place in any library collection where mental health issues are deemed as important. ( )