OCD, The Dude, and Me

OCD, The Dude, and Me by Lauren Roedy Vaughn, 234 pages

Danielle is a high school senior who, in addition to dealing with all the regular anxieties of being a teenager (Why won't my hair cooperate? What if I don't get into college? Why must I pine after the unattainable cute guy?), also has to deal with her obsessive compulsive disorder. Written from Danielle's point of view, through a series of assigned essays, journal entries, emails, and postcards, OCD, The Dude, and Me gives readers a glimpse into Danielle's world of struggling with her OCD and insecurities, as we follow her through her senior English class, on a class trip to England, and to multiple meetings with a mandated social skills class.

A few things I really liked about this book: First, there's no love story. Having read a whole pile of YA books recently for class, I cannot even begin to describe how refreshing that is. Yes, Danielle pines for the cute guy, but that's pretty much it, romance-wise, and that doesn't really count. Second, yay for The Big Lebowski helping out an OCD kid! That movie has so many powers, it stuns me. (Though for a book referencing The Dude in the title and showing a bowling ball on the cover, it seemed odd that the film didn't get a mention (even an odd reference, really) until 160 pages in. Really.)

 This book reminded me a bit of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time (which if you haven't read, stop reading this blog and go do that, pronto). In both books, we "normal" people get to see the world through the eyes of someone with a neurological condition, and undeniably identify with them. That's pretty cool.