Unlikely Hero of Room 13b

by Teresa Toten

[Kelly]

Adam Ross. Remember his name, because there is no doubt you'll fall in love with him.
http://www.divabooknerd.com/2015/05/the-unlikely-hero-of-room-13b-by-teresa.html
The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B is a beautiful, poignant and an incredibly playful read that's written with a loving hand, dealing with a very serious and very real issue of obsessive compulsive disorder. Almost fifteen year old Adam falls in love the moment Robyn breezes into the room. She also suffers from the same illness, and has just been released from a residential program and has joined the group to increase her chances of recovery. Each member has taken on a different persona of strength, with all but one choosing a superhero alter ego. So naturally Adam has become Batman, fiercely protective of Robyn, putting aside his own recovery in a selfless plight to save her.

Adam lives between his father's new home, with new wife and son. Wendell is five, affectionately called Sweetie and already displaying symptoms of anxiety and finds comfort in numbers. Sweetie is highly intelligent, but relies heavily upon his big brother for comfort. His mother is a hoarder, their home cluttered which only increases Adam's illness to cross the threshold. Although Adam is determined to battle his own illness, he never puts himself first. He takes on the grievances of those around him, including the disturbing and threatening letters his mother has been receiving. I felt fiercely protective of Adam, his tender personality of selflessness left me on tenterhooks, worried about his loving nature being taken advantage of. The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B was written with such care and a respect for those who suffer from this debilitating illness. I was drawn into Adam's world and read the book in it's entirety in almost one sitting. It was not only entertaining, but so incredibly engaging and left me emotionally exhausted.

Borrow, buy or beg for a copy. This isn't another young adult novel about teens dealing with illness, it's an experience. Where most novels in the genre usually veer towards showing the debilitating side of mental illness, The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B shows obsessive compulsive disorder in a new light. That suffering from a mental illness is more than a feeling of darkness, it's also about learning to ask for help and learning to live in the moment, whether you're Adam, Robyn or even Batman. It was simply perfection.