“Just because you see something doesn't mean it's really there.”

Calvin by Martine Leavitt

As a child, Calvin felt an affinity with the comic book character from Bill Watterson’s Calvin & Hobbes.

He was born on the day the last strip was published; his grandpa left a stuffed tiger named Hobbes in his crib; and he even had a best friend named Susie. Then Calvin’s mom washed Hobbes to death, Susie grew up beautiful and stopped talking to him, and Calvin pretty much forgot about the strip—until now. Now he is seventeen years old and has been diagnosed with schizophrenia. Hobbes is back, as a delusion, and Calvin can’t control him. Calvin decides that Watterson is the key to everything—if he would just make one more comic strip, but without Hobbes, Calvin would be cured. Calvin and Susie (is she real?) and Hobbes (he can’t be real, can he?) set out on a dangerous trek across frozen Lake Erie to track down Watterson.

I wasn't sure what I expected out of this book. I first heard about it from a trusted friend, who typically doesn't like this type of story anymore than I do. But then I wanted to do research for one of my own books and picked up a couple which deal with mental illness. This was the first of those. I wanted to read books which dwelt with the subject of mental illness but handle it well. In that area this did not disappoint.

Calvin is sympathetic but not to the point where you feel sorry for him but instead understand him. Seeing his illness from his point of view gives the reader a different look into his character, how at first he cannot grasp what is happening to him and goes from not being able to accept it to slow acceptance. His fears and doubts that Susie is going to turn out to be part of his illness, and his later fear that he will actually loose Hobbes all together.

There was a sprinkle of humor thrown in, but not where you laughed at the illness but instead laughed with Calin at his pluck. He was one determined kid.

There was kissing in this book which hinted at the possibility that the characters wanted to go further but were too cold to. Also I didn't like how God was spoken of in parts of the book, but the arguments for and against Him were ones which are common and were handled well.

I would recommend this book to anyone of older readers. It gives a good look on how it feels to suffer a mental illness.