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We Are All So Good at Smiling
They Both Die at the End meets The Bell Jar in this haunting, beautiful young adult novel-in-verse about clinical depression and healing from trauma, from National Book Award Finalist Amber McBride.
Whimsy is back in the hospital for treatment of clinical depression. When she meets a boy named Faerry, she recognizes they both have magic in the marrow of their bones. And when Faerry and his family move to the same street, the two start to realize that their lifelines may have twined and untwined many times before.
They are both terrified of the forest at the end of Marsh Creek Lane.
The Forest whispers to Whimsy. The Forest might hold the answers to the part of Faerry he feels is missing. They discover the Forest holds monsters, fairy tales, and pain that they have both been running from for 11 years.
Whimsy is back in the hospital for treatment of clinical depression. When she meets a boy named Faerry, she recognizes they both have magic in the marrow of their bones. And when Faerry and his family move to the same street, the two start to realize that their lifelines may have twined and untwined many times before.
They are both terrified of the forest at the end of Marsh Creek Lane.
The Forest whispers to Whimsy. The Forest might hold the answers to the part of Faerry he feels is missing. They discover the Forest holds monsters, fairy tales, and pain that they have both been running from for 11 years.
291 pages, Hardcover
First published January 10, 2023
253 people are currently reading
25029 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,092 reviews
September 12, 2022
We Are All so Good at Smiling. A smile can mean fun. A smile can show warmth. A smile can be out of love. And a smile can be a mask to hide all the feelings we have inside from the people around us.
This YA novel in verse including a magical touch about a Black girl who deals with clinical depression and trauma is beautiful. It’s like the sadness and trauma of Benjamin Alire Saènz’s Last Night I Sang to the Monster meets the magic and grief from Deep in Providence by Riss M. Neilson.
I have some real difficult stuff right now to deal with and reading a story about clinical depression and trauma, about sadness hit me hard. And somehow it also grounded me because I know somewhere in the future I will be alright again. Like Amber McBride says in the book:
There is someone out there rooting for you
You are not alone, in any forest.
The tears will keep running down my cheeks for a while, I guess, before I feel okay again. And that’s fine. Because I know I’m not alone. And Whimsy and Faerry know that as well.
A huge shout out to the cover artist btw! It’s gorgeous!!
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This YA novel in verse including a magical touch about a Black girl who deals with clinical depression and trauma is beautiful. It’s like the sadness and trauma of Benjamin Alire Saènz’s Last Night I Sang to the Monster meets the magic and grief from Deep in Providence by Riss M. Neilson.
I have some real difficult stuff right now to deal with and reading a story about clinical depression and trauma, about sadness hit me hard. And somehow it also grounded me because I know somewhere in the future I will be alright again. Like Amber McBride says in the book:
There is someone out there rooting for you
You are not alone, in any forest.
The tears will keep running down my cheeks for a while, I guess, before I feel okay again. And that’s fine. Because I know I’m not alone. And Whimsy and Faerry know that as well.
A huge shout out to the cover artist btw! It’s gorgeous!!
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January 17, 2023
5/5 stars
"My point is that a leaf knows it’s important at all moments of its life, even when its broken. People always forget that a rough day, a bad year, doesn’t equal a bad life."
I’ve been eagerly anticipating whatever Amber McBride would bring the world after her phenomenal debut Me: Moth, that made a running entrance into my favourite books of 2021 list. Her sophomore release rose to the occasion and brought an experience that felt emotionally and thematically similar Me Moth, but still brought something new to the table.
We're All So Good at Smiling is an absolutely brilliant, deeply personal and emotionally resonant novel in verse about two teens dealing with grief, depression, identity and more. Both central characters are haunted by their own personal trauma’s that have shaped their lives and the physical neighbourhood around them. The dark forest at the end of Marsh Creek Lane is filled with suffocating roots and monsters, and the only way to escape it is to travel straight through. I loved the journey Faerry and Whimsy take together and their friendship they form along the way. The author illustrates it best by a single scene that lingers in my mind: Faerry and Whimsy stumbling through the forest, neither one carrying the other out, but leaning on each other. They struggle together and keep each other up, while they save themselves.
Even more impressive than her characters is Amber McBrides writing, allegories and metaphors. Despite the heavy subject matter and the depth in which this story dares to explore it, We're All So Good at Smiling manages an undertone of hope, beauty and music in both its language and message. It’s a story that flows and uplifts, especially when listening to the audiobook narrated by the author and interspliced with beautiful music.
Because of that, I slightly resent the publishers comp/blurb of "They Both Die at the End meets The Bell Jar". This book isn’t like either of those. It’s not suffocatingly heavy at any moment (which The Bell Jar absolutely can be), nor does it romanticize mental health-issues, or have a deliberately tear-jerking ending like They Both Die at the End. I think this comparison does a huge disservice to the uniqueness of this book, and gives a wrong expectation of the tone and content. We're All So Good at Smiling stands on its own as a powerful achievement of story in verse and deserves to be marketed as such.
Amber McBride has another release scheduled for October this year, and I’ll be eagerly awaiting Gone Wolf. This second masterpiece has cemented her as an auto-buy poet for me.
"My point is that a leaf knows it’s important at all moments of its life, even when its broken. People always forget that a rough day, a bad year, doesn’t equal a bad life."
I’ve been eagerly anticipating whatever Amber McBride would bring the world after her phenomenal debut Me: Moth, that made a running entrance into my favourite books of 2021 list. Her sophomore release rose to the occasion and brought an experience that felt emotionally and thematically similar Me Moth, but still brought something new to the table.
We're All So Good at Smiling is an absolutely brilliant, deeply personal and emotionally resonant novel in verse about two teens dealing with grief, depression, identity and more. Both central characters are haunted by their own personal trauma’s that have shaped their lives and the physical neighbourhood around them. The dark forest at the end of Marsh Creek Lane is filled with suffocating roots and monsters, and the only way to escape it is to travel straight through. I loved the journey Faerry and Whimsy take together and their friendship they form along the way. The author illustrates it best by a single scene that lingers in my mind: Faerry and Whimsy stumbling through the forest, neither one carrying the other out, but leaning on each other. They struggle together and keep each other up, while they save themselves.
Even more impressive than her characters is Amber McBrides writing, allegories and metaphors. Despite the heavy subject matter and the depth in which this story dares to explore it, We're All So Good at Smiling manages an undertone of hope, beauty and music in both its language and message. It’s a story that flows and uplifts, especially when listening to the audiobook narrated by the author and interspliced with beautiful music.
Because of that, I slightly resent the publishers comp/blurb of "They Both Die at the End meets The Bell Jar". This book isn’t like either of those. It’s not suffocatingly heavy at any moment (which The Bell Jar absolutely can be), nor does it romanticize mental health-issues, or have a deliberately tear-jerking ending like They Both Die at the End. I think this comparison does a huge disservice to the uniqueness of this book, and gives a wrong expectation of the tone and content. We're All So Good at Smiling stands on its own as a powerful achievement of story in verse and deserves to be marketed as such.
Amber McBride has another release scheduled for October this year, and I’ll be eagerly awaiting Gone Wolf. This second masterpiece has cemented her as an auto-buy poet for me.
January 29, 2023
I like novels in verse. I like Fantasy and Magical Realism. I have depression and anxiety and childhood trauma. This should've hit me right where I live and instead, I was very disappointed.
The magical elements are very poorly done. There's a glossary for anything you're unfamiliar with, but there's no indication it's there so unless you skimmed before reading, you wouldn't know that was there and it's unhelpful (Also, just to be nitpicky about the Fairy Tales for a minute, the book references "Mama Wata." I've never seen that character referenced that way. It's always Mami Wata. It was a weird choice) . The book also ROUTINELY does this thing I *absolutely hate* in Fantasy books, which is put your character in a magical situation and then go "somehow, magically, x happens". YOU are the author! YOU should know how x "magically happened". It's so lazy and it's a way to "yada yada yada" away the plot and magic system. I can't stand that. Don't write a Fantasy book if you don't want to explain the system.
This book is about mental illness and trauma and death, but it's so hidden under overwrought poetry and fairytale references and references to Dante's Inferno that you'd be forgiven for forgetting that. The main character, Whimsy, is a Conjurer and it is never explained what that is or what that really means beyond "she's magic!" and into crystals and herbs. Her friend, Faerry, is a fae and that seems to mean he has wings (that's all and yes, that is his actual name). Even the definitions for these in the glossary are vague and don't illuminate much of the story. There are too many things trying to be referenced. The glossary mentions "Godmother Death" which was mentioned maybe once in passing, but isn't one of the characters in the book, so why is it there? There are too many characters that exist for like 3 poems and then they're done. There needed to be better, in-text explanations for readers who are unfamiliar since the text hinges on it so badly.
Spoiler:
Long story short, I felt like it's a case of too many elements in the pot and because of that, they all suffered. I would've rather the author focused on JUST the fairy tales or JUST the mental illness and gone from there instead of throwing everything at the wall and seeing what sticks.
2/5
The magical elements are very poorly done. There's a glossary for anything you're unfamiliar with, but there's no indication it's there so unless you skimmed before reading, you wouldn't know that was there and it's unhelpful (Also, just to be nitpicky about the Fairy Tales for a minute, the book references "Mama Wata." I've never seen that character referenced that way. It's always Mami Wata. It was a weird choice) . The book also ROUTINELY does this thing I *absolutely hate* in Fantasy books, which is put your character in a magical situation and then go "somehow, magically, x happens". YOU are the author! YOU should know how x "magically happened". It's so lazy and it's a way to "yada yada yada" away the plot and magic system. I can't stand that. Don't write a Fantasy book if you don't want to explain the system.
This book is about mental illness and trauma and death, but it's so hidden under overwrought poetry and fairytale references and references to Dante's Inferno that you'd be forgiven for forgetting that. The main character, Whimsy, is a Conjurer and it is never explained what that is or what that really means beyond "she's magic!" and into crystals and herbs. Her friend, Faerry, is a fae and that seems to mean he has wings (that's all and yes, that is his actual name). Even the definitions for these in the glossary are vague and don't illuminate much of the story. There are too many things trying to be referenced. The glossary mentions "Godmother Death" which was mentioned maybe once in passing, but isn't one of the characters in the book, so why is it there? There are too many characters that exist for like 3 poems and then they're done. There needed to be better, in-text explanations for readers who are unfamiliar since the text hinges on it so badly.
Spoiler:
Long story short, I felt like it's a case of too many elements in the pot and because of that, they all suffered. I would've rather the author focused on JUST the fairy tales or JUST the mental illness and gone from there instead of throwing everything at the wall and seeing what sticks.
2/5
February 28, 2023
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC and finished copy in exchange for an honest review.
3.5 stars.
This was a beautiful, ambitious novel in verse about trauma, healing, and memory. Following our main character Whimsy, this certainly is a whimsical novel, although hauntingly so. It relies heavily on magical realism and fairy tale. I appreciated its vibrancy and pain, although I did feel like it veered off a bit too far into the abstract sometimes. We really don’t get much information about what happened besides something terrible until the end, which is fine as it relates to Whimsy’s trauma, but the heavy imagery combined with the lack of knowledge on the reader’s part made it difficult for me to focus. But still, I enjoyed this and thought the writing was strong.
A side note on a thought I had and just remembered after talking with a friend: I thought the appendix was unnecessary. It is quite literally just an explanation of every single metaphor in the book—and it’s detailed to the point where it almost undermines the reader’s ability to 1) understand the text and 2) interpret it their own way. The beauty of abstract books is that there are many things you can take from it, even if they diverge from the author’s intentions. But instead, the appendix tries to unravel the author’s creativity, without letting the reader come to that conclusion. I suppose if you were lost in the book, then maybe the appendix is helpful, but also, if the reader is that lost, perhaps that’s not on the reader.
✧ ✧ ✧
≪reading 31 books for 31 days of january≫
╰┈➤ 1. funny feelings by tarah dewitt
╰┈➤ 2. winterborne home for vengeance and valor by ally carter
╰┈➤ 3. garvey’s choice by nikki grimes
╰┈➤ 4. ghost music by an yu
╰┈➤ 5. decoding boys by cara natterson
╰┈➤ 6. the sunbearer trials by aiden thomas
╰┈➤ 7. the house in the pines by ana reyes
╰┈➤ 8. the lost apothecary by sarah penner
╰┈➤ 9. we are all so good at smiling by amber mcbride
3.5 stars.
This was a beautiful, ambitious novel in verse about trauma, healing, and memory. Following our main character Whimsy, this certainly is a whimsical novel, although hauntingly so. It relies heavily on magical realism and fairy tale. I appreciated its vibrancy and pain, although I did feel like it veered off a bit too far into the abstract sometimes. We really don’t get much information about what happened besides something terrible until the end, which is fine as it relates to Whimsy’s trauma, but the heavy imagery combined with the lack of knowledge on the reader’s part made it difficult for me to focus. But still, I enjoyed this and thought the writing was strong.
A side note on a thought I had and just remembered after talking with a friend: I thought the appendix was unnecessary. It is quite literally just an explanation of every single metaphor in the book—and it’s detailed to the point where it almost undermines the reader’s ability to 1) understand the text and 2) interpret it their own way. The beauty of abstract books is that there are many things you can take from it, even if they diverge from the author’s intentions. But instead, the appendix tries to unravel the author’s creativity, without letting the reader come to that conclusion. I suppose if you were lost in the book, then maybe the appendix is helpful, but also, if the reader is that lost, perhaps that’s not on the reader.
✧ ✧ ✧
≪reading 31 books for 31 days of january≫
╰┈➤ 1. funny feelings by tarah dewitt
╰┈➤ 2. winterborne home for vengeance and valor by ally carter
╰┈➤ 3. garvey’s choice by nikki grimes
╰┈➤ 4. ghost music by an yu
╰┈➤ 5. decoding boys by cara natterson
╰┈➤ 6. the sunbearer trials by aiden thomas
╰┈➤ 7. the house in the pines by ana reyes
╰┈➤ 8. the lost apothecary by sarah penner
╰┈➤ 9. we are all so good at smiling by amber mcbride
February 2, 2023
Wow, this book was so beautiful! The chapters are written as poems and man… I wish I could write poetry or beautifully like that. This book deals with chronic depression, complicated families, sorrow, and mentions of suicide and self-harm from a teenager’s perspective, and it is so relatable. As a teenager, I experienced violence and trauma and had drastic surgeries as soon as I started high school. And I was so sad for a long, long time. I didn’t have the language or the information to know I was going through depression at a young age. All I knew was I had to smile. Even though the smile was fake and phony, I fooled everyone, including myself, that I was okay. This book validated the “teenager” me in ways I didn’t know I still needed. I’m happy this book exists. I wish I could hug the author. 🥰🥰
March 13, 2023
this is a novel written in verse about clinical depression with a bunch of fairytale/folklore metaphors thrown in, which overall is a unique way to tell a story about depression, and I enjoyed it, but sometimes the core of the story got lost in all the abstract whimsical stuff
August 15, 2025
▹My ⭐ Rating: ★★★.5 out of 5
▹Format: 🎧Audiobook (Narrated by the author. Narration rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5))
▹TL;DR Review: I would have eaten this up as a high schooler. As an adult, it was a bit all over the place story-wise, but the emotions were still poignant for any age. Grief was very poetically portrayed.
─────────────────────────
○★○ What to Expect from This Book: ○★○
– FMC: Whimsy. 18-year-old clinically depressed woman who is navigating deep grief but can’t quite remember why. Experiences moments of disconnect and intense sorrow. Befriends a boy during her hospitalization who can do magic, but has to learn to trust him first.
– MMC: Faerry. Similar-aged boy with green hair and wings. Has a connection to Whimsy and together they venture through a dark, scary forest to try to confront their trauma
– Location: Virginia and a magical realm
– POV: Single first-person
– Spice: No spice (I don’t even recall there being kissing)
– Tropes: magical realism, entwined fates, healing/coping, folklore, high school
– Triggers: wanting to not exist anymore, bullying, racism, death of loved one, mental health treatment/hospitalization
– Representation: mental health (grief, depression, anxiety), black protagonists, hoodoo, cross-cultural folklore
─────────────────────────
↻ ◁ || ▷ ↺ 1:00 ──ㅇ────── 4:12
Now Playing: Marvelous Things by Eisley
─────────────────────────
★○ If You Like the Following, You Might Like This Book ○★
➼ Movies that blend surrealism with trauma, like Mirrormask, Pan’s Labryinth, and Coraline
➼ Stories that use allegory or folklore to explore the depths of mental health
─────────────────────────
⍟»This or That«⍟
Character Driven——————✧—————Plot Driven
Insta Love/Lust——————————✧—Slow Burn (Romance wasn’t a main theme, but there was some emotional tension between the main characters)
Light/Fluffy————————✧———Heavy/Emotional
─────────────────────────
🎯 My Thoughts:
This is the kind of book that I would have obsessed over in high school or early college. It’s magical and emotional and I would have likely made it my personality for a good chunk of time. I wanted to jump into the book at tell Whimsy to just hang in there. Not to offer her empty promises that life and grief gets better, but just to hang on because you’d be surprised what time, sleep, eating healthy, and honestly, a hot shower, can do for your mental health.
That said, the story was somehow both overtly dramatic and sometimes boring. I think that because I’m older, I didn’t care as much for the parallels that I would have been ruined by when I was younger. In saying that, however, I don’t think I would have changed that because the target audience for this is high school or young/new adult and I think from that perspective, the storytelling is effective. But from my perspective, I sometimes was underwhelmed and wanted there to be more connective tissue to the resolution at the end.
Would I recommend?: Maybe. If you are under 30 OR magical realism is your main aesthetic, this book might be right up your alley. If you are older or maybe even have worked through your own traumas, you might not get a whole lot out of it.
Some of my favorite quotes:
▹Format: 🎧Audiobook (Narrated by the author. Narration rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5))
▹TL;DR Review: I would have eaten this up as a high schooler. As an adult, it was a bit all over the place story-wise, but the emotions were still poignant for any age. Grief was very poetically portrayed.
─────────────────────────
○★○ What to Expect from This Book: ○★○
– FMC: Whimsy. 18-year-old clinically depressed woman who is navigating deep grief but can’t quite remember why. Experiences moments of disconnect and intense sorrow. Befriends a boy during her hospitalization who can do magic, but has to learn to trust him first.
– MMC: Faerry. Similar-aged boy with green hair and wings. Has a connection to Whimsy and together they venture through a dark, scary forest to try to confront their trauma
– Location: Virginia and a magical realm
– POV: Single first-person
– Spice: No spice (I don’t even recall there being kissing)
– Tropes: magical realism, entwined fates, healing/coping, folklore, high school
– Triggers: wanting to not exist anymore, bullying, racism, death of loved one, mental health treatment/hospitalization
– Representation: mental health (grief, depression, anxiety), black protagonists, hoodoo, cross-cultural folklore
─────────────────────────
↻ ◁ || ▷ ↺ 1:00 ──ㅇ────── 4:12
Now Playing: Marvelous Things by Eisley
╰┈➤ ❝I glimpsed a bat with butterfly wings, oh what marvelous things; dark night hold tight, and sleep tight my baby; morning light shall burst bright and keep us here safely❞
─────────────────────────
★○ If You Like the Following, You Might Like This Book ○★
➼ Movies that blend surrealism with trauma, like Mirrormask, Pan’s Labryinth, and Coraline
➼ Stories that use allegory or folklore to explore the depths of mental health
─────────────────────────
⍟»This or That«⍟
Character Driven——————✧—————Plot Driven
Insta Love/Lust——————————✧—Slow Burn (Romance wasn’t a main theme, but there was some emotional tension between the main characters)
Light/Fluffy————————✧———Heavy/Emotional
─────────────────────────
🎯 My Thoughts:
This is the kind of book that I would have obsessed over in high school or early college. It’s magical and emotional and I would have likely made it my personality for a good chunk of time. I wanted to jump into the book at tell Whimsy to just hang in there. Not to offer her empty promises that life and grief gets better, but just to hang on because you’d be surprised what time, sleep, eating healthy, and honestly, a hot shower, can do for your mental health.
That said, the story was somehow both overtly dramatic and sometimes boring. I think that because I’m older, I didn’t care as much for the parallels that I would have been ruined by when I was younger. In saying that, however, I don’t think I would have changed that because the target audience for this is high school or young/new adult and I think from that perspective, the storytelling is effective. But from my perspective, I sometimes was underwhelmed and wanted there to be more connective tissue to the resolution at the end.
Would I recommend?: Maybe. If you are under 30 OR magical realism is your main aesthetic, this book might be right up your alley. If you are older or maybe even have worked through your own traumas, you might not get a whole lot out of it.
Some of my favorite quotes:
╰┈➤ ❝My point is that a leaf knows it’s important at all moments of its life, even when it's broken. People always forget that a rough day, a bad year, doesn’t equal a bad life.❞
╰┈➤ ❝The ones you love, don’t leave—they just come back different.❞
╰┈➤ ❝You know, Frankenstein thought himself a god saying, "I’ll make a human." God blistered and bothered in the stars saying, “How about a mind plague for humankind? We could call it Clinical Depression.” Then they handed it out like spoiled candy.❞
╰┈➤ ❝Do you understand now, reader? There is someone out there rooting for you. You are not alone, in any Forest. You there, hello, bonjour, hola—we are rooting, cheering for you to live and thrive.❞
Want to read
May 12, 202211.05.2021 i love that cover a little too much
December 3, 2022
Content warnings: racism, bullying, death, self harm, suicidal ideation, panic attacks
This is a novel-in-verse depicting the main character’s clinical depression and trauma. While in treatment for depression, Whimsy meets Faerry, who she realizes has magic, just like her. They become increasingly aware of how connected they are, especially when it comes to the pain they’ve held onto for over a decade.
This is my first Amber McBride book and I’ll definitely be picking up more from this author in the future. The writing was so lovely. I think the writing style really fit this magical tale of a girl coping with depression and grief.
This is a novel-in-verse depicting the main character’s clinical depression and trauma. While in treatment for depression, Whimsy meets Faerry, who she realizes has magic, just like her. They become increasingly aware of how connected they are, especially when it comes to the pain they’ve held onto for over a decade.
This is my first Amber McBride book and I’ll definitely be picking up more from this author in the future. The writing was so lovely. I think the writing style really fit this magical tale of a girl coping with depression and grief.
November 2, 2023
This was a very interesting read.. It was indeed very (Whimsy)cal, and felt like a (Fearry)tale...
When I started reading this, I wasn't really vibing with the writing style, but as it went on, it started to grow on me. It felt kinda like a fever dream, to be honest with you, but it also addressed some very important topics!
The exploration of depression, grief and guilt was well done, and the metaphorical use of fairytales, and personification of sorrow, was interesting.
When I started reading this, I wasn't really vibing with the writing style, but as it went on, it started to grow on me. It felt kinda like a fever dream, to be honest with you, but it also addressed some very important topics!
The exploration of depression, grief and guilt was well done, and the metaphorical use of fairytales, and personification of sorrow, was interesting.
August 15, 2022
Officially finished my first 2023 release, and if this is any indication of the quality of 2023 releases, we're in for a treat.
This was my first time reading from Amber McBride, though I do have Me Moth on my physical TBR. I had pretty high expectations for this, because I love verse novels and I had a feeling that this would be a particularly good one, but I was still blown away by how good this actually was. It's for sure one of my all time favourite verse novels.
It's a little hard to describe this book, as it just feels super unique, but it deals with a Black teenage girl with clinical depression, who's had some bad things happen in her past that she might not fully remember. It also deals with magic and a haunted forest, and while the setting is contemporary, it's a very fairytale-like story.
The writing is absolutely stunning and infused with so much meaning that it would be an amazing book to analyze in school or uni. I feel like I could read this several times and still not get everything out of it. At the same time though, it's not at all a hard story to follow, which is really such an impressive balance to strike.
This was my first time reading from Amber McBride, though I do have Me Moth on my physical TBR. I had pretty high expectations for this, because I love verse novels and I had a feeling that this would be a particularly good one, but I was still blown away by how good this actually was. It's for sure one of my all time favourite verse novels.
It's a little hard to describe this book, as it just feels super unique, but it deals with a Black teenage girl with clinical depression, who's had some bad things happen in her past that she might not fully remember. It also deals with magic and a haunted forest, and while the setting is contemporary, it's a very fairytale-like story.
The writing is absolutely stunning and infused with so much meaning that it would be an amazing book to analyze in school or uni. I feel like I could read this several times and still not get everything out of it. At the same time though, it's not at all a hard story to follow, which is really such an impressive balance to strike.
February 12, 2023
This was not what I was expecting. I commend the author for what she was trying to accomplish with this book but it just didn’t work for me. I felt like she was trying to write too flowery and whimsical for me to actually grasp what was going on. I feel like a lot of the important messages in the story was shielded behind how whimsical the writing was and in the end I just didn’t really understand what was happening.
One star is for the representation of mental health and depression in the black community and the other star is for this beautiful cover.
Also the song “Would That I” by Hozier that is included in the playlist for this book is perfect to capture the whimsical atmosphere in the story.
One star is for the representation of mental health and depression in the black community and the other star is for this beautiful cover.
Also the song “Would That I” by Hozier that is included in the playlist for this book is perfect to capture the whimsical atmosphere in the story.
January 6, 2023
Gorgeous!
The cover, the characters and the way the author wove a journey of depression into a magical world.
This is a novel in verse, which is something I don't normally gravitate towards, but who could pass up that cover?!
I absolutely adored this book and hope everyone picks it up.
Side note: the audio was fabulously narrated by Amber McBride herself.
Highly recommend!!!
Much love to NetGalley & Macmillan Audio for hooking me up with this DRC.
The cover, the characters and the way the author wove a journey of depression into a magical world.
This is a novel in verse, which is something I don't normally gravitate towards, but who could pass up that cover?!
I absolutely adored this book and hope everyone picks it up.
Side note: the audio was fabulously narrated by Amber McBride herself.
Highly recommend!!!
Much love to NetGalley & Macmillan Audio for hooking me up with this DRC.
February 7, 2023
A beautifully written story. The poetic storytelling with elements of fantasy and mental health rep was just what I needed. The author unpacks a lot of things and many of them, I have experienced. I loved how the characters told their story, from their lenses and it didn’t feel cliche. They experienced trauma and years of feeling bogged down with grief and feeling misunderstood. And this story unpacks all of those “memories”. There is emphasis on memories because the characters have to come to terms with the truth of their lives. A huge thing that stood out to me was how depression was represented, the symptoms associated, dealing with family members and friends who ‘don’t get it’, and understanding the ‘why’. I enjoyed this story so much and I was fighting the tears during the author interview at the end.
The story has so many gems; I listened to the audiobook but I will have to get a hard copy to go in and highlight. Highly recommend this one.
The story has so many gems; I listened to the audiobook but I will have to get a hard copy to go in and highlight. Highly recommend this one.
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March 9, 2025
A touching novel in verse about struggling with depression, solidarity and confronting feelings of guilt. Read beautifully by the author herself. I won't say it's too young for me, but I will say I am waaay too old for it, so it didn't really hit, but I enjoyed the experience.
January 8, 2023
Upon seeing this cover, I knew I HAD to read this book. A gorgeous cover had to have a gorgeous story within. But when I had a chance to listen to it, I knew that it was going to be the way to go. Amber McBride narrated her own story and brought it to life. The way her voice carried her characters through their journey to find answers was done with perfection.
McBride wrote her novel in verse and it was stunning. Whimsy is the main character and she suffers from a pain in her past that she can't remember. But when she meets and connects with another young character named Faerry, they realize they are connected by that past. The trauma caused by that past has led her to depression, but we get to see these characters overcome and build themselves up brick by brick. With a touch of magic and fairy tales, this was a unique journey to see 2 young characters realize their worth while battling such a fierce monster inside.
We Are All So Good at Smiling is the perfect title for this book. When we see depression, how does it look? Those smiles you see can be hiding so much underneath. When we deal with Death, pain, and trauma without asking for help and masking our real emotions, that is when the darkness can overcome us. Amber McBride took these pieces and gave us a beautiful yet heartbreaking story with such a tough subject matter and came out on the other side. I especially liked her added author's note and let us know that we're not alone and where we can reach out for help. This story may be a bit of sadness, but the beauty and peace Whimsy and Faerry found was magic in the end.
McBride wrote her novel in verse and it was stunning. Whimsy is the main character and she suffers from a pain in her past that she can't remember. But when she meets and connects with another young character named Faerry, they realize they are connected by that past. The trauma caused by that past has led her to depression, but we get to see these characters overcome and build themselves up brick by brick. With a touch of magic and fairy tales, this was a unique journey to see 2 young characters realize their worth while battling such a fierce monster inside.
We Are All So Good at Smiling is the perfect title for this book. When we see depression, how does it look? Those smiles you see can be hiding so much underneath. When we deal with Death, pain, and trauma without asking for help and masking our real emotions, that is when the darkness can overcome us. Amber McBride took these pieces and gave us a beautiful yet heartbreaking story with such a tough subject matter and came out on the other side. I especially liked her added author's note and let us know that we're not alone and where we can reach out for help. This story may be a bit of sadness, but the beauty and peace Whimsy and Faerry found was magic in the end.
January 20, 2023
Lyrical. Heartbreaking. Bittersweet. Hopeful. These words describe McBride's beautiful poetry, and prose as clinical depression receives attention in a moment of a teen girl struggling with it. Whimsy escapes to the Fae world to escape the pain, but as I read, I could not help but wonder if I followed her down the path to psychotic episodes.
Whatever the case, this book's worth a recommendation. Heartbreaking as it may be. 5/5
Whatever the case, this book's worth a recommendation. Heartbreaking as it may be. 5/5
December 20, 2022
McBride really does a phenomenal job of portraying grief, depression, therapy, and the struggles of growing up Black in a predominately white area. I really enjoyed the sprinkles of magic as well.
January 19, 2023
This was beautiful and heart-wrenching and I loved it so much 🥺
December 27, 2022
This was such a fantastic #ownvoices YA novel in verse narrated by the author with AMAZING clinical depression rep! The audiobook production was top notch with some great music accompaniment and the fantasy/fairy tale elements were cleverly interlaced with a more modern and very relatable story about trauma, grief and mental health. Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The cover is STUNNING too!!
February 8, 2023
One of the most magical stories I’ve read. This is my first experience with novel-in-verse, so it took me a min to understand what the story was, and I was worried this type of story telling would go right over my head. But thankfully it didn’t take me long to get into the groove of it… I loved it! Incredibly gorgeous. It isn’t a rhyming type of poetry… I have no idea what king it is, and I am in no way qualified to even know if it’s perfect in its poetry… All I know is it made my heart happy while reading it.
This is a story of the hidden depression that lives in many of us and finding a way out of it through magic and folk lore from around the world. There are trigger warnings though, so definitely read up on those if you get triggered with cutting or suicide? It touched briefly on those triggers, and a brief point in the story that felt weighted in darkness. But the message in the end is beautiful.
This is a story of the hidden depression that lives in many of us and finding a way out of it through magic and folk lore from around the world. There are trigger warnings though, so definitely read up on those if you get triggered with cutting or suicide? It touched briefly on those triggers, and a brief point in the story that felt weighted in darkness. But the message in the end is beautiful.
September 9, 2023
I’ve only said this once this year, but this may be one of my favourite reads in 2023! This is a novel written in verse (if you know, I love the style of writing) about grief (another normal genre of mine), siblinghood, and fantasy all in one. I’d def love to read more by the author, this was my first novel of hers - excited to see if I’m a new fan of hers!
Want to read
January 9, 2023this cover-
April 29, 2025
3.5 Stars
A truly unique look at mental health and depression. I think the way Sorrow was depicted was especially affecting and pictorial.
A truly unique look at mental health and depression. I think the way Sorrow was depicted was especially affecting and pictorial.
April 16, 2023
i genuinely don’t think i have the “right” words to describe a book as meaningful as this one. i really appreciate the authors message in this and the amount of care that went into creating a story as heartbreaking as this. i’m just not a big fan of running metaphors in the books i read unless it’s done in a very specific way so that’s what hindered my enjoyment of this quite a bit, but the themes are incredible and something i definitely needed to hear :,)
January 22, 2023
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
more like a 3.5
TW: racism, depression, self-harm, suicide attempt
We Are All So Good at Smiling is an emotional and complex story from start to finish. Revolving around Whimsy, this story in verse is about the cyclical nature of depression and our family. Walking on eggshells and having to process protection and love. All the questions of how we are feeling, if we're okay. At the same time, it's a story about finding someone who can see us. Who can make us see and think.
full review: https://utopia-state-of-mind.com/revi...
more like a 3.5
TW: racism, depression, self-harm, suicide attempt
We Are All So Good at Smiling is an emotional and complex story from start to finish. Revolving around Whimsy, this story in verse is about the cyclical nature of depression and our family. Walking on eggshells and having to process protection and love. All the questions of how we are feeling, if we're okay. At the same time, it's a story about finding someone who can see us. Who can make us see and think.
full review: https://utopia-state-of-mind.com/revi...
March 16, 2023
A powerful book about grief, trauma, and mental health.
This verse novel should be read by fans of "Long Way Down" by Jason Reynolds and "Pan's Labyrinth." While this is a realistic portrayal of emotions and mental health, the magic realism and the fairy tales influence the story in a way in which the audience can follow along with how individuals can overcome them. The protagonist and her friend deal with troubles at school and the loss of their siblings as they revisit what happened to them all those years ago.
The author narrates the audiobook, which amplifies the narrative overall.
I believe I have a new "auto buy" author.
This verse novel should be read by fans of "Long Way Down" by Jason Reynolds and "Pan's Labyrinth." While this is a realistic portrayal of emotions and mental health, the magic realism and the fairy tales influence the story in a way in which the audience can follow along with how individuals can overcome them. The protagonist and her friend deal with troubles at school and the loss of their siblings as they revisit what happened to them all those years ago.
The author narrates the audiobook, which amplifies the narrative overall.
I believe I have a new "auto buy" author.
December 30, 2022
This story is told in verse. I couldn't even tell you what this story was about, it was so bizarre. Definitely not my cup of tea.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 13, 2024
„We are all so good at smiling—like we invented it.
No one understands – we are sinking while we are smiling.”
Красиво написана книга по изключително деликатна и тежка тема, за която по нашите ширини не се говори открито, понеже все още се смята, че изрази като "я се стегни" и "вземи се в ръце" са универсална панацея за хора в тежка клинична депресия. Дори само заради посланието, което носи книгата - тя си заслужава петте звезди.
Не мога да нарека "We Are So Good At Smiling" роман, защото формата на писане е по-скоро поетична. Амбър Макбрайд предлага поглед отвътре към заболяването от собствен опит, като героинята й пречупва реалността през призмата на приказките, за да я направи поносима и приемлива. Не бих казала, че книгата е и точно фентъзи, макар да има такива елементи. Много ми напомни на Сезонът на злополуките заради начина, по който съзнанието на главната героиня пресъздаваше реалността като вид подсъзнателен защитен механизъм. Текстът е пълен с метафори и препратки, но най-вече с послания.
"Are you thriving, Faerry? I think you are pretending (like I am pretending) to be good at smiling."
"All the stories are riddles for something else."
" I like my poem because I like stories just like my brother, Cole, did. When I was young and sad, Cole said: Tell yourslef a story, bring yourself back to you and he gave me a notebook to write in."
"The season is still golden, whether we splatter sadness on the leaves or not."
"There is a boy who has lost and found himself so many times, he marks each rebirth with a flower making a garden on his body but he also forgets to water himself."
" His parents think he is pretending, they say: you are too strong for this sadness, you have to move on. You have pills, you have therapy, get it togther. Black boys don't get to be sad and feel their feelings."
"The sadness opens like a fault line in the earth and I fall in everytime."
"When Sorrow eats the roots of things, they change."
"No one ever tells you that Sorrow doesn't grab you by the throat. It opens the door, offers a warm fire, says - Have some candy. And I step inside again."
"We try to outrun the Sorrow, that is always coming for us."
"I used to wait for laughter in silence until I forgot its sound."
"Sometimes you don't cry the sorrow out. Sometimes it takes root in your bones and your veins. Sometimes you think you deserve to feel the pain. Sometimes pain helps the sadness. It hurts so much. No one understands - you are sinking while you are smiling. And no one understands (sometimes) when your body forgets how to cry, you bleed instead."
"Do you understand now?
You are not alone in any Forest.
You there, hello, bonjour, holla -
we are rooting, chearing for you to live and thrive."
No one understands – we are sinking while we are smiling.”
Красиво написана книга по изключително деликатна и тежка тема, за която по нашите ширини не се говори открито, понеже все още се смята, че изрази като "я се стегни" и "вземи се в ръце" са универсална панацея за хора в тежка клинична депресия. Дори само заради посланието, което носи книгата - тя си заслужава петте звезди.
Не мога да нарека "We Are So Good At Smiling" роман, защото формата на писане е по-скоро поетична. Амбър Макбрайд предлага поглед отвътре към заболяването от собствен опит, като героинята й пречупва реалността през призмата на приказките, за да я направи поносима и приемлива. Не бих казала, че книгата е и точно фентъзи, макар да има такива елементи. Много ми напомни на Сезонът на злополуките заради начина, по който съзнанието на главната героиня пресъздаваше реалността като вид подсъзнателен защитен механизъм. Текстът е пълен с метафори и препратки, но най-вече с послания.
"Are you thriving, Faerry? I think you are pretending (like I am pretending) to be good at smiling."
"All the stories are riddles for something else."
" I like my poem because I like stories just like my brother, Cole, did. When I was young and sad, Cole said: Tell yourslef a story, bring yourself back to you and he gave me a notebook to write in."
"The season is still golden, whether we splatter sadness on the leaves or not."
"There is a boy who has lost and found himself so many times, he marks each rebirth with a flower making a garden on his body but he also forgets to water himself."
" His parents think he is pretending, they say: you are too strong for this sadness, you have to move on. You have pills, you have therapy, get it togther. Black boys don't get to be sad and feel their feelings."
"The sadness opens like a fault line in the earth and I fall in everytime."
"When Sorrow eats the roots of things, they change."
"No one ever tells you that Sorrow doesn't grab you by the throat. It opens the door, offers a warm fire, says - Have some candy. And I step inside again."
"We try to outrun the Sorrow, that is always coming for us."
"I used to wait for laughter in silence until I forgot its sound."
"Sometimes you don't cry the sorrow out. Sometimes it takes root in your bones and your veins. Sometimes you think you deserve to feel the pain. Sometimes pain helps the sadness. It hurts so much. No one understands - you are sinking while you are smiling. And no one understands (sometimes) when your body forgets how to cry, you bleed instead."
"Do you understand now?
You are not alone in any Forest.
You there, hello, bonjour, holla -
we are rooting, chearing for you to live and thrive."
February 17, 2023
"We Are All So Good at Smiling" gave my chills... down my spine, eyes watering chills. The lyricism of the writing blew me away and at times made my heart skip a beat.
This is the kind of book I live for. What I'm always striving to find in literature. I was tempted to stop the audiobook (which btw was excellent and also narrated by the author), and run out to buy a physical copy so I could annotate along.
There are magic gardens, haunted forests, guiding ancestors, pain and hope. It feels like a fairytale laid over real life and the two worlds seeping together was stunning. I loved the atmosphere and even the sometimes strangeness of the narrative. It's the kind of book that won't work for everyone and definitely needs a reread and feels like a giant metaphor. You're never quite sure what's reality and what's a tool for the narrative style but I love that kind of writing.
My one complaint is that while I liked most of this there were times where I could do without the mega YA-vibes (the Highschool setting and the romance ugh). But at the same time I can see this being a really important read for kids with depression or struggling with mental health. And yet, even though I wasn't the target audience I still found this to be extraordinarily powerful.
Overall, "We Are All So Good at Smiling" was that special kind of "book magic". It is poetry at its finest.
Quotes I loved:
"Fairytales are real. Magic is real. But careful, Whimsy. Sometimes your own mind will unroot you."
"You don't show empathy towards those who willfully hurt you." THIS
This is the kind of book I live for. What I'm always striving to find in literature. I was tempted to stop the audiobook (which btw was excellent and also narrated by the author), and run out to buy a physical copy so I could annotate along.
There are magic gardens, haunted forests, guiding ancestors, pain and hope. It feels like a fairytale laid over real life and the two worlds seeping together was stunning. I loved the atmosphere and even the sometimes strangeness of the narrative. It's the kind of book that won't work for everyone and definitely needs a reread and feels like a giant metaphor. You're never quite sure what's reality and what's a tool for the narrative style but I love that kind of writing.
My one complaint is that while I liked most of this there were times where I could do without the mega YA-vibes (the Highschool setting and the romance ugh). But at the same time I can see this being a really important read for kids with depression or struggling with mental health. And yet, even though I wasn't the target audience I still found this to be extraordinarily powerful.
Overall, "We Are All So Good at Smiling" was that special kind of "book magic". It is poetry at its finest.
Quotes I loved:
"Fairytales are real. Magic is real. But careful, Whimsy. Sometimes your own mind will unroot you."
"You don't show empathy towards those who willfully hurt you." THIS
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