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    Get Well Soon
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    Get Well Soon
    Unavailable
    Get Well Soon
    Audiobook5 hours

    Get Well Soon

    Written by Julie Halpern

    Narrated by Mandy Siegfried

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    Anna Bloom is depressed-so depressed that her parents have committed her to a mental hospital with a bunch of other messed-up teens. Here, she meets a roommate with a secret (and a plastic baby), a doctor who focuses way too much on her weight, and a cute, shy boy who just might like her.

    But wait! Being trapped in a loony bin isn't supposed to be about making friends, losing weight, and having a crush, is it?

    In her fiction debut, Julie Halpern finds humor in the unlikeliest of places, and presents a character whose voice-and heart-will resonate with all of us who have ever felt just a little bit crazy.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateMay 13, 2008
    ISBN9780739365113
    Unavailable
    Get Well Soon
    Author

    Julie Halpern

    Julie Halpern is the author of several books for young adults, including Meant to Be, Get Well Soon, and The F-It List; the adult novel Maternity Leave; and the picture book Toby and the Snowflakes. Prior to her life as a full-time mom and author, Julie was a school librarian. In her imaginary spare time, she enjoys traveling, watching television for grown-ups, and eating baked goods. Julie lives in the Chicago suburbs with her husband, Caldecott-winning author and illustrator Matthew Cordell, and their two children.

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    Reviews for Get Well Soon

    3.5/5

    102 ratings11 reviews

    What did you think?

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 5/5
      Wonderful book. Julie Halpern manages to combine love, loss, grief, mental illness, and comedy into one book. Anna's voice is incredibly witty, as well as realistic.
    • 5/5
      great book,love the ending
    • 3/5
      This book still seemed a bit childish even knowing this is from the young adult section. Yes some characters were dealing with some adult issues it still seemed like a 5th grade storyline. More details on how they helped her and what was really bothering her/ got here there would have been nice. Needed a bit stronger plot from my perspective to get more stars. Still an ok book and quick "listen"
    • 5/5
      I enjoyed it. basically like reading a bunch of letters a great idea might I add
    • 5/5
      LOVE THIS BOOK??
    • 3/5
      Anna doesn't want to go to school anymore. She's overweight, prone to panic attacks and generally unhappy. Her parents don't know what to do so they commit her to a mental institution. Through a continuning letter to her friend Tracy, Anna recounds her three weeks at Lake Side (aka Lake Shit). Her roommate, Sandy, fakes a pregnancy to keep her boyfriend. Hottie, Justin tried to commit suicide when he hurt his hand with a saw, ruining his ability to play bass guitar. It dawns on Anna that during her three weeks in this isolated environment, she has lost wieght, had no panic attacks and made friends, things that didn't happen that much in the outside world.But some things don't change making the reader wonder whether things will go back to normal when Anna returns home. I'll let you read the book to find out what those things are. Get Well Soon is an interesting book. I read it so that I could read the follow up book by Julie Halpern, Have a Nice Day, which was just released. I'll let you know how thatis.
    • 4/5
      Julie Halpern has a rare gift with literary voice. Anna's voice was fresh and cool and unique. That's one of the most important things in realistic fiction and she definitely nails it! Anna's story is told in diary-like letters to her friend Tracy while she's stuck in a 'loony bin'. So you read everything after it has happened. This kind of bothered me at first, but then you get used to it and it works.As a fan of dark contemporary I was immediately attracted to the premise. Though it ended up being a sweet, hopeful read and not very dark at all, which actually worked out better because of Anna's way of narrating. She's very witty and full of humor.You can totally relate with her as character, and having read Halpern before, I know that she does a great job at female characterization.I was dissapointed when it ended, and not because it was a bad ending but because I just knew I would miss Anna. It's the type of book you just WANT to keep reading. Plus it's a very short read, so yeah, I needed more. More Justin. Aw, it was just such a cute book, which teen issues, and humor, and music, and unlikely friendships, just overall satisfying. As of now, after reading two of her books, I'm a HUGE fan of Julie. Can't wait til she writes some more!
    • 5/5
      This was a hilariously good book. I felt like it was a quick paced and short book, but I loved the authors writing style and I quickly fell in love with Anna and Justin and their forbidden "romance." Julie Halpern was able to connect with her teenage self really well, this book was based off of her own expierences as a teenager in a mental hospital and it shows through her writing how passionate she is about sharing her characters and expierences with the world. I could relate well with the characters, Anna and Justin are just like anyone you could find in your own highschool, in your own group of friends or could possibly even be you. They were insecure but down to earth and that's why the book was so well written. It deals with serious subjects such as seizures, depression and teen pregnancy but funny moments are thrown in there too.
    • 3/5
      Anna, a teenager struggling with depression, is sent to a mental institution because she stops going to school. In letters to her friend Tracy, Anna tells of the people she meets in "community" and her experiences with them as she works through her troubles. The thing about Anna is, I can't figure out why she is depressed. She is overweight and doesn't quite fit in, but her parents seem to care for her and there is no indication of any "tramautic" events. I guess that illustrates what depression truly is...it is NOT just being sad about something that has happened to you. It is a real state of being and an illness that must be treated. This novel was interesting and easy to read.
    • 3/5
      Anna isn't sure why her parents have sent her to a psychiatric hospital. I mean, yeah, she's pretty much stopped going to school. She's filled with anxiety at the thought of sitting in a classroom. And she may have mentioned something about killing herself. But c'mon. They're making her sleep in a hallway because she has to be watched at all times. She's not allowed to raise her hand or smile and she can't even have her own clothes! Surely this must be a mistake. Anna begins writing a letter to her best friend documenting all that goes on during her three-week stay at the nuthouse. Her white-trash roommate who's 16 and pregnant. The fact that her doctor is a total moron who blames all her problems on her weight. And the dreamy guy who hand-flirts with her in the elevator (even though there's supposed to be no touching). A funny take on the teen depression/psychiatric hospital angle. Less for those problem-novel readers and more for fans of funny chick lit. It reminded me of The Earth, My Butt, and Other Round Things by Carolyn Mackler (a little bit of serious thrown in with the funny). Anna's a funny, down-to-earth narrator who's not afraid to give the nitty gritty details.
    • 4/5
      Anna records her twenty-two days in a mental institution through a series of letters to her best friend. Dealing with depression and panic attacks upon her arrival at Lakeland, lovingly referred to as Lake Shit by the residents, Anna goes from a confused teen on suicide watch to someone who looks forward to living her life. The people Anna encounters, handsome, mysterious Justin, Sandy the roommate with the plastic doll baby, longtime resident Mike O., and Lawrence the follower of the Dark Lord to name a few, are fodder for observations that range from amusing to profound. Although Anna gets stronger, she definitely worries about continuing to feel normal in the real world. This is a coming-of-age story that just happens to take place in a mental institution. Anna becomes more confident and comfortable with herself during the course of her stay. There is a lovely sweetness in the blooming relationship between Anna and Justin, a relationship that would not have been possible for the Day One Anna. Halpern has created a narrative that reflects the changes in Anna with each passing day that includes self-reflection and a good dose of humor. Readers will cheer for Anna as she gains confidence in herself, dares to rebel a little, and gets well as she goes back to her life.