3 out of 4 stars
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What would you do if your therapy for clinical depression involved getting a different superpower each week? That’s exactly the question Emily lives the answer to in Emily Creek: Power of the Week by Joshua Wimbush.
Hospitalized after trying to commit suicide at school, Emily Creek can’t run from her problems anymore. She believes she’s clinically depressed. When her school mandates therapy, Emily is upset at first, but that changes when she meets Dr. Tim, whose approach to therapy is a little different. Every week, Emily will randomly select a different superpower. Cool, right?
Maybe. Emily quickly finds out that having power comes with tough choices. Will she make the right ones? What events will unfold as a result? Even more, who is Dr. Tim, and what is this whole superpowers-as-therapy program, anyway?
I really enjoyed this unique take on superpowers. Don’t get me wrong. Superheroes battling supervillains to save the world from certain destruction? I’m all over that. This book, though, offered an entirely different perspective. The world isn’t in danger, and there are no villains. It’s just Emily, her powers, and the choices she’s faced with. This was such a refreshing and interesting way to push the notion that all choices have consequences. When superpowers are involved, those consequences don’t necessarily have to be super.
I also loved the big-picture issues this book touched on. Mental illness is the most obvious. At the end of each power’s cycle, Emily meets with Dr. Tim, and they discuss how the power made Emily feel. Every time, Emily unearths a contributing factor to her depression and realizes that factor doesn’t control her. For example, Emily’s first power is invisibility. At the end of it, Emily realizes that people do see her and that she’s not hopelessly alone. Emily’s growth throughout this story was brilliant, and for those struggling with depression, this book could be an inspirational look at a new way to approach things.
While she’s dealing with superpowers, Emily also has regular teen issues to contend with. Her family is struggling financially. She missed assignments from her time in the hospital, and not all is well in her social circle. Kenya, Emily’s best friend, goes through her own emotional roller coaster in this book—a cheating boyfriend and her own family issues. I felt the bond of friendship between Emily and Kenya from beginning to end. Kenya and many of the other secondary characters were realistic, which added to the story’s depth.
Speaking of depth, the ending snuck up on me and hit me over the head with a hypothetical sledgehammer. I didn’t see it coming, but once I got there, all the pieces fell into place. My jaw was literally hanging open at a few points. This book ended up being so much more than I thought it would in a good way.
Rating this book was tough. Despite all its great points, there were grammar mistakes throughout, and the dialogue tripped me up in a lot of places. Sometimes, the teens didn’t quite sound like teens. At one point, Emily uses the word “insidious” to describe her depression. This struck me as odd, and it wasn’t the only instance of strange word choice. I floundered between 2 and 3 stars until I got to the mind-blowing ending. At that point, I decided to rate Emily Creek: Power of the Week 3 out of 4 stars, despite the dialogue and errors.
I recommend this book to anyone struggling with mental illness. The superpowers angle really puts a different spin on therapy. Fans of superheroes or real-life stories about teenagers dealing with teen problems would also enjoy this book. Those sensitive to suicide or cheating may wish to skip this one, and that mind-blowing ending might not be suitable for anyone who can’t stomach needless violence. All this aside, I really think this is a book for everyone. It had a big impact on me, and I encourage you to give it a try.
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Emily Creek: Power of the Week
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