UNLOCKED

Grossman presents a set of life rules derived from her own struggle with mental health.

The author begins her nonfiction debut with vivid memories of being institutionalized in the late 1990s and her transformation from “Emily Grossman, eighteen-year-old Emory University freshman with all the promise in the world” to “Emily Grossman, the eighteen-year-old mental patient.” Her experiences dealing with bipolar disorder have prompted her to write a book that attempts to pull together all the “moving parts” of her recovery to help put her readers in “the driver’s seat” when it comes to their own recoveries (and perhaps to encourage them to connect with their own “Higher Self” or “Higher Power”). Grossman grounds her chapters in distinct periods of her history, from childhood to college at Rutgers and beyond (including living in New York City on September 11, 2001: “We were waiting to hear from Dad. Classes were canceled. The air was heavy”), interweaving her struggles with bipolar disorder throughout the narrative. She infuses her memories with novelistic drama, turning remembered conversations into dialogue. And she seamlessly links these dramatic autobiographical sections to broader observations she’s drawn from them (usually focusing on her concept of God or a “Higher Power”). “The hard part is trusting the Universe,” she writes in one such passage; “but you will be given signs from Grace about whether you are on the right path.” The tone throughout is gently but strongly encouraging; although her explicitly spiritual approach may put off non-religious readers, her optimism is infectious: Life, she notes, is not about avoiding problems; it’s about “learning to dive headfirst into the fire, feel you’ve been almost burned alive, and come out the other side, scars and all.” Readers open to her message will appreciate the bucking-up.

An empowering, scars-and-all handbook for reaching your best self.