More or Less Maddy

Author: Lisa Genova
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Galley Scout Press, 2025
Pages: 368
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: Maddy Banks is just like any other stressed-out freshman at NYU. Between schoolwork, exams, navigating life in the city, and a recent break-up, it's normal to be feeling overwhelmed. It doesn't help that she's always felt like the odd one out in her picture-perfect Connecticut family. But Maddy's latest low is devastatingly low, and she goes on an antidepressant. She begins to feel good, dazzling in fact, and she soon spirals high into a wild and terrifying mania that culminates in a diagnosis of bipolar disorder.

As she struggles to find her way in this new reality, navigating the complex effects bipolar has on her identity, her relationships, and her life dreams, Maddy will have to figure out how to manage being both too much and not enough.

Review: I usually love Lisa Genova, but this wasn't my favorite. It felt a little like a The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel rip off, if you've seen that show on Amazon Prime (highly recommend, by the way). "Not my favorite" though, in no way means that you shouldn't read this. It's a good story and Lisa Genova is a wonderful author.

Other Lisa Genova Novels
Inside the O'Briens
Love Anthony
Still Alice