The wait for John Green’s new book is finally over. “Turtles All the Way Down” was released on October 10. This story tells the tale of Aza Holmes, a sixteen-year-old living with debilitating mental illness. Aza is trying to navigate the world and her own mind, while also working with her best friend, Daisy, to solve the mystery of the disappearance of local billionaire, Russell Pickett.

​

Repeatedly throughout the novel, Aza becomes trapped within “thought spirals.” This is when she has a thought that consumes her. She cannot ignore the thought and it takes up all of the space within her mind until it is the only thing that can take her attention. Usually Aza’s thought spirals involve bacteria and her extreme fear of contracting any number of bacterial infections. Through the first person point of view, the readers become aware of Aza’s thoughts and are able to glimpse inside her head. Green has struggled with mental illness throughout his life, and he has talked about how he was able to put much of his own personal experiences into this novel.

​

Along the way, Aza learns a lot about herself and her relationships with others. Daisy struggles to understand Aza, partially because Aza fights with understanding herself. Aza also becomes involved with Davis Pickett, the son of the missing Russell Pickett. Davis and Aza met at a summer camp as children, and the two reconnect after Russell’s disappearance. Aza, struggling with her own demons, and Davis, trying to understand his father’s disappearance while taking care of his younger brother, connect over their brokenness. Aza’s mother is also a recurring character who is most often worrying about her daughter.

​

Green has been commended and criticized for his complex teenage characters. Green’s ability to write teenagers makes him stand out as an author. His characters deal with immense difficulties, whether that be Aza and her thought spirals or Hazel in “The Fault in Our Stars” facing cancer. Facing these difficulties is something that adults do not always give younger people credit for.

​

“Turtles All the Way Down” comes as a comfort to those struggling with mental illness, even those whose mental illness does not manifest itself in the same way as Aza’s does. Aza struggles with distinguishing a self amongst her anxiety-ridden mind. Finding an identity is something that many people struggle with, and Aza, Davis, and Daisy are no exception. The repetitive nature of Aza’s thoughts also drill in the realistic way that thoughts can be recurring and intrusive, often filling every void within Aza’s mind. The novel also explores Aza’s mixed feelings about using medication to treat her mental illness. Her therapist encourages her to use them, but Aza repeatedly struggles with whether the self on medications is really the real her.

​

This novel, posed as a mystery, is mostly about personal development and the nature of mental illness. Rather than finding the whereabouts of Russell Pickett, the real mystery is whether or not the characters will be able to face the challenges that have been thrust upon them, or will they fall when trying to conquer their internal snafus.