Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman (5/5)

The book, Challenger Deep, by Neal Shusterman, is an intriguing window into life with mental illness. The author is able to evoke a haunting portrayal of schizophrenia in a teenager through his son, Brendan’s input. Brendan dealt with mental illness in the past, and he was able to help Shusterman paint a more accurate picture.

The protagonist, Caden Bosch, is living a double life; one in his mind on a cruel and unforgiving pirate ship and one in the real world, where he struggles to balance his schoolwork and his delusions. An intelligent person, his friends begin to notice Caden slipping. He fakes joining the track team at his school to have time to wander, trapped on the ship in his mind. Should he trust what his captain tells him, or give in to the seductive nature of mutiny? We learn that Caden was sent to a mental hospital by his parents in an attempt to help bring their son back, and we begin to understand the true na

ture of the ship. Parallels are rampant between the ship and the hospital, with nearly everyone in the hospital having alter egos on the ship. During his time in the mental hospital, he experiences progress, setbacks, love, and heartbreak. The turning point comes when his roommate, a boy named Hal, attempts suicide by slitting his wrists. This shocking event takes place in both the real world and on the ship. Hal, the cartographer for the ship, jumps from the crow's nest and turns into sheets of paper flowing in the wind. Caden’s journey becomes more and more perilous as they near the end of their expedition. The sea isn’t Caden’s only opponent, as the Captian of the ship is the one tainting Caden’s mind. Towards the conclusion of this book, they reach their destination and Caden descends to the deep floor of Challenger Deep before he finally starts to climb his way back to normal life and recovery. He escapes from the floating prison that was the ship and is finally able to come back to his loving family. The Captain lurks in the shadows of his mind, always trying to bring back his loyal crewmate, but Caden knows what he’s up against now. And he knows that he must fight it. I enjoyed reading this book a lot because it was so thorough in its descriptions. If you are to read this book, be prepared to reread a few parts. You might not fully grasp everything the first time, but that’s okay. It’s important to be focused on the book while reading to make sure you’re aware of everything in both realities. All in all, this book is a poignant story that leaves the reader with the message that hope must always be kept alive. The world is broken, and sometimes so are we, but we must accept how we are and, if necessary, get help in order to move on.