The Promise Between Us by Barbara Claypole White

Barbara Claypole White tackles the impossible in The Promise Between Us. She lets you into the mind of someone with obsessive compulsive disorder just enough to give you a realistic look at what their life must be like, and then reigns it back a little so that you don’t shut the book in dismay. Katie Mack abandoned her young daughter when she was just an infant as thoughts of harming her swarmed her mind. She thought the girl would be safer without her, and by the time she got treatment and found herself in a semi-stable state, her husband had moved on and told their daughter that she was dead. Over a decade later Katie randomly comes back into contact with her daughter, only to realize that her own mental illness was now manifesting itself in her daughter. Her attempts to help her and deal with her own continuing issues make up the bulk of the story.

Some books are easier to read than others. If you’re looking for a fluffy beach read for entertainment purposes, this is not it. But it is an important read, and a timely one. OCD has received some national attention lately, largely due to John Green’s novel about the disease and his admission that he suffers from it as well. If you want to understand more about it (guess what, it’s not just about compulsively washing your hands) and how it can destroy people and families (and build them back up again), then this is a must read.

The Perfect Son by Barbara Claypole White

The Perfect Son is a lovely novel about a family upended by a medical emergency. Ella and Felix have a teenage son, Harry, who has Tourette Syndrome, among other things. The family has been operating in a set fashion for years, with Felix lost in his high stakes business world, and Ella managing Harry’s care and education. Then, on a return trip from assisting her father after he had an operation, Ella collapses from a heart attack. Clearly, she has been taking care of everyone else but herself. Her condition is critical, and she must recuperate in hospital while Felix takes over the day to day duties of raising a child with special needs.

The story alternates between the three characters’ viewpoints, with very distinguishable voices for each of them. The real surprise for me was how wonderfully she expressed Harry’s character. It would be easy to feel sorry for a boy with Tourette’s and ADHD, and yet it’s his father who we end up pitying more. He can’t seem to relate to his child, even though he shares some similar traits, and every word of praise that he offers (and those are few and far between) has a stinging critique at the end of it. Harry, on the other hand, accepts himself for who he is and seems to be doing just fine for someone in his situation: perfect SAT scores, reliable friends and even a hot girlfriend.

With a story like this, you’d expect to be in a puddle of tears immediately, but Barbara Claypole White does a great job of not playing up the emotional side too much. While the family is dealing with a sad and potentially fatal situation, there are still many laughs and shenanigans along the way, not to mention plenty of redemption for Felix as he comes to understand, love and accept his perfect son. This is a great read, and as an added bonus it’s a Kindle First selection for June, so it’s either free (Amazon Prime members) or greatly reduced in price this month.