What Made Maddy Run: The Secret Struggles and Tragic Death of an All-American Teen by Kate Fagan

4.2 AVERAGE

semu's review against another edition

4.0
emotional reflective sad medium-paced

sam_thekuhn's review against another edition

3.0
Pretty conflicted about this book. It’s an incredibly important story to tell and help break down barriers to speaking about the intersection of mental health, college athletics, and our own expectations. Kate Fagan does a great job at trying to look at pressures Maddy felt from all angles, but I was disappointed in how shallow a lot of the angles felt. I appreciated that she did not force blame on our generation for the distinctive ways that social media and our cultural expectations pressure and weigh us down, but I couldn’t help but feel that this maybe was not her story to tell and kept wishing that it was written from a perspective of someone who had experienced and understood all the struggles talked about in the book. Social media has incredibly harmful and destructive effects, but I feel demonizing it alone instead of other societal factors is a dangerous path.

I think this is a story best narrated for those who have never experienced mental health issues in conjunction with athletics.
sarahs_readingparty's profile picture

sarahs_readingparty's review against another edition

5.0
This book is powerful, important, sad, and promising all at once. It deals with social media, pressures on teens/college students, athletics, grades, mental health, and more. A must read for anyone who works with kids, teen, and young adults... for parents... and for all of us who care. Mandy’s story was respectfully told and I hope her pain can be a change agent for others.

ajkelley's review against another edition

5.0
Good mix of honoring the story of Maddy while discussing the complexities of mental health and suicide. Very easy to comprehend the immense pressure student athletes must feel and the importance of a greater focus on mental health in a campus setting.

surahhhbetttte's review against another edition

5.0
This book is not an easy read but it is an important read! It should be a required read for anyone and everyone, especially high school and college students and parents of said kids. It touches on so many issues young generations are facing. Really it gets at issues all generations are facing with social media and the control it has on us.

It’s not a light hearted read and will probably challenge many readers but I cannot suggest this book enough.

solson1974's review against another edition

4.0
Skimmed some of the info the author provided about her own experience. However, the breakdown of what led a healthy, active, successful young college student to take her own life was both heart-breaking and eye-opening.

anawest's review against another edition

Going to refrain (at least for now) from rating this book out of five stars because I feel such a strong personal connection to the topic. All I can say is that 1) I really, really wish that I had read this book before I started my freshman year, and 2) I'm glad that I got the chance to read it now.

jo_22's review

5.0
emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

dbeaver77's review

3.75
emotional informative reflective sad fast-paced
ellaboate's profile picture

ellaboate's review against another edition

5.0
challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced