My Heart and Other Black Holes by Jasmine Warga

He plans to kill himself on the anniversary of her death, and he wonders if Aysel would like to join him. Roman also wants to kill himself, but his reasons are different-he blames himself for his sister’s death. She browses the forum until she stumbles across FrozenRobot, whose name is Roman. Here, she can find someone to “befriend” with whom she can form a suicide pact. Aysel signs up on a website called Suicide Partners. The problem is, she doesn’t know how to do it, and she’s worried that it won’t work. Finally, Aysel decides to go through with her suicide. She needs help, but she has given up looking for it. She tries to lose herself in her schoolwork-especially physics, which she used to love-but it’s no use. Working as a cold-caller for a local business, hardly distracts her from her feelings. It is impossible to be poetic or artistic about depression-there is nothing beautiful about it.ĭay by day, she only feels worse.

For example, when she is at school and reading depressing poetry, she gets angry because she doesn’t believe that it’s sincere. She is severely depressed and she knows it, but she doesn’t see any way out of her situation.

Aysel believes she has only one option left-ending her life. To make matters worse, her mother barely speaks to her, and she can’t talk to her siblings anymore. They give up trying to talk to her, and she feels alone. The truth is that she pushes her friends away because she doesn’t feel worthy of them anymore. She has no friends because no one wants to associate with the daughter of a child murderer-at least, that is what Aysel thinks. In a small town, no one looks at Aysel the same. She is terrified that she will turn out no better than him. Her father killed a local teenager, and Aysel is worried that she has inherited his monstrous side. Right now, her life feels like a void or a black hole. The protagonist is sixteen-year-old Aysel. My Heart and Other Black Holes has been optioned for a feature film and was nominated for the 2015 Goodreads Choice Award for a Debut Author.

Warga’s first novel, she has since published another contemporary novel. Although the book may be triggering for some readers, it received widespread critical acclaim for its sharp honesty and hopeful message. My Heart and Other Black Holes (2015), a young adult contemporary novel by Jasmine Warga, tells the story of two depressed teenagers who forge a suicide pact online, but then question whether they want to go through with it.

My Heart and Other Black Holes by Jasmine Warga