Customer Reviews

Not as Crazy as I Seem

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My 12-year-old daughter loved this book, and asked me to read it when she finished. I was surprised to discover how engrossed I became in the story, and how attached I became to the main character. He is a bright teenager struggling with OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder), finding strategies for hiding his compulsions from others, and avoiding his parents' efforts to "change" him. I was touched by the way he is forced to confront his problem and allow others into his inner world. Unlike many young people's books about adolescents with special issues, this book is not heavy, depressing, or heartbreaking. It's interesting, fast-paced, and thought-provoking without being preachy. Anyone who knows a person with OCD or suspects it in themself will find the book to be a revelation. Those who do not will gain a deeper understanding of everyday people who struggle with mental health issues. I highly recommend it for parents who are trying to enrich their children's reading lists or broaden their understanding of human diversity.

This book review has very brief language. Not as crazy as I seem by George Harrar was a very entertaining book about a boy, Devon who has tendencies, as his mom calls, it as known as OCD (obsessessive compulsive disorder.) Devon wont eat in the school caf (a germ swamp as he calls it). He has to go to a shrink and he wont sit on the chair there "I cant bring myself to sit on it (the chair) just think of all the kids squirmy asses that have touched it!"
This story is a real page-turner, it also was an eye popper - I know realize how lucky I am to just be ordinary.
I would recommend this book to people age 12 and up because it has brief language and it has things that younger kids might not understand. This book has 202 pages.

A very well written book, moves very quickly, and portrays OCD realistically and yet manages to be pretty funny in some parts. As a sufferer of OCD, I could really relate to alot of Devon's feelings. The therapist was a bit unrealistic, however and it took him awhile to catch on to an obvious OCD diagnosis. But overall a great book!

I loved this book!! I saw it on a site, I can't remember where, and was instantly compelled to read it. So I recommended it for the library, and fortunately, they bought it and I got to read it. Well, I wish I could have read it sooner!
"Not as Crazy as I seem" is about a boy named Devon, who has OCD. He obsesses about things and has a constant urge for everything to be perfect. Wow, I could totally relate to Devon! Sometimes, I, too, obsess about things (I think we all do). And being a perfectionist, I really knew how Devon felt.
I read this book in about a few hours, because it was just so interesting. It was like entering the mind of a real teenager. The book is written humorously - fortunately, the author did not make the whole story mundane and foreboding about Devon's disorder. I appreciated that, and there was a perfect balance in contrast with the humor and the seriousness of OCD.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone! It is not just for young adults - I think just the general public would enjoy it because it's so riveting and it's a real page-turner. Once I started reading the book, I couldn't tear my eyes away from it. Also, this is one of the extremely rare books that deal with OCD but is still fiction. I haven't encountered many - just one other - "Kissing Doorknobs." However, I prefer this one to "Kissing Doorknobs" because it is written in the first person, in the perspective of Devon, the protagonist himself! This makes it more personal, and somewhat more real.
I think George Harrar is a very talented author. He really captivates the soul and imagination of a teenaged boy dealing wtih OCD.
I really hope that you will take the time to read this book. I urge you - this is something you won't regret reading. These kinds of books are what makes books worth reading! Read it! It is worth 100% of your time and money!

This was the only place I could find this out of print book for a class my daughter was taking at school. The school only had two copies of the book and the public libs. in the area had already loaned there supply. We were very happy with how quick the item was shipped and the price was good.

I am in 8th grade, and I read this for a free-read book report. It was a really good book. It is about a boy who has odd obsessions, and does everything oddly. He moves to a new city, and makes two new friends. One of them does something really bad at school, and he gets the blame! He gets 2 weeks of suspension at school and a TON of trouble with his parents. No one knows to believe him or not. He has to fix the problem, but he doesn't want to rat his friend out. What does he do!?!? Read the book to find out!

I thought this was an excellent book, really getting inside the mind of a kid that's considered "different" at first glance. Devon became more real to me when I understood why he could or couldn't control what he was doing, rather than being just a kid with a OCD. This book changed my definition of crazy; being "crazy" has a lot more to it than we all think.

I chuckled often reading this book. This book is very cleverly written; it manages to use a light, humourous tone without trivializing the serious and emotional issues that come up. It will help teenagers understand and deal with having a psychological disorder without scaring them off and making them feel horrible and doomed. A sense of humour is vital for healing!
This book also works well as an entertaining story that any teenager who feel like their life is getting out of control (and who doesn't at that age?) could enjoy and relate to.
A criticism is that the charactor of Tanya could have used more development to explain her interest in Devon. It also seemed odd to me that it would take Devon's psychologists so long to diagnose his disorder when he was clearly a textbook case.

This book was truly amazing! It gives you a different view on the way people think. I started reading the book and just couldn't put it down. I recomend this book to people young and old.

"What would my personality be if I didn't have my "tendencies," as Mom puts it? If I weren't Devon the Anxious, Devon the Obsessive, Devon the Clean, what kind of Devon would I be?" Devon was not any ordinary teen. He was a tenth grader with OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). Devon never thought he was sick or had any disorder, he just always thought he was a little different than everyone else. Devon had just moved to Boston and was learning to cope with his grandfather's death and adjust to his new private school. A terrific part in the book is when he meets Tanya, an African American girl who becomes Devon's first friend. This is a great part in the book because Tanya later on becomes a big influence in Devon's life. Devon is slowly learning to overcome his OCD although it is not easy. The genre of this book is realistic fiction.

"Not As Crazy As I Seem" was a real page turner. As you read, new problems keep occurring and keep you wondering what is next to come. It is a very unpredictable book which makes you want to uncover the outcome even more. By the end of the book, you will be glad you reached the resolution but you will be upset at the fact that the book is now ever.

While reading this book, it was very easy to concentrate. It was not an especially complicated book and did not discuss many complex ideas. Everything seemed to flow and fit together nicely making it simple to understand. Also, the ideas were all very clear so that readers of age could comprehend it all.

Personally, as a reader I take pleasure in this realistic fiction. This book increased my fondness of this genre. This is because it was realistic and nothing was too unimaginable. Everything that happened in this book could certainly happen in real life. Also, people with OCD like Devon in the book, might be able to relate to the book because of how real it is. I definitely would recommend this book to others.

While at the library, I saw the book "Not As Crazy As I Seem" on the shelf with the new arrivals. I picked it up and read the short summary. It seemed like an interesting book and I had never read anything with a similar concept so I checked it out. Although I really enjoyed this book, I did not really connect with any of the characters or themes in the story. I did realize though that I do have certain things that bother me if out of place or out of order like Devon, the main character. All in all, I took delight in this book and will probably read more of George Harrar's books in the future.