Conditions of a Heart

January 1, 2024
A high schooler's nondisabled persona threatens to unravel when she's suspended from school. After ableism destroyed a childhood friendship, Brynn Kwan has ensured that nobody at Pineland Prep knows she has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a degenerative genetic disorder that causes frequent joint dislocations. She's perfected her Pretend Brynn persona, hiding her pain and fatigue. Brynn's even ghosted her (now-ex) boyfriend, Oliver De Luca, rather than reveal an upcoming surgery. But when she's unjustly suspended and banned from senior-year activities (including serving as class president) after intervening in a fight, she feels lost without her busy social facade. Worse, a life skills class project forces her and Oliver to be hypothetical future roommates, juggling budgets and careers. Brynn's future, given her uncertain prognosis, is unpredictable. Attending college--or even finishing high school--seems pointless when EDS has destroyed her dream of becoming an orthopedic surgeon. But as her feelings for Oliver resurface, pretense and reality blur. Could Oliver love the real Brynn? Mangle, who has EDS herself, vividly portrays the unpredictability of chronic illness in a disorienting post-Covid world where illness is no longer normalized. Wry internal banter with various body parts leavens Brynn's anxious, discouraged narration. Though some secondary characters feel two-dimensional, the tension between Brynn and her overprotective younger sister is uncomfortably realistic, and Brynn's bond with her Korean American dad, who also has EDS, is heartwarming (Brynn's mom is white). Oliver reads white; there's ethnic and racial diversity among secondary characters. Poignant and insightful. (author's note) (Fiction. 14-18)

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Starred review from January 29, 2024
Ever since she was diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, 16-year-old Brynn Kwan has been determined to keep her condition a secret from friends and classmates. She doesn’t want to let her diagnosis define her or risk being seen as the “Disabled Girl,” going so far as to push away the boy she loves. Instead, she throws herself into activities such as yearbook and student council. But when she’s accidentally punched by a privileged bully who then claims self-defense, the school administration blames Brynn and suspends her from senior activities for the rest of the year. Now, with too much free time, Brynn is forced to reevaluate her life, including her relationship with her family and her feelings for her ex-boyfriend. In this emotionally rich story drawn from personal experience, as discussed in an author’s note, Mangle (All the Right Reasons) explores lingering trauma of early pandemic lockdowns and institutionalized privilege alongside myriad intersections of illness and self-image. Brynn is a complex and sympathetic protagonist whose journey of self-discovery proves both frustrating and fulfilling as she comes to terms with her limits and goals. Brynn’s father is Korean American and her mother is white. Ages 14–up. Agent: Jennifer Wills, Seymour Agency.

March 1, 2024

Gr 9 Up-Korean American teen Brynn Kwan is powering through her senior year, keeping her spirits up with the possibility of a Prom Queen crown. Living with the connective tissue disorder Ehlers-Danlos syndrome makes even the fun parts exhausting, especially since she's kept her medical history a secret. Everything falls apart when Brynn is suspended from school after being mistakenly accused of starting a fight with a rich jock, when in reality she was in the wrong place at the wrong time. When Brynn is also barred from participating in any senior activities (including prom), she spirals into despair, storming out of the house and attempting to drop out of school. The only bright spot in a terrible situation is that she may have rekindled things with her cute ex, Oliver. After finally filling her friends in on her condition, they band together to appeal Brynn's suspension with the school board. Oliver, on the other hand, is crushed that she kept such a huge secret from him, dumping her with unfounded anger. The angsty conflict is buoyed by Brynn's snarky sense of humor and a text message-style inner monologue. Brynn's nuanced relationship with her father (also living with EDS) and her resilience add a layer of authenticity to the narrative, though secondary characters are not thoroughly fleshed out. VERDICT A serviceable exploration of the complexities surrounding teen chronic illness. Despite some shortcomings in character depth and a frustrating dynamic in the romantic plot, this novel is recommended for purchase in larger collections.-Allison Staley

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Starred review from February 15, 2024
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* When 18-year-old Brynn Kwan, a scholarship student at a prep school in New Jersey, is punched in the face trying to stop a fight at a pep rally, not only does she subluxate her hip and dislocate her shoulder (thanks, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome) but, because the other student's parents are lawyers who have donated a lot of money to the school, she and her friends are blamed, and she's suspended for a week. She's also banned from participating in any senior activities, including her beloved yearbook and student council. With all of her health conditions getting in the way of her dreams of going to a good college and being a doctor, after a week out of school, she contemplates dropping out before channeling her rage into fighting the systemic inequalities and finally letting her classmates know about her invisible disabilities. Mangle's third YA (Prepped, 2021; All the Right Reasons, 2022) brings in pieces of the author's own life (hEDS, POTS, ADHD), connects them to COVID-era changes in accessibility, and masterfully sets it all against a backdrop of prep-school suburban New Jersey with an all-too-realistic relationship breakup. This book is highly recommended for its portrayal of invisible disabilities, neurodiversity, and the impact of the purported ""end of the pandemic" on disabled populations.

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