Ten Miles One Way, Hardcover

The powerful story of a mind at the edge of unraveling, held together by love and acceptance. Nest and Q walk through the city. Nest speaks and Q listens. Mile by mile, Nest tells Q about her life, her family, her past . . . and her Chimaera, the beast that preys on her mind and causes her to lose herself. Q knows only that his love for Nest runs deeper than the demon that plagues her thoughts, that he loves her in spite of--or perhaps because of--the personal battle she fights every day. A beautifully-written, haunting story. Praise for Ten Miles One Way "A loving but honest treatment of mental illness, these words will sing off the page and into your heart. No question: the world is a better place with Patrick Downes writing in it."--A. M. Jenkins, author of the Printz Honor Book Repossessed "Downes subtly plumbs the depths of mental illness within the broader context of relationship and self-awareness....An intricate, unusual love story for readers attuned to compassion."--Kirkus Reviews, starred review "Through bewitching prose, idiosyncratic detail, and the presentation of a mind simultaneously on the edge of epiphany and exhaustion, breakthrough and breakdown, Downes crafts a tender portrayal of both mental illness and love itself. Part romance, part poetry, and part monologue, perceptive teens will devour this one."--Booklist "This is a dark, affecting tale about the mind of a bipolar adolescent attempting to run from her own thoughts, and her boyfriend, who listens, learns, and loves her throughout everything. Many readers will connect with this raw, powerful portrait of a young person living with mental illness. Recommended for most YA collections."--School Library Journal "What's most interesting is that underneath the journey and the mental illness and even the harrowing crash, this is at the core a love story, one that isn't always pretty or even healthy but is absolutely memorable."--BCCB "Downes doesn't cloak the depth of Nest's suffering nor offer fal