More or Less Maddy

 

More or Less Maddy by Lisa Genova

Fiction

2025

Finished on March 6, 2025

Rating: 3.5/5 (Pretty Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

A breathless, riveting novel about a young woman diagnosed with bipolar disorder who rejects the stability and approval found in a traditionally “normal” life for a career in stand-up comedy.

Maddy Banks is just like any other stressed-out freshman at NYU. Between schoolwork, exams, navigating life in the city, and a recent breakup, it’s normal to be feeling overwhelmed. It doesn’t help that she’s always felt like the odd one out in her picture-perfect Connecticut family. But Maddy’s latest low is devastatingly low, and she goes on an antidepressant. She begins to feel good, dazzling in fact, and she soon spirals high into a wild and terrifying mania that culminates in a diagnosis of bipolar disorder.

As she struggles to find her way in this new reality, navigating the complex effects bipolar has on her identity, her relationships, and her life dreams, Maddy will have to figure out how to manage being both too much and not enough.

With her signature “deep empathy and insight” (Booklist), Harvard-trained neuroscientist and New York Times bestselling author Lisa Genova has crafted another profoundly moving novel that makes complicated mental health issues accessible and human. More or Less Maddy is destined to become another classic like Still Alice.

Apart from Remember, I have read all of Lisa Genova's books, beginning with her brilliant debut novel, Still Alice. I have great respect for Genova's ability to put a face on numerous neurological conditions, entertaining while educating her readers with each unique story. In More or Less Maddy, the author's empathetic portrayal of a young woman with bipolar disorder is a tough read. Maddy is not a likeable character, but I came to sympathize with her once I understood that she wasn't making poor choices because she's an irresponsible college freshman, but rather that she was struggling to accept her mental health issue. After several setbacks, and with the support of her family, Maddy is able to fulfill her dream to become a stand-up comic, and Genova leaves her readers with a hopeful conclusion. 

I enjoyed More or Less Maddy, but it isn't one of my favorites by Lisa Genova. The storyline is uneven, often repetitive, and the comedy shows (and Taylor Swift obsession) held no appeal for me. Would it have been more enjoyable if Maddy had a different career path, and an obsession for an actor or musician whom I admire? Perhaps. But I'm glad I read the book if only to have a deeper understanding of those dealing with bipolar disorder, including their families and friends.

An estimated forty-six million people worldwide have bipolar disorder. Almost seven million people are diagnosed with bipolar in the US, slightly more than the number diagnosed with Alzheimer's, and this is a much younger crowd, with onset typically occurring in the late teens and early twenties. Bipolar disorder is the sixth leading cause of disability worldwide, and the tenth leading cause of death in the US. (Lisa Genova)

Recommend.

Link to my reviews of Lisa Genova's books:

Still Alice (5/5) - Early-Onset Alzheimer's Disease

Left Neglected (5/5) - Hemispatial Neglect, aka Left Neglect Syndrome

Love Anthony (4.75/5) - Autism

Inside the O'Briens (4.75/5) - Huntington's Disease

Every Note Played (4/5) - Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)