Worst Case

Anxiety is weird. When we feel anxious, we try to avoid the thing that’s jacking up our sympathetic nervous system. Too bad avoidance often increases anxiety. The best strategy for reducing anxiety is to approach it head-on–ask a honey out on a date, deliver public speeches, drive to a friend’s over snowy roads–but who has the gumption to do that?

Vivi Lewis just might be the one.

Vivi is a 17 year old whose mother’s nervous system is on overdrive. Convinced the world is dangerous, her mother keeps uprooting her from town to town, running from her fears. Her mother even has the gall to move her to Idaho in the midst of Vivi’s senior year.

What an interesting setting for the story: Coeur d’Alene. I lived in eastern Washington for a year and still remember the breathtaking views of the lake and resort when I visited this northern Idaho town. But Vivi’s mother hasn’t moved her here for the view. It’s another ploy by her mother to avoid her crippling anxiety.

Thankfully a neighbor boy, Win, makes Vivi feel right at home from the get-go. He’s got his own secret worst case that has made him wise beyond his years.

Vivi has inherited her mother’s anxious brain, which includes worry and panic attacks but also the gifts of anxiety: kindness, intelligence, and keen observational skills, like:

“The space thing, I’ve always been fascinated by it. Grown-ups take up a lot of space, most of them. Men. They spread out on bus seats. They take their half of the hallway out of the middle.

Win does this, but not in a man-spread, irritating way. In a “clear the way, here he comes” kind of way. He is noticed, and people move for him.

A path clears for Win. And here I am, riding in his wake. What an intoxicating feeling.”

*nods* I agree with Vivi. On airplanes, I seek a seat next to a woman, not a man, because of this space thing. I’m not a small person and the women next to me might not be small either, but they don’t tend to “spread out” like men do. (PS I love men but I don’t want to be cramped on a long flight!)

Sounds like Vivi has had some therapy–too bad her mother is reluctant to see a therapist–and I like this metaphor:

“It sucks, anxiety. I had a psychologist once who told me it’s best to try to think of anxiety like it’s the flu. When you have the flu, you don’t get owned by it. It doesn’t dominate you, it doesn’t define you. It’s just something you have, and you deal with it.”

I enjoyed Vivi’s quirky humor, like when she tries paddle boarding:

Win’s out in the water, up to the waist, and when I put a toe in, it’s really, really cold.

“It feels hypothermic. Like Jack-and-Rose cold.”

…or when an annoying but lovable girlfriend makes a big deal of her kissing Win:

Phoebe jumps up and down.

Win breaks the kiss and pulls me into a hug. “Don’t move. If we’re still, maybe she’ll move on.”

“She’s not a tyrannosaurus rex. She can still see us,” I murmur. But I’d be happy to just stand here in his arms.

Vivi and Win keep alluding to the big talk they need to have, revealing their inner demons, and I think it takes a bit too long for them to share their secrets. The build-up makes their secrets seem anticlimactic, when upon reflection, family problems like these would challenge any teen.

Beck Anderson’s straightforward writing style and unique observations of the world continue to impress me. I’ll read anything she writes!

So, back to facing anxiety. When I have “what-if” questions, like “What if I don’t get my to-do list done?”, instead of trying to banish those thoughts from my mind, cognitive-behavioral therapy has taught me to go deep into the worst-case scenario and imagine coping with it. I ask myself three questions: 1) What’s the worst case scenario? 2) What’s the likelihood of that event? and 3) Even if that unlikely worst case scenario happens, could I handle it? Asking these questions convinces me that I won’t *die* if I fail to finish my to-do list.

Luckily for Vivi and Win, they help each other face their own worst cases, and it’s a worthy journey.

Worst Case is about young love, facing fears, family and friendship.

Vivi is a 17 year old girl who has moved from city to city enough times in her short life. The day she and her mom arrive to Coeur d’Alene, Vivi´s so sure it’s going to be just like the other times they. They’d stay in this town for a little time and then, go to another city. Again. She’s used to the routine and understands the reasons behind every move but she’s tired of it all, because she couldn’t have a normal teenager life.

But everything changes her first day of school. She meets the most amazing boy in the entire world—at least Win’s that for Vivi and me *sigh*—and she also meets new friends. Suddenly her quiet life turns into outdoor adventures with Win, playing golf and attending parties. She’s doing everything her mother never allow her to do and she feels alive, and everything’s perfect. Until the inevitable happens and she—and her mother—have to face her biggest fears.

I absolutely adored every single aspect of Worst Case. The story isn’t just a YA romance novel, for me this book brings an important message for life, about fears and how to face them. Books like this always makes me want to be an expert in psychology to being able to have the best words to describe all the meaningful things that happened to Vivi, her mom and Win. The only word I find to describe their experiences is ENCOURAGING, and it all started when Vivi and her mom moved to Coeur d’Alene. I think of it like a Butterfly Effect—small causes can have larger effects—and the best effects happened to all their lives.

I love Win and Vivi madly, I love their friendship and adore them more when they started their beautiful young love story. It’s so great to read an innocent kind of love, it’s so refreshing.

Win is easy, funny, relaxed, and honestly, he acts like we’ve been best friends since our moms took us to Hopalong Friends Daycare when we were two.

I loved the relationship they had with their families. I also loved their friends, the Fi twins are hilarious, but my favorite is Jack. He’s the best.

If you are a YA reader, you must read this book. And if you are not a YA reader, give it a chance to this flawless book. I assure you that you’ll love it.

PS: One of the best things I loved about this book was the descriptions. I would love to visit Coeur d’Alene and experience everything Vivi and Win lived. <3