List of Ten

January 1, 2021

Gr 9 Up-What most people see when they look at 16-year-old Troy Haynes are his tics, his clutching hands, his behavior that causes him to align objects, touch the floor, and shout out words that don't belong. Troy has Tourette syndrome (TS) and obsessive-compulsive disorder and he is weary, sad, and ready to die. Because the number 10 is important to him, he decides to die on the 10-year anniversary of his diagnosis. He makes a list of nine things he's always wanted do with the goal of completing them by the expected date (suicide is the 10th thing). Then Troy meets Khory, the surviving twin of a kidnapping, who has her own demons to contend with and she pays little attention to Troy's tics. When she introduces Troy to her friends, he finds acceptance for the first time. While helping Khory with her own list toward becoming more independent, Troy discovers that his 10th goal feels far too final. Told in the first person, this powerful novel takes readers into the emotional and physical depths of TS, feeling every pain and twitch. Making the choice to live will take a herculean effort, and only with the support of his family and the love of his friends can Troy move even slightly toward that choice. Most characters' ethnicity isn't stated, and one of Khory's friends is Black. VERDICT This #OwnVoices novel gives insight into living with these conditions, and readers will ponder how friendship means more than being "perfect."-Connie Williams, Petaluma, CA

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January 15, 2021
A teen with Tourette syndrome works through a list of life-altering actions, including possible suicide. When Troy's Tourette syndrome emerged at age 6, a therapist suggested counting to 10 to ease his anxiety. The therapist also unknowingly instilled the number 10 into Troy's comorbid obsessive-compulsive disorder thoughts and rituals. To recognize the 10th anniversary of his diagnosis, the high school sophomore has created a List of Ten with action items to take back his life from the disorder that controls it. This story by an author with Tourette syndrome delivers a painfully realistic depiction of living with chronic conditions, trying to fight them, and being bullied for them. Some of the items on Troy's list even elicit pain, from meeting someone else with Tourette to seeking the mother who abandoned him, a Tourette sufferer as well. However, other goals, like driving a car and experiencing his first kiss, emerge from newfound friendships and tender scenes of first love and budding sexuality with girlfriend Khory. As Troy begins living on his own terms, he also approaches the last item on his list--commit suicide. Although the hopeful ending feels too quick and tidy, Troy's first-person narrative shows understanding of neurodiverse individuals. Troy and Khory are White by default; some mutual friends are racially diverse. An authentic and compassionate look at the ups and downs of teenage life and living with Tourette syndrome. (discussion questions, author's note) (Fiction. 14-18)

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