My third book: depression and redemption in the psych hospital.

January 2010: recommended by Powell's Books in Portland, OR!

"Insightful and utterly authentic... This is an important book." - New York Times Book Review

"Comparisons with Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar seem inevitable... The overall message that depression is not shameful, and that sufferers are not freaks of nature, is beautifully handled." - Bookmunch

"It's terrific: funny, incisive, disarming." - New York Magazine

"The wise, witty narrator and sensitive handling of a hot topic should win over older teens--and their parents." - People Magazine

"Funny... [Vizzini] supplies personal insights and a clever, self-deprecating tone that make the book an entertaining read." - The Washington Post

"Ned Vizzini is a young genius! And if he was old, he would be an old genius. Teen Angst? Naaah... is zany, tender, and hysterically funny."
-- Jonathan Ames

"[O]ne of the few truly genuinely funny and unpretentious books I have read in many years."
-- Esme Raji Codell, author of Educating Esme and Sahara Special

"The chapter on taking your girlfriend to prom is effin' GREAT. Worth the price of the book alone."
-- Marty Beckerman, author of Death to All Cheerleaders and Generation S.L.U.T.

Published by Random House.

This sort of came out of nowhere. Teen Angst? Naaah... had been released in its trade format by Free Spirit two years before, and I had busted my ass getting the word out about it on radio interviews and at schools. Then Judy, the president of Free Spirit, told me that Random House wanted to buy the book and put out their own version. I said great. I went into the RH offices, which had a coffee machine on which you could select light/medium/strong for one of eight flavors (including amaretto) and get frothy white-chocolate hot chocolate.

My new editor, Marissa Walsh (who went on to publish the Not that I'm Jealous or Anything anthology and is now pursuing her own writing), did a great job making some changes to the text (mostly dates, which I wanted to get out of the book so it would age a little better) and we released it with a big party at Siberia Bar in Mahattan. You can see the party pictures if you want--I think many of them capture my friends at the peak of their attractive youth.

Later on at the party Tracey, the Siberia owner, brought me into the bathroom and tried to get me to write a book for him for $15,000. Fun times. He claimed to have some serious dirt on Hillary Clinton.

"I wish I'd had a squip when I was a teenager. Actually, I wish I had one now. You know what? Forget the squip. Reading this hilarious book is what will make you cool."
-- Neal Pollack

"Ned Vizzini writes about teenagers without the Saved by the Bell, 'boy I sure love pizza' clichés. Be More Chill is a funny, perceptive, and surprisingly well-written read for all ages."
-- Robert Lanham, author, The Hipster Handbook

"I thought Be More Chill was very funny, well observed and well written. Very clever story, beautifully executed - definitely one to take notice of, and one of the cleverest plots I've come across in a long time."
-- Melvin Burgess, author, Smack

"Authentic without pretense and honest without stifling morality."
-- Zoe Trope

"Authentic, refreshingly honest and hilarious. You have perfectly captured the angst-filled, sex-obsessed thoughts of today's teens. Also, it is an incredibly original plot."
-- Anne Rouyer, the New York Public Library

"As a two-time survivor of high school (once as a student and once as a teacher), I know how hard it is to write about adolescence. But Ned Vizzini gets it right-- the lingo, the rigid caste system, the minutiae of teen courtship rituals. Be More Chill shows that high school can be a hero's journey, a treacherous march through minefields of bullies, drugs, and unfairly complicated bra straps. A smart, funny book that shies away from sentimentality and cliché, Be More Chill handles powerful themes with a light touch."
-- David Benioff, author, The 25th Hour

"Be More Chill is a sharp social commentary disguised as a high school sex (or no sex, in our hero's case) comedy. I was thoroughly entertained by Vizzini's clever take on the insanity (and inanity) of contemporary teendom."
-- Megan McCafferty, author, Sloppy Firsts, Second Helpings