Bailey, L: Because We Are Bad

'A HEART-RENDING ROLLERCOASTER' (Will Black, author)


The true story of a teenager with a dark obsession. As a child, Lily Bailey knew she was bad. By the age of 13, she had killed someone with a thought, spread untold disease, and leered at the bodies of other children.



Only by performing an exhausting series of secret routines could she correct her wrongdoing. But it was never enough. She had a severe case of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder - and it came with a bizarre twist.



A psychological page-turner in the tradition of Mark Haddon or Matt Haig. Anyone who wants to know about OCD - and how to fight back - should read this book.

Reviews


I laughed, I cried. I could not put this book down.

Intensely moving with flashes of black humour, Because We Are Bad is the compelling account of one young woman's experience of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.



Bailey conveys with complete candour the obsessive thoughts and compulsive activity which began in childhood and engulfed her life, as well as her treatment and eventual recovery. I feel sure that this book will help many sufferers, their families and friends, and mental health professionals to better understand OCD.



- Rosanna Greenstreet, Guardian writer





Often as chilling as Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar, but also full of so much inner and external turbulence that it reminded me at times of The Bourne Identity and Memento.

Readers will root for Lily, even when she is attempting to run away from the realities and sometimes authorities chasing her.



Because We Are Bad is an intense heartrending roller coaster of a book, and it would make a powerful screenplay. Lily's story will support other sufferers and help those close to them to understand what is happening beneath the surface.

Because We Are Bad is the most engaging and well-written account of mental health experiences I have read.



- Will Black, author and journalist





As someone who suffers with OCD, I know how difficult it can be to explain the illness to others. That Lily manages to do so with humour, verve and lucidity is testament to her writing and her formidable honesty.



- James Lloyd, writer and OCD sufferer