Prozac Nation is a memoir by Elizabeth Wurtzel recounting her tales with major depression and her journey from adolescence to adulthood, while dealing with various therapists and treatments for her mental instabilities.

While Wurtzel is a very talented writer and the book did have some interesting parts, at times it dragged on and seemed overly bemoaning. Overall though, I did enjoy the book. It may have been a little whiny at some points, but it offered an understanding to the world of depression that my generation hears about so frequently in movies, music, and other books, but is rarely portrayed on a purely realistic level.

I read a couple reviews on Prozac Nation before I actually read the book and a few people compared Wurtzel to the likes of Sylvia Plath. As a huge fan of The Bell Jar author, I can say that anyone expecting the likes of a modern day Plath will be disappointed. Like I said before, Prozac Nation was an amusing read, and it has been experiencing success 15 plus years since its original publication, but I don’t think it will ever merit itself as a classic work of literature.

Just a warning, Prozac Nation is definitely recommended for readers at least 16 years of age or older. While I didn’t find anything too graphic, Wurtzel tends to go on alcohol and sex binges to deal with her depression, and some of those scenes could be construed as disturbing. No scenes are described in too much depth, but some mature topics are alluded to.

I would recommend Prozac Nation as a really good book to read on an airplane, because it’s an easy book to get really invested in and it doesn’t take too long to read if you stick to it and don’t get too put off by the general overly defeated tone.