If anyone is curious about mental illness, whether it's their own or about someone they love, I'd recommend this book. Obviously, it's not a substitute for actual help or medical studies but I feel like it's a more relatable/readable version.

Jesus, just reading the foreword and it's like we are the same person. I've never been able to really talk to people about my anxiety, I've always just dealt with it myself. I definitely have never been able to articulate quite what anxiety is/feels like so accurately. Most times you say things like "it feels suffocating", or "it feels like I'm drowning" and I think people who don't have it think you must be over-exaggerating but there is a lot of truth in that it can feel like you're drowning, but there is also a lot of nuanced emotions that are there as well.

This book is an incredibly raw and personal look at how mental illness looks, and feels, from the inside. The chapters are interspersed with a couple paragraphs explaining the perspective of the chapter of comics. Though I am not nearly as eloquent as the author I will attempt a one line descriptor for this book, "It's like a lighthouse, in the middle of a dark and vast ocean, that let's you know you aren't alone in your struggles."

I laughed out loud at this collection of comics about a pigeon who's struggling with their mental health (aren't we all?). Having finished Sarah Andersen's comics recently, I've been searching for something to fill the void, and Bird Brain definitely has a similar vibe. There's humor and silly drawings and #relatable content, and you're supporting a female artist - what's not to like? Thanks to NetGalley for this review copy.⁣

Thank you NetGalley for providing this e-book. I found this comic very interesting and edifying. I love the fact that the author chose to draw pigeons instead of people!

I absolutely LOVED this little book! The little comic drawings are pretty cute and funny, but there is much more in this book than just that. The little essays that where put between each part, and sometimes between drawings, the crude explanations of anxiety, it all came together to make this a perfect book for me.

Because I suffered from all this things at one point in my life, and even though not everyone has the exact same experience, I could clearly see myself in those little birds, desperately trying to come out of myself and into a real world of happiness.

It is not exactly a happy book, as it goes around delicate topics, however it is one that can help a whole bunch of people to not feel so alone in their illness, to feel that somewhere out there knows (at least in part) how they feel inside.

While reading it, I felt I was part of a secret club, one where I could finally belong in and could be heard. And all my past thoughts came back, but this time I felt reassured that I was never alone, that I was loved and I deserved happiness.

I’m happy to say that those hard times where left behind for me, but Bird Brain is definitely a book that I would love to share with people I know are struggling so they know they are not alone, as well as people who are perfectly happy, so they can be grateful for that and understand a bit better the other side of the coin.

OMG Sharon, can you not?

BIRD BRAIN is yet another collection of comics dealing with the unholy trifecta – anxiety, depression, and general social awkwardness – in a decade that seems to have seen an explosion of them. And I’m totally here for it! (Anxiety and depression, my companions since childhood. If only my dog friends could live as long as you!) A millennial Londoner, Chuck Mullin explores her seemingly never-ending battle with anxiety and depression with humor, self-awareness, and a shit ton of ice cream.

The comics in these here pages tackle a range of mental health issues, from the ups and downs of medication, to self-care, to finding moments of victory wherever you can.

Why pigeons? She loves them, even though most people don’t. They’re an unfairly maligned species, and I am down with embracing that vibe. Pigeons are survivors, yo!

The strips are divided into three categories – “Bad Times,” “Relationships,” and “Positivity” – with a personal essay introducing each. The essays are engaging and relatable AF (as much as I don’t want them to be, damn you to hell anxiety!), though I didn’t love them so much when they pop out at you from between random comics as well. Like, the artwork pretty much speaks for itself, no additional explanations necessary; and sticking more essays in between the comics really interrupts the flow. But I guess you don’t have to read them, or can skip then and come back later. The pigeons won’t judge (unless your name is Sharon).

I've loved Chuck Mullin's comics for a long time and am so excited to see them being published! Wonderful.

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.

I have been reading Bird Brains comics for some time now ever since I saw them pop up on my feed when they were retweeted by someone else. I fell in love with the style (the pigeon with floating eyes), but also with the comics and what they told/what they are about.

Because these comics are about mental health. In this book it is done in sections, we see how it all started, how it got worse, how things were not good, and how there was a note of positivity at the end. It wasn't always easy to read due how bad things got, and to see the darkness just swallow up everything. See the desperation in the pigeon. Though I got a smile at the last comics which showed us that it was getting better, slowly, but you could see more sunshine, more happiness, and that made me happy.

However.... I came for comics, I thought it was only comics (bundled from online), but there were also essays/written parts. And sorry, while they were good and I thought the author was very brave to write those down next to the comics, I soon skipped them. Again, I came for comics, I wasn't in the mood for 2-3 page long essays/written parts. Hopefully this doesn't offend anyone, and otherwise sorry. Maybe one day I will read this book again and then I will read the written parts.

All in all, I am still very happy I tried this book and I will definitely keep on supporting the author/illustrator, and I want to wish them all the best, I hope there will be more and more happiness and positivity in their life.

I was very pleasantly surprised by this book, and loved the ways in which it tackled mental illness and made it easier to understand for those without it. I loved the combination of the comics and the writing, and found it particularly interesting that the comics seemed to be more linked that separate. The art style was really cute, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book! I would recommend for anyone that's thinking of reading it!

Thank you Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I think I was expecting more of a narration in the comics that told the authors story rather than a series of stand along short comics with blocks of narration. It was an interesting, fast paced read that I think really could help the right person at the right time.

I recently discovered Chuck Mullin’s work on Instagram and instantly found her comics featuring pigeons to be super relatable. That’s why I was excited to pick up her book. Bird Brain is sold as a collection of comics exploring depression and anxiety, but there is also personal essay woven throughout. The book is broken into three sections - “Bad Times,” “Relationships,” and “Positivity.” Each section starts with an essay that gives you a glimpse into the creator/author’s experiences that lead her to create the subsequent comics. I commend Mullin for laying it all out there and being unapologetic about her experiences with anxiety and depression. My only wish is that we had seen more of her comics in each section. Overall it’s a great read for anyone with anxiety or depression or for fans of Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh.

I've been a fan of the Instagram account Chuck Draws Things for a long time. As someone who struggles with anxiety, I found a lot to relate to, and sharing drawings of cute little pigeons often made it easier to share my struggles with friends and family rather than just bringing it up out of nowhere. The comics in Bird Brain really cover every part of what it's like to live with anxiety- the struggles that arise, how it impacts relationships with others, and the joy of making progress and coming out the other side of a rough time. Some of the comics might slightly trigger tough memories for readers, but there is so much hope and support within these pages. A funny, relatable read that made me feel less alone.

Bird Brain by Chuck Mullin is a depiction of Mullin's journey with her anxiety. It is broken up into chapter topics and each contains a short essay on Mullin's own experiences and sometimes reasoning behind certain comics. I found Mullin's essays to be very frank and approachable, she clearly states that these are her own experiences but readers can easily relate those experiences to their own lives. I love the idea of pigeons as a protagonist and Mullin's decision for using them was really great. My only issue is the floating eye - I wasn't a huge fan, but it definitely wasn't a deal breaker.

The tag line for this graphic novel is "Comics About Mental Health, Staring Pigeons"; I could not hit request quick enough. I'm not normally one for graphic novels but the premise of this sounded so different and made me really want to read it.

The author speaks about their experience of anxiety and the impact its had on her life and her relationships; one way she found helped her work through her feeling was to draw comics.  Most of these star pigeons and work on the basis of what is an everyday animal such as a pigeon was experiencing the same thoughts she was?  The pigeons and the style of illustration add an element of humour and while it is a rather emotive topic I found it to be an uplifting read; focusing on how the author learnt to regain some control over her negative thoughts.

The comics are independent of each other, each capturing a particular thought or emotion, there are also several snippets of narrative from the author explaining her experiences throughout; I think this would be perfect for either helping people unaffected by anxiety who might be struggling to understand what others are going through or to remind people who are affected that their not alone.

Bird Brain is a charming collection of Chuck Mullin's works. Her comics are deeply personal, as she documents her struggles with anxiety and depression. And hopefully writing these comics helped her own those a bit too, giving her a bit more control in her life.
These comics are chuckle working, of course. But they'll also resonate with many readers out there. And that is why this collection is so absolutely wonderful. There's something so powerful about being able to read light comics such as these, and then seeing them touch upon some of the toughest things in our lives.
Obviously, I loved these comics. They were a combination of quirky and charming. They were brutally open and honest at times, but that added to the charm in many ways. There's something so refreshing about it all.
The art style is another strong element in this series. The characters are all birds, which seems like an odd decision. But their avian characteristics blended well with the plots of each minicomic, and perhaps allow us to take a step back from the brutality that can sometimes come with these struggles.
Plus, they're cute. It doesn't have to be much more than that, does it? I adore the little birds and all of their quirks. There's something silly, but charming about them.
Finally, I love the way this collection was organized. It's cut into three main sections – four if you count the conclusion. Bad Times, Relationships, and Positivity. The flow and grouping of these comics are perfect.
I loved Bird Brain and every comic within this collection. Though I obviously loved some more than others, I also really enjoyed the collection as a whole. I'm looking forward to seeing more from Chuck Mullin in the future.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I was expecting a a comic strip that made light of a serious topic, made it so it would be relatable to those who haven’t experienced these types of emotions.

I loved that this had both comic strip and story with it and that it was told from first hand experiences. For someone who doesn’t know a lot of about mental health, let alone the emotions that arise from it, this was an eye opening read for me. The author did a great job of making it easy to understand and presenting situations that were relatable. The illustrations was both funny and entertaining, but also very informative and thought provoking. This is my first time reading a book presented like this and I thought it was done nicely.

Was not expecting there to be quite so much writing, I expected it to just be just a collection of comics. But the author is such a fantastic writer! She was super insightful and tackled the topic of mental illness with such finesse. The comics and the prologues/interjections were relatable and well crafted.

Would highly recommend to anyone who deals with anxiety and depression! Right after reading I immediately followed the author on Instagram and I can’t wait to see what they create next!

As someone who suffers from severe anxiety I really thought this book would be right up my alley and I would absolutely love it. I was hoping this would be more lighthearted and I would to be able to laugh at myself and the ways anxiety affects my day to day life but unfortunately, it was a bit of a miss for me.

Although I could definitely relate to a lot of the scenarios, I just didn't really enjoy reading most of them. I didn't enjoy the overall negative feel that composed 2/3 of the book. Just not the right fit for me.

I also have a thing for pigeons. I honestly thought I was the only one. In this amazing work, the author tells about dealing with her mental illness. The pigeon drawings were sort of a therapy. I guess that people have to do whatever makes them happy. The author's excitement for this book is so lovely considering that the reader is aware of her anxiety. It's almost as if I know her, as if we could be friends.
Besides telling her story, the author provides a lot of information on mental illness. I've never heard of dissociative episodes until this book. Even if you don't experience anxiety, everyone could use reading this book just to understand that many people you love could be suffering from it and that's ok. The drawings were very entertaining to follow. I could relate to many things told in this book and I'm glad I'm not alone in this. "Improvement is not a linear process."

Just like the author, I too love pigeons and scoff with other people call them sky rats. This book is a combination of drawings of pigeons experiencing bouts of anxiety and the author writing about her own mental health struggle. This was a quick read, but still very enjoyable. I identified with the pigeons in some of the cartoons, and while some of the comics are more light-hearted, some of the short stories from the author are DEEP. Mental illness is no walk in the park, and she definitely doesn't try to lighten up her own experience to make it a more carefree book and I really appreciated that.

I'm giving this five stars because it meant something for me. Not only was the art work relatable - and cute to look at - but also the writing sections were written so beautifully and had me at awe most of the time. Plus, can we talk about how adorable the pigeons are? I would really recommend this.