This was such a fantastic book. Totally relatable as someone who suffers from anxiety and depression. The monsters illustrated and living with the person were my monsters. They’re living with me. Seeing them here in this book this way was so validating.

This is how life is, Full of chaos!

TW: Mental health, Anxiety, fears, Self-doubt

This is a graphic novel which shows us How alfonso is dealing with his MonsterMind. And i feel Everyone can relate with this Monster mind. How our simple emotions becomes bigger and gives us panic attacks, How some unpleasant thoughts and fears stress us.

It's all in the mind, Everyone says. But the Fear, stress, anxiety haunts us to the extent. Reading this book, i can feel the way Alfonso felt. The artworks were depressing as it should look.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me an ARC.

Anxiety is a tricky subject to write about, but MonsterMind: Dealing with Anxiety and Self-Doubt, does it successfully. Through the use of comics, Alfonso Casas portrays Anxiety and his friends as characters who invade his space, disrupt his sleep and attempt to derail his life. Anyone who has dealt with anxiety is sure to recognize these antagonists. For those who haven't experienced anxiety, Casas's story is an eye-opener, using visuals to show how invasive these problems can be, and how hard they can be to deal with.

This is a book that I would like to have on my classroom library shelf. It is a topic that needs to be acknowledged and discussed more openly; a job made easier by the inclusion of discussion questions and project topics.

Thanks to #NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. MonsterMind: Dealing with Anxiety and Self-Doubt is scheduled to be published on December 21, 2021.

This comic book is beautiful and deep at the same time.
The illustrations are amazing and really make you feel something.
The storyline is relatable and sometimes funny.

Yes to more graphic novels about mental health, specifically anxiety and depression! Also yes to more graphic novels for adults. While this one wasn't perfect, I'm glad to see more adult authors explore graphic novels as a medium for stories that are hard to tell.

A brilliant graphic novel that is almost like a visual memoir of the author’s own experiences with the monsters in his head.

Which of us doesn’t have multiple monsters belittling us and our efforts? When these monsters become too big to ignore, we start facing mental health issues. The author, Alfonso Casas, presents to us, the various monsters who are a constant in his life: Mr. Past Traumas, Mr. Fear, Mr. Social Anxiety, Mr. Impostor Syndrome, and so on. (At the end of the book, there is an interesting set of mug shots for all the monsters, and trust me, you will find most of them, if not all, somewhat familiar.)

I loved how practically the author has presented his struggles. Any person will be able to identify with his story, even if they haven’t faced the issues to the same extent. The blurb promises a humorous look at neuroses, but I wasn’t able to laugh at the tale. The author’s troubles are so real and so relatable that one just hoped he was able to surmount those obstacles and face the sunnier side of life. The way this is depicted is simply brilliant.

The graphics appear pretty basic at the start but soon you realise the subtle beauty in those simple sketches. The way the mental demons are depicted is amazing and impactful. My copy had graphics only in grayscale, not sure if this was because it was an ARC. But it didn’t away from my experience or my connection with the story. In fact, the grayscale technique adds to the gloominess of the narrative.

As someone who faces various demons of my own, I connected with this story from my heart and mind. It is poignant and inspiring. And it also came as an apt read this month, considering that October 10th is celebrated as World Mental Health Day.

If you feel that you too struggle with mental monsters, do try this book; if for nothing else, then to know that you are not alone. And if you aren’t a sufferer but know someone who is struggling, pick up this book to know what goes on in their minds.

Leaving you with one of the most practical bits of wisdom while dealing with such sufferers:
“Never dismiss someone who is sad by telling them that they need to feel better. Believe me, that’s already occurred to them. And don’t tell them they have no reason to be sad either. That’s the awful thing about sadness: you may think the reason isn’t real, but the sadness definitely is.”

4.5 stars from me.

My thanks to Diamond Book Distributors and NetGalley for the ARC of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This was my first time reading a comic related to mental health and i loved every bit of it. From the art style to the topics discussed. I loved how it approached each mental struggle that a lot of us face on the daily. There was a sense of comfort while reading that one because it was nice to see my thoughts illustrated out and seeing it from another perspective. I recommend it to everyone really, I think everyone would benefit from reading it.

I love how this book doesn't state that our monsters magically go away--rather it is best to learn how to live with them and indeed that is the only thing we can do.
I thought the illustrations were cute and brought light to something that is really debilitating at times.

The author of this graphic novel has captured various facets of dealing with anxiety by giving it a monster form. Illustrated in black and white, most who deal with uncomfortable feelings that causes them anxiety and self-doubt can relate to this book. Alfonso (author) is shown doing his daily chores with his thoughts drawn in cute monster forms that capture his turmoil within. Social anxiety, imposter syndrome, fear, doubt, addiction, loneliness, sadness, overthinking, procrastination, low self-esteem and more - how all types of monsters take up space - physically and metaphorically is showcased well in the book.

It is short book that can be quickly finished in one sitting. Though it does not dwell on each type of monster for long, it is enough as a hint to portray the specific feeling through the dialogues between the protagonist and the monster. It also includes discussion guide with questions and project ideas for the readers in the end as food for thought. Overall, I like the book and its creative portrayal of anxiety that we are all too familiar now.

"This isn't the triumphant tale of a hero who defended his monsters...it's just the story of somebody who's learning to live with them."

MonsterMind is a quick read (less then an hour) detailing one man's struggle with a variety of mental health issues, as shown by the various monsters he deals with. The art style is detailed and consistent, with every monster having a nice blend of cuteness and horror to them.
The plot of MonsterMind is my biggest issue. I found it to be somewhat lacking in overall meaning, and I finished the book feeling a tad empty and confused. While this only the artist's perspective on their own mental illness, I wished that there had been some larger meaning, rather then the conclusion being "everyone has their own monsters to deal with, and you just have to learn to live with yours". The ending felt nihilistic as if the author has accepted the fate they tried the entire novel to avoid.

The art was lovely, but I was desperately seeking something more from the plot.

I didn’t know that reading this graphic novel would hit me on an emotional level. The book reminded me so much of my early post-college days. After getting my degree and thinking I had everything under control, I was clueless about how the real world works, which led me to develop anxiety about my future. Like the main character here, I encountered a lot of struggles, suffered through depression, and the fear of not knowing what the future would hold for me.

I loved how the author addressed things like that here – in an adorable, humorous way. Casas acknowledges that not everyone deals with anxiety and depression the same way and that it is okay not to be okay. It is okay to be alone. It is okay to feel these things. It is okay to ask for help and, it is okay to prioritize oneself.

Despite the serious subject matter of this graphic novel, I loved that it uses the beauty of art to get through its readers. It uses humor, not to make light of the subject but to bear the unbearable. I believe this book would resonate with many people, particularly now, with the pandemic ravaging not only our livelihood but our strength to remain resilient. I cannot recommend this highly enough.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

I really wanted to love this book. I suffer from anxiety and based on the title I thought it would be a relatable book to read, and maybe even learn some new coping tricks. Unfortunately, I didn't really learn anything new. It was a very short read, so it ended up feeling like an introduction almost, like a good primer for someone to read when they want to better understand someone they know who is experiencing anxiety but doesn't have it themselves. There are parts of it that I did feel were relatable, but in the end it just wasn't what I expected. It's a fast read, and like I said, I think it could be good for someone to understand an anxiety-sufferer, but for those of us already dealing with it, it's not really anything new.

This was a fantastic graphic novel providing insight into the thoughts of someone dealing with anxiety and depression. Our main character does not defeat the monsters but he does learn coping mechanisms to deal with the monsters. I love that this novel was realistic and insightful and that Alfonso was willing to share these intimate details about his struggles with the rest of the world.

The illustrations and the story were awesome. 10 out of 10 would recommend this book to everyone.

I enjoyed this graphic novel but I would have loved to see more around living with the depression itself. The end is quite quick, how does one manage living with those guys in the long run, it would have been nice to see this explored more so the 'solution' does not appear to be superficial.

Beautiful cover.

Amazing graphic novel. The story is revolves around the author as he struggles with his anxieties ; Mr Fear, Mr Social Anxiety, Mr Imposter Syndrome, Mr Sadness, Mr Unknown, Mr Past Traumas, Mr Snarl, Mr Doubts, Mr Toxic Thoughts and Mr Anxiety About The Future. Sounds familiar, huh?





Alfonso personifying his monster in a certain feature is a creative way. Somehow educate others to be not afraid of being different from others. Believe me, we have our own monster that we keep safe in the closet.




I, myself have been through a quite mild depression when I gave a birth to my first and second child. All my monster keep taking part of my life. I have husband, children and family but my loneliness( or hollowness) is ghosting me for several years.




Since we facing the same monster, it was time to learn to live with them.




My rating 5 ⭐

DO YOU HAVE ANXIETY, SELF-DOUBT & OTHER TROUBLES😞😕?? DO YOU WANT A SOLUTION TO COPE UP WITH IT??

Here is a graphic novel for you....😇
The author has done a great job in portraying the problems we face within ourselves & how to cope up with it.

-Illustrations are amazing(adds on to the whole effect of the topic).
-Characterization is splendid( It feels good to give a character to your troubles....And making them monsters felt even better...).
-Relatable!!(All of us can relate to this book at some point or the other).
-It is fast-paced.
-This book is going to help you understand & accept yourself.

It's a little guide to life..!🧡
And I recommend everyone to read and understand this book.

Wow, I feel so SEEN with this book! As someone who also fights anxiety so much of this book was relatable to me. I think this book will not only be good for those of us who deal with mental illness but for those who don't to give them a peek inside our heads and an understanding of what our brains our like. While the book does deal with these heavy things in a simplistic way it doesn't really feel that way.

This is definitely something I will check out once it's published and would recommend to other people.

I really appreciate the storytelling in this graphic novel. I think many people will relate to the topics covered and as someone who has dealt with the many of the mental health issues covered I think it did a good job. I also enjoyed the use of humor in the story, it made a hard topic to most people feel easier to read/talk about.

I felt seen with this, I really appreciate the storytelling and I’m sure more people will as well. I enjoyed the art style and the storytelling its light hearted even though its about a heavy topic.

I really enjoyed the personification of different anxieties. There were many parts of the text that I could personally relate to. For someone who doesn't deal with the many anxieties represented here, I think it would be a good story to read to help someone develop more empathy for a person's mental health struggles. Really enjoyed this.