A museum of Graces

A Museum of Graces is a young adult novel, centering around 17-year-old Grace, a high school junior whose undiagnosed obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is triggered after a salacious video of her and a male classmate is shared around school. The repercussions of the video’s fallout, including bullying and slut-shaming, haunt her. As Grace attempts to start over at a new school, her pervasive, obsessive thoughts spiral deeper, forcing her to reach out for help. Once Grace begins to tackle her brain’s intrusive thoughts, she must also address the decisions she made the night the video was filmed. The novel is told in first-person using creative prose to mimic the thought patterns of an obsessive-compulsive mind. This includes repetitive mantras, counting, and intrusive and disrupted first-person thoughts. There is a change in prose as the novel progresses as a way to parallel Grace’s changing thoughts as she begins to receive treatment for her mental illness. The novel attempts to address the common stereotypes of OCD—specifically excessive hand-washing or checking door locks—by detailing the intrusive thoughts that can lead to compulsive behavior. A Museum of Graces highlights other aspects of adolescence, such as friend, romantic, and parental relationships, in order to showcase that a person is not exclusively defined by his or her mental illness, but rather that overall quality of life can improve with treatment. The novel explores therapy and medication as forms of OCD treatment; in an attempt to normalize teenage treatment for mental health, Grace’s treatment is accepted by her family, friends, and Grace herself. In order to accurately represent these issues, I conducted research on the increase of mental health issues amongst young people, as well as the frequency of misdiagnosis of OCD. The novel also touches on the double standards that exist between men and women, specifically in terms of slut-shaming and bullying. Grace’s opinion of herself is initially informed by the opinions of the boys in her class; as the novel progresses, Grace’s thought process becomes independent of those around her, and she is able to acknowledge that she was wrongfully treated.Arts, Faculty ofGraduat