Just Peachy: Comics About Depression, Anxiety, Love, and Finding the Humor in Being Sad

Chisholm’s graphic memoir about her battle to overcome panic and gloom is told with an almost adorably cute sadness. Based on Chisholm’s webcomic, it begins as a matter-of-fact journal. “I was diagnosed with depression in December of 2016” launches a brisk chronicle of her treatment, medications, and experiences. The collection that follows is loosely grouped into “Depression,” “Anxiety,” “Love and Relationships,” and “Growth.” Most of the comics are one-off variations on her themes of self-deprecation and processing through her crushingly black moods. The best of these quirkily simple works marry gloom with wry irony: “The Depressed Introvert” shows her cheerily announcing “I’m alone!” then realizing with wide-eyed fear: “So very alone...” The mix of lightly mocked despair and chirpy optimism blends nicely with the cute and cozy drawings. Other pages lay out straightforward antidotes for fighting anxiety and panic attacks, broken down into what worked for Chisholm (getting a dog) and what didn’t (waking up early). Unafraid of offering prescriptive help or acknowledging her own backslides, Chisholm is so eager to lend a helping hand that she includes a page of blank frames for the reader to fill in. This is a sweet-natured, guardedly optimistic handbook for working through the bad times with an occasional well-earned laugh. (Mar.)