"The first-person narrative gives readers a poignant close-up of the teen's gradual loss of control to paranoid schizophrenia. Anderson's vivid portrayal of this frightening illness nevertheless offers hope for the valiant human spirit." — School Library Journal "Poignant. Through the teenager's first-person narration, Anderson traces the isolated landscape of Rockhill, a very small town in Texas, and reveals the distressing stories behind the apparent simplicity of its inhabitants' lives. [A] thought-provoking exploration of mental illness." — Kirkus "Like most of the best fiction, YA or otherwise, Border Crossing is really about Manz's search for a sense of self, his chafing against cruelty encountered at almost every turn. The author does an impressive job portraying [his] frightening mental illness. Even as Manz's paranoia becomes obvious, we never stop empathizing with his point of view.

The short chapters and fast-paced scenes keep the pages turning, but it is [Anderson's] descriptions that make this fictional world almost crystalline in its bleak beauty." — Texas Observer " Border Crossing is a fascinating and disturbing novel of Manz's descent into hallucinatory paranoia and suspicion, a result of his emerging schizophrenia. Using a first-person narration, Anderson skillfully unwraps the contours and tragedy of Manz's life and mental illness. Highly recommended." —Greg Leitich Smith, author of Ninjas , Piranhas , and Galileo and Tofu and T.Rex "This taut coming of age novel explores mental illness and border issues in an honest and clear voice." — Boys Read .