Remembering Ned Vizzini

Ned Vizzini, the author of It's Kind of a Funny Story and other young adult books, has died at the age of 32, according to an Los Angeles Times report citing the New York City medical examiner's office. The Los Angeles-based Vizzini, a New York native whose books included an examination of teenage mental illness, including his own, died in Brooklyn, reportedly of suicide. 

AP

Vizzini was probably best known for the semi-autobiographical It's Kind of a Funny Story, about a 16-year-old who is hospitalized for depression. The novel was turned into a 2010 film starring Zach Galifianakis. But Vizzini also wrote for MTV's "Teen Wolf" and ABC's "Last Resort," and authored four novels for young adults. Most recently, Vizzini completed House of Secrets, which he co-wrote with film director Chris Columbus. A sequel is forthcoming. He also wrote essays for the New York Times, and the Daily Beast.

A 1998 piece a very young Vizzini penned for the Times, handing down some very unconventional advice to teenage readers, still resonates for many today. "Being a teen-ager is just like being a kid," he wrote, still a teenager himself, "except that you've got five extra niggling concerns: sex, money, smoking, drinking and getting into college." He concludes: 

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This article was originally published at http://www.thewire.com/culture/2013/12/remembering-ned-vizzini/356382/

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