Unspeakable

Rushton, Abbie. Unspeakable. Atom, 2015.

Megan is suffering from selective mutism.  She was an average teen until a traumatic event rendered her unable to speak.  So she suffers in silence as her mom encourages her to speak, as her former friends bully her, and even as she is befriended by the bubbly new girl who doesn't seem at all bothered by the fact that Megan cannot speak. To say any more about the plot would be to give it away, but this is a powerful novel in the vein of Laurie Halse Anderson's Speak.

Similar to Anderson's Speak, this was a good book, but a hard book. I would easily recommend this book to kids who enjoy reading books about kids in tough situations. I would put this book on my shelf because it discusses bullying and involves LGBT themes. If you haven't read this one yet, drop everything and do so immediately.

Recommended for: teens
Red Flags: teenage drinking, bullying, language
Overall Rating: 5/5 stars

Read-Alikes: Speak, Hush, All the Truth that's in Me