Book Review: Saying It Out Loud by Joan Abelove

Genre: drama, juvenile
Pages: 144
First Published: 1999
Class: Dinghy

This one took me by surprise. For one, it was much quieter than I expected. The story follows a young girl trying to deal with the horrible fact that her mother is dying of a brain tumor. One would expect the narrative to be full of raw emotion, screaming dialogue and unrestrained drama.

But we get the very opposite, and in many ways, it's better that way. This is a quiet story of suffering, teen growth, and the realities of life. While it's not necessarily a page-turner, or high on a recommendations list, Saying It Out Loud is a solid story on the parent/child relationship that offers, not solutions, but realism.

Very easy read (some language), very tender and powerful in its message.