Thursday, December 9, 2010

The Mockingbirds

Daisy Whitney's first novel, The Mockingbirds, is a great young adult read. While it deals with the heavy topic of date rape, the way in which this story is told is believable for teen readers.
Alex attends prestigious Themis Academy, where she is a budding musician, hoping to be admitted to Julliard. After a night of drinking she awakens one morning naked in bed with a boy from her school. She cannot remember what happens, but knows the two have had sex. While her memory returns in bits and pieces over time, Alex knows almost immediately that what occurred was not consensual. Her choices are to remain silent or approach the Mockingbirds, the students' own version of a judicial system at school.
The idea of the Mockingbirds (named after To Kill a Mockingbird) and the way it is structured and metes out justice was one of the reasons I enjoyed this book so much. The topic of date rape is a touchy one, but Alex presents herself as believable - able to go on with her life, yet finding flashbacks of these events coming to the forefront and forcing her to recall what happened that night. Alex manages to stand up for herself although it is difficult, a good role model for other young girls.

Mockingbirds was hard to put down- my second novel of the week that I have stayed up late finishing - no wonder I am so tired! I can hardly wait to see what else Whitney writes in the future.

4 comments:

Lover Of Romance said...

just stoppping by for the hop, since I couldn't see a hop post yet!! Hope you have a great weekend!!!

Feel free to check out mine at Addicted To Romance


Happy Reading!

Golden Eagle said...

It sounds like a good book. I'll have to check it out--thanks for the review!

Pen said...

I've seen this book at the bookstore, but wasn't sure if I'd like it or not. I'll be sure to check it out!

Chelle said...

I've seen this book popping up lately. Now I know what it's about! I wonder how it compares to Speak? Thanks for the review!