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jazz_maree's review
5.0
A book that accurately articulates SM!!! I found myself hugging the pages going ‘YES! THIS! IS! SM!’ .
The main character decides to study psychology for the same reason I myself am studying psychology: because not many mental health professionals KNOW how to work with SM clients. We both have silent advantage.
The main character decides to study psychology for the same reason I myself am studying psychology: because not many mental health professionals KNOW how to work with SM clients. We both have silent advantage.
bookybrookey's review
5.0
Kylie's Instagram bio says she write books that give you 'the feels'. She is definitely correct! I loved this book so much!
Piper and West are amazing characters. It was such a interesting idea to be reading from the POV of a girl with Selective Mustim - I had never even heard of this before. Piper's family is so crazy and great, and I loved being inside Piper's head and seeing her struggle and progress through her issues.
I need a West in my life. He was so supportive and kind and just the best guy ever. I liked how he had his own struggles, and how he helped Piper through her own.
The only downfall for this book was the last few chapters. What happens towards the end is not a new concept and I was so disappointed that Kylie chose to use it.
Overall I loved everything, the writing was smooth and flowing, and I finished it in less then a day. I already want to be back with Piper and West (especially West).
Piper and West are amazing characters. It was such a interesting idea to be reading from the POV of a girl with Selective Mustim - I had never even heard of this before. Piper's family is so crazy and great, and I loved being inside Piper's head and seeing her struggle and progress through her issues.
I need a West in my life. He was so supportive and kind and just the best guy ever. I liked how he had his own struggles, and how he helped Piper through her own.
The only downfall for this book was the last few chapters. What happens towards the end is not a new concept and I was so disappointed that Kylie chose to use it.
Overall I loved everything, the writing was smooth and flowing, and I finished it in less then a day. I already want to be back with Piper and West (especially West).
angelreads's review
4.0
This review and more can be seen at Angel Reads
The Things I Didn’t Say by Kylie Fornasier was one of my most anticipated books for 2016. I adored her previous book Masquerade and when I heard Kylie was writing another book, I knew that I need to read it, and let me tell you It didn’t disappoint.
The Things I Didn’t Say is quite different from her first novel. Firstly it’s not historical fiction and it’s set her in Australia. It’s a contemporary novel that includes a protagonist with Selective Mutism.
The Things I Didn’t Say follows protagonist Piper as she starts at a new school after an event that made her lose her best friend. The thing is, Piper has Selective Mutism. Selective Mutism is a condition that causes someone not being able to speak in certain situations or with certain people. For Piper, the only people that she speaks to is her family and people that she is really close to.
I really enjoyed Piper as a protagonist. Her growth throughout the book was really well done and we are able to see that she has changed from the start of the book. I also enjoyed her character arc.
Kylie Fornasier dealt with Selective Mutism exceptionally well. There is quite a lot of YA novels that deal with characters not speaking – but because of something that has happened to them. Selective Mutism doesn’t work like that and we are able to see that in The Things I Didn’t Say.
We also see how other characters deal with this and it’s interesting to see how her family, who have known her, her life think that it’s just a phase that she is going through. But someone who has just found out about the condition is totally accepting.
Nevertheless, we also get to see how people who don’t know Piper’s situation deal with her especially, teachers because of her move to a new school.
There was something very real about The Things I Didn’t Say. The conversations felt real, the events that happened felt real, the way that the characters deal with things, felt real.
The romance in The Thing’s I Didn’t Say was adorable. I enjoyed West both as a character and as a love interest for Piper. It was so cute the way that West dealt with the knowledge when he found out about Selective Mutism. I wanted to squeeze him. I did feel at times that it moved along a little too quickly, it was also slow burning – if that makes any sense at all.
However, I did have a problem with the pacing. The book spans over about a year and I felt that there was no real sense of time and the next thing I knew we were at the end of the school year. This did confuse me and I just wanted to be made aware of the jump lapse.
The Things I Didn’t Say packs a punch, there are things in the novel that will rip your heart apart and all you will want to do is hold Piper. Kylie Fornasier’s writing is beautiful and so easy to delve into and read.
Overall, The Things I Didn’t Say is a gorgeous novel that breaks you down. It pulls at your heart and slowly rips it. With beautiful writing and a slow burning romance that starts off quick, but takes it’s time.
The Things I Didn’t Say by Kylie Fornasier was one of my most anticipated books for 2016. I adored her previous book Masquerade and when I heard Kylie was writing another book, I knew that I need to read it, and let me tell you It didn’t disappoint.
The Things I Didn’t Say is quite different from her first novel. Firstly it’s not historical fiction and it’s set her in Australia. It’s a contemporary novel that includes a protagonist with Selective Mutism.
The Things I Didn’t Say follows protagonist Piper as she starts at a new school after an event that made her lose her best friend. The thing is, Piper has Selective Mutism. Selective Mutism is a condition that causes someone not being able to speak in certain situations or with certain people. For Piper, the only people that she speaks to is her family and people that she is really close to.
I really enjoyed Piper as a protagonist. Her growth throughout the book was really well done and we are able to see that she has changed from the start of the book. I also enjoyed her character arc.
Kylie Fornasier dealt with Selective Mutism exceptionally well. There is quite a lot of YA novels that deal with characters not speaking – but because of something that has happened to them. Selective Mutism doesn’t work like that and we are able to see that in The Things I Didn’t Say.
We also see how other characters deal with this and it’s interesting to see how her family, who have known her, her life think that it’s just a phase that she is going through. But someone who has just found out about the condition is totally accepting.
Nevertheless, we also get to see how people who don’t know Piper’s situation deal with her especially, teachers because of her move to a new school.
There was something very real about The Things I Didn’t Say. The conversations felt real, the events that happened felt real, the way that the characters deal with things, felt real.
The romance in The Thing’s I Didn’t Say was adorable. I enjoyed West both as a character and as a love interest for Piper. It was so cute the way that West dealt with the knowledge when he found out about Selective Mutism. I wanted to squeeze him. I did feel at times that it moved along a little too quickly, it was also slow burning – if that makes any sense at all.
However, I did have a problem with the pacing. The book spans over about a year and I felt that there was no real sense of time and the next thing I knew we were at the end of the school year. This did confuse me and I just wanted to be made aware of the jump lapse.
The Things I Didn’t Say packs a punch, there are things in the novel that will rip your heart apart and all you will want to do is hold Piper. Kylie Fornasier’s writing is beautiful and so easy to delve into and read.
Overall, The Things I Didn’t Say is a gorgeous novel that breaks you down. It pulls at your heart and slowly rips it. With beautiful writing and a slow burning romance that starts off quick, but takes it’s time.
lawbooks600's review
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Representation: Main character with selective mutism, side implied Asian character
Score: Seven points out of ten.
This was sitting at my library for a while right next to If I Stay (I read that earlier but it was only okay) and I wanted to read this so I picked it up and finally read it. When I finished this novel I had a lot of thoughts inside my head that I want to show you here, well first off other than the disability rep this is your standard run-of-the-mill romance novel, it gets uniqueness points since it's Australian (I don't see that much Australian literature) but the ending... I was lost for words. It starts with the main character Piper Rhodes or Piper for short and at the beginning she was in a dream where she tore her journal up for whatever reason and then was about to jump into the water but it was all a dream. After her friend abandoned her (cliché, I know), she moves to a new school in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales where she meets this other significant character called West whose last name I don't even know (Really? Never seen a name like that.) She tells me that she has Selective Mutism or SM for short so she can speak with her family just fine but she finds it harder to speak with people at school. Now that I said that Piper develops a relationship with West since this is a romance book after all and everything looks like sunshine and rainbows until the last few pages. After a soccer accident West was hospitalised and not much time afterwards the story ended there. That was the most open ending I ever saw.
Score: Seven points out of ten.
This was sitting at my library for a while right next to If I Stay (I read that earlier but it was only okay) and I wanted to read this so I picked it up and finally read it. When I finished this novel I had a lot of thoughts inside my head that I want to show you here, well first off other than the disability rep this is your standard run-of-the-mill romance novel, it gets uniqueness points since it's Australian (I don't see that much Australian literature) but the ending... I was lost for words. It starts with the main character Piper Rhodes or Piper for short and at the beginning she was in a dream where she tore her journal up for whatever reason and then was about to jump into the water but it was all a dream. After her friend abandoned her (cliché, I know), she moves to a new school in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales where she meets this other significant character called West whose last name I don't even know (Really? Never seen a name like that.) She tells me that she has Selective Mutism or SM for short so she can speak with her family just fine but she finds it harder to speak with people at school. Now that I said that Piper develops a relationship with West since this is a romance book after all and everything looks like sunshine and rainbows until the last few pages. After a soccer accident West was hospitalised and not much time afterwards the story ended there. That was the most open ending I ever saw.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Suicide
Full trigger warnings: Bullying, suicide, coma, hospitalisationps_a22's review
4.0
This novel hooked me in right from the first page. I didn’t read the blurb and I still haven’t but I am so glad I picked up from the display in the library. It was absolutely touching. It had a very, very open ending, which I usually am not a fan of, but I enjoyed reading it nonetheless. I had read a book about the protagonist being mute due to damaged voice box but the fact that this one was Selective mutism just made it so much more extraordinary. It showed a lot of insights into mental illnesses. It wasn’t like Piper didn’t want to talk to West, it’s that she couldn’t even if she was physically able to speak. It brought tears to my eyes, made me laugh, cry and realise the beauty in sadness and just feeling pain rather than dodging it. I now understand why Piper never wiped her tears and just let them fall. She was so strong.
mouwuol's review
4.0
[read in 2016]
As a mute girl, I really needed this book. Every mute person is different and experience life differently from other mute people so I didn't go into this expecting to relate fully but I related to the main character for most of the book.
I was diagnosed with selective mutism at age 3 but I was getting better until my dad died when I was 4. I'm 20 now and still have only spoken to 6 people in my entire life.
The reason I'm posting this now is because I'm starting a book tube channel to help me through my mutism. 20 years of silence has been tough and its been so lonely so I need to start forcing myself to get better. I can't wait to post videos!
As a mute girl, I really needed this book. Every mute person is different and experience life differently from other mute people so I didn't go into this expecting to relate fully but I related to the main character for most of the book.
I was diagnosed with selective mutism at age 3 but I was getting better until my dad died when I was 4. I'm 20 now and still have only spoken to 6 people in my entire life.
The reason I'm posting this now is because I'm starting a book tube channel to help me through my mutism. 20 years of silence has been tough and its been so lonely so I need to start forcing myself to get better. I can't wait to post videos!
zoesnicholson's review
4.0
The Things I Didn't Say is a eye-opening and perfectly balanced book about self-discovery, family, friendship, and romance. I've been meaning to read more Australian young adult books, and this reminds me just how good they are.
Piper Rhodes has selective mutism, a disorder that makes her too anxious to speak to anyone but her family and close friends. After a misunderstanding leaves her friendless, Piper switches schools in hopes of a fresh start. At school she meets West, and before long she falls in love with him. But who could love a girl that doesn't speak?
I hate the label Selective Mutism –as if I choose not to speak, like a kid who refuses to eat broccoli. I’ve used up every dandelion wish since I was ten wishing for the power to speak whenever I want to. I’m starting to wonder if there are enough dandelions.Piper is an amazing protagonist who is completely realistic and relatable. She feels like a real person and there are occasions where it's hard to remember that she's only a fictional character. I can't imagine what it must be like to go through life not being able to talk when there's nothing you want do more, and that makes her character one you just can't help but root for.
Where the book excels is in how it balances the character relationships. Not only is there romance but there's also a strong emphasis on Parker's relationship with her family and friends. Every single relationship is written extremely well and feels extremely authentic. And, in a genre where so many books focus purely on romance, the added focus on family and friendship was a breath of fresh air.
The Things I Didn't Say is an honest and realistic exploration about what it's like to live with selective mutism. If you're looking for a well-written contemporary novel, this is definitely one I'd recommend.
abbeyleec's review
5.0
This was an amazing book. I loved the whole idea of it and how it really brought to life how it feels to deal with Selective Mutism and the struggles they go through every day.
Also, this book is based in Australia REPRESENT!!! They even mention Threadbo and I live never there and I was so totally getting it all and it was just so cool and felt like home reading this book.
I was really shocked with how well the mental illness was written in the book and it was just so realistic and so many books just never get there and it just doesn't feel realistic but this book did it so well. I though the support network in this book was just amazing as well, the people were so loving.
Piper is so awesome and strong. She doesn't hate herself, she has moments where it sucks that she can't say what she wants to say but she isn't constantly at herself and having really bad thoughts. Piper also really grew as a person and it was amazing.
West was just adorable. He could see past Piper just being the 'Mute Girl' which most people can't. But West saw her and wanted to know her and the relationship build up was done so well and I just was routing for them so much. I however did not like how West was at Piper so much for her to speak to him, like dude, she can't, stop trying to make her. At least West did apologize every time he was being shit to her.
I also loved Piper's family. Even though they didn't understand her sometimes they were still so helpful and tried to do what they could and were supportive.
Overall this was a great book and it needs more hype. People need to pick up this book.
Also, this book is based in Australia REPRESENT!!! They even mention Threadbo and I live never there and I was so totally getting it all and it was just so cool and felt like home reading this book.
I was really shocked with how well the mental illness was written in the book and it was just so realistic and so many books just never get there and it just doesn't feel realistic but this book did it so well. I though the support network in this book was just amazing as well, the people were so loving.
Piper is so awesome and strong. She doesn't hate herself, she has moments where it sucks that she can't say what she wants to say but she isn't constantly at herself and having really bad thoughts. Piper also really grew as a person and it was amazing.
West was just adorable. He could see past Piper just being the 'Mute Girl' which most people can't. But West saw her and wanted to know her and the relationship build up was done so well and I just was routing for them so much. I however did not like how West was at Piper so much for her to speak to him, like dude, she can't, stop trying to make her. At least West did apologize every time he was being shit to her.
I also loved Piper's family. Even though they didn't understand her sometimes they were still so helpful and tried to do what they could and were supportive.
Overall this was a great book and it needs more hype. People need to pick up this book.
deckergranger's review against another edition
5.0
Je n'en reviens pas de cette lecture. Ce livre est tellement addictif ! Je n'ai quasiment pas pu m'arrêter.
Nous rencontrons une jeune fille, Piper Rhodes, complètement perdue autant sur le plan professionnel que social, car elle est atteint de mutisme sélectif. Elle ne croit plus vraiment en la bonté des gens. C'est à ce moment là qu'elle rencontre West, qui se trouve être le mec le plus populaire du lycée mais également le plus compréhensif.
Ainsi, West et Piper vont lier une relation très forte, où les mots ne sont pas le centre de tout.
West l'aide à sortir de son mutisme petit à petit et Piper lui permet en retour d'assumer qui il est vraiment et ce qu'il veut devenir.
Un roman qui nous emmène dans un univers que l'on ne veut plus quitter.
C'est pour l'instant mon plus gros coup de cœur cette année !
Nous rencontrons une jeune fille, Piper Rhodes, complètement perdue autant sur le plan professionnel que social, car elle est atteint de mutisme sélectif. Elle ne croit plus vraiment en la bonté des gens. C'est à ce moment là qu'elle rencontre West, qui se trouve être le mec le plus populaire du lycée mais également le plus compréhensif.
Ainsi, West et Piper vont lier une relation très forte, où les mots ne sont pas le centre de tout.
West l'aide à sortir de son mutisme petit à petit et Piper lui permet en retour d'assumer qui il est vraiment et ce qu'il veut devenir.
Un roman qui nous emmène dans un univers que l'on ne veut plus quitter.
C'est pour l'instant mon plus gros coup de cœur cette année !