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3.8 AVERAGE
3.8 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book absolutely wrecked it was extremely saddening but really good and just really sweet.
This was a beautifully written middle grade novel about discovering yourself, facing hard truths and overcoming grief. I won’t lie I did shed a few tears towards the end, but managed reign it in. The mystery of Riley’s mothers disappearance had me guessing the entire time and was completely compelling.
This book was a rollercoaster of thought and emotion for me. I did not like it very much in the beginning and found some of the content to be quite mature for young audiences and/or questionable such as the parts about giving up one's soul to the "whispers." However, as the story progressed and wrapped up I found that overall I personally was captivated by the story and found it powerful as it touched on topics such as grief, trauma, bullying, etc. It is a coming of age story that I think many kids could relate to in one way or another. And even if not, the story itself is captivating and develops compassion and empathy in the reader. I would not necessarily put this book on a must-read list, but I certainly would not prevent my child from reading it. I think the story itself was very interesting and the ending was a sad turn-of-events that I did not see coming and had a stronger underlying message than I had originally anticipated. I do however think the recommended age for this book should be about 13-14 years old as I think that is more of the age group it will speak to and some of the content is too mature, sad, or scary for younger audiences. I really loved this author's style of writing and found myself laughing so many times at the internal thoughts of Riley, and yet crying at others. I appreciate how vulnerable the author was at the end of the book to tell the reader how this story was inspired by his own life experiences. I think the fact that this fictional story was based on his real-life experiences made it all the more powerful.
This kid wants to find his mom. But the police chief is incompetent, his father and brother don't seem to love him anymore, and the blue fairy whispers haven't been much help.
Rural christian white america. Black friend. Queer characters. Grief. Child psychology.
There is some antiquated language, primarily the use of the word "lame" as derogatory. Which is bizarre given the protagonists affinity for dictionary definitions. And there is some frustrating inner dialogue negotiating queer feelings within a hateful, shame based religious upbringing.
Otherwise, this was a beautiful genuine story about a kid refusing to give up on his lost mom with his friends and family refusing to give up on him.
Rural christian white america. Black friend. Queer characters. Grief. Child psychology.
There is some antiquated language, primarily the use of the word "lame" as derogatory. Which is bizarre given the protagonists affinity for dictionary definitions. And there is some frustrating inner dialogue negotiating queer feelings within a hateful, shame based religious upbringing.
Otherwise, this was a beautiful genuine story about a kid refusing to give up on his lost mom with his friends and family refusing to give up on him.
emotional
slow-paced
Main character internalised homophobia as a side story. He treats liking kissing boys like he does bed wetting.
I was fooled by this clever, unreliable narrator, Riley, who is searching for his missing mother. Howard does an amazing job of keeping us in Riley's voice and perspective, including talking about his *conditions,* the way a child absorbs what adults say. A mystery with a magical thread and a lovely story about what we believe.
I'd categorize this as upper middle grade.
I'd categorize this as upper middle grade.
adventurous
emotional
emotional
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Whispers is, by turns, tender, sweet and confusing. 11-year-old Riley is confused and sad and we know right from the beginning he has secrets to which he is holding tightly, afraid to reveal them to anyone--even himself. Floundering in his own mind NOT to think about those secret thoughts that try to break out of the space in his head where has locked them down, Riley latches onto the old story of The Whispers that his mother told him when he was small. In the story The Whispers are magical fairies who will grant you your heart's desire if you leave them a tribute (a gift). Four months before we meet Riley, his mother has disappeared. Riley and his mother had been nearly inseparable. His deepest wish is to bring her back.
Riley begins to consider that maybe The Whispers are real and the only way to get his mother back is to try and find them so they will grant his wish. As he tries to find The Whispers, Riley is also trying to come to terms with aspects of who he is, based on his own thoughts and feelings, the behavior of his father and brother, and what he has been told in church.
Here's what I loved about The Whispers: (1) Riley is an authentic, fully developed character; (2) the story of Riley's gradual acknowledgement and tentative (or implied) acceptance of his homosexuality is written beautifully, offering those of us who have never experienced it an empathetic window into this often painfully difficult--due to others' reaction and judgment--path; and (3) the compassionate way in which his friends and family surround him when he finally allows himself to think about the things he has kept pushed aside.
Despite these positive attributes, however, there were bigger issues for me in the plotting of Riley's story. The reader discovers in the beginning that Riley is keeping some information back about his mother's disappearance. My problem with this device is that, for me, when it is revealed at the end of the story (although I realized what it was early on in the novel) it feels disingenuous on the part of the author. (I don't think it was; I think the author was trying to use a literary device to make the final impact of his story bigger.) It felt, to me, similar to when the author of a mystery purposely skews the information the reader receives in order to lead us in a specifically wrong direction. Although I didn't buy this implied direction for very long, I still resented the fact that the author tried to do it. My second issue with this same aspect is that I feel like it distracts from Riley's actual story, which is quite moving and important to tell. My third issue with The Whispers is the way in which the author transitions into the climactic scene: instead of finding a way for Riley to move with the reader through the difficult moment of discovery, the author chooses to have Riley lose consciousness and everything just begins falling into place in his mind once he regains it. I also did not like the death of a character that I felt was unnecessary, but the author clearly thought was a convenient device to position Riley's character where he needed to be to achieve the ending the author intended.
While The Whispers is really the best (and maybe only) book I have ever read that so clearly and compassionately tells a young boy's realization and acceptance of his sexuality as simply a part of who he is as a person, some of the heavy-handed plot devices put unnecessary barriers between Riley and myself as a reader. I prefer stories that allow me to either journey with a character, or be allowed to be present in all aspects of his/her story as an observer. For these reasons, The Whispers was only a 3 star read for me.
Riley begins to consider that maybe The Whispers are real and the only way to get his mother back is to try and find them so they will grant his wish. As he tries to find The Whispers, Riley is also trying to come to terms with aspects of who he is, based on his own thoughts and feelings, the behavior of his father and brother, and what he has been told in church.
Here's what I loved about The Whispers: (1) Riley is an authentic, fully developed character; (2) the story of Riley's gradual acknowledgement and tentative (or implied) acceptance of his homosexuality is written beautifully, offering those of us who have never experienced it an empathetic window into this often painfully difficult--due to others' reaction and judgment--path; and (3) the compassionate way in which his friends and family surround him when he finally allows himself to think about the things he has kept pushed aside.
Despite these positive attributes, however, there were bigger issues for me in the plotting of Riley's story. The reader discovers in the beginning that Riley is keeping some information back about his mother's disappearance. My problem with this device is that, for me, when it is revealed at the end of the story (although I realized what it was early on in the novel) it feels disingenuous on the part of the author. (I don't think it was; I think the author was trying to use a literary device to make the final impact of his story bigger.) It felt, to me, similar to when the author of a mystery purposely skews the information the reader receives in order to lead us in a specifically wrong direction. Although I didn't buy this implied direction for very long, I still resented the fact that the author tried to do it. My second issue with this same aspect is that I feel like it distracts from Riley's actual story, which is quite moving and important to tell. My third issue with The Whispers is the way in which the author transitions into the climactic scene: instead of finding a way for Riley to move with the reader through the difficult moment of discovery, the author chooses to have Riley lose consciousness and everything just begins falling into place in his mind once he regains it. I also did not like the death of a character that I felt was unnecessary, but the author clearly thought was a convenient device to position Riley's character where he needed to be to achieve the ending the author intended.
While The Whispers is really the best (and maybe only) book I have ever read that so clearly and compassionately tells a young boy's realization and acceptance of his sexuality as simply a part of who he is as a person, some of the heavy-handed plot devices put unnecessary barriers between Riley and myself as a reader. I prefer stories that allow me to either journey with a character, or be allowed to be present in all aspects of his/her story as an observer. For these reasons, The Whispers was only a 3 star read for me.