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A review by selondonreads
The Sharp Edge of Silence by Cameron Kelly Rosenblum
4.0
Trigger warnings: Rape, sexual assault, ,misogyny, self-harm.
The Sharp Edge of Silence is a YA novel with an urgent message. Through the viewpoints of three students at prestigious Lycroft Phelps, the schools toxic undertones become clearer and clearer.
Firstly, my favourite element of this book was probably the portrayal of female sisterhood. I felt like the writer really got the nuance of 'friendship after trauma' and how young women will hold each other up whilst struggling with their own reactions and the challenges of navigating complicated stories. I also felt like the writer was completely on the victims side, there wasn't pandering to the 'accused' as I have seen in other art exploring similar themes. That being said, I wanted the school to take more accountability and struggled with the way the teachers discussed the sexual assault in text messages in a fairly lax manner... I'd hope that safeguarding has gotten us past this type of insensitivity!
The book isn't a massive page-turner and is fairly slow-paced for YA, although I did feel there was a pick up at the end and I was keen to see how Charlotte, Q and Max would complete their stories. Overall, it was a solid four stars and I feel sure the teenagers I work with would get a lot from it.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for an honest review and thanks to the writer for exploring an important topic!
The Sharp Edge of Silence is a YA novel with an urgent message. Through the viewpoints of three students at prestigious Lycroft Phelps, the schools toxic undertones become clearer and clearer.
Firstly, my favourite element of this book was probably the portrayal of female sisterhood. I felt like the writer really got the nuance of 'friendship after trauma' and how young women will hold each other up whilst struggling with their own reactions and the challenges of navigating complicated stories. I also felt like the writer was completely on the victims side, there wasn't pandering to the 'accused' as I have seen in other art exploring similar themes. That being said, I wanted the school to take more accountability and struggled with the way the teachers discussed the sexual assault in text messages in a fairly lax manner... I'd hope that safeguarding has gotten us past this type of insensitivity!
The book isn't a massive page-turner and is fairly slow-paced for YA, although I did feel there was a pick up at the end and I was keen to see how Charlotte, Q and Max would complete their stories. Overall, it was a solid four stars and I feel sure the teenagers I work with would get a lot from it.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for an honest review and thanks to the writer for exploring an important topic!