Hardback or paperback? Hardback
Synopsis Alex is a skilled musician attending a boarding school for gifted students of all kinds—a school where the faculty turns a blind eye to student misconduct. In the aftermath of being date raped her junior year, Alex turns to the Mockingbirds, a semi-secret student society that metes out justice when the faculty won’t.
Evaluation This is a grab-you-right-away kind of book. It starts with Alex waking up naked in a boy’s bed, and she’s not 100% sure who he is and what happened. The author was date-raped as a freshman at Brown, and Alex’s reactions—fear, shame, avoiding the perpetrator, reluctance to seek help—reflect her own experience. The writing is transparent and the topic is important.
Edginess Factor Date rape—and it’s pretty graphic. F-bomb at least twice—although not used gratuitously. There is other swearing, although pretty rare. Alex is date-raped as a result of excessive drinking.
Bonus Factors Allusions all over the place to To Kill a Mockingbird. Very strong anti-bullying message, along with the message that teens need to stand up for each other as well as for themselves.
Universal Themes Coming of age, overcoming adversity
Anti-Bonus Factors Although there is a sort-of nod to diversity—one character is from Singapore and another seems to be Indian American—the cast is overwhelmingly white and privileged.
Will they like it? Girls especially will like The Mockingbirds. Alex learns to stand up for herself; there’s a romance included; there’s a student secret society; music is an important part of it. Most importantly, the book moves quickly.
Recommendation I think the date-rape flashbacks are too graphic for me to want to have this for book club at the middle school level. I think it’s a good and important book, though, and may recommend it to select students. I think it’s a must-read for girls (especially) at the high school level. Why? Raise your hand if you don’t know someone who was date raped in college. Yep. That’s what I thought.
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