Review: Lost for Words by Alice Kuipers
A truly poignant story about loss and the people left behind.
Sophie was an average teenager until “it” happened last summer. All she wanted to do was forget about what happened and move on, however she couldn’t. Everything changed, everything seemed wrong and she couldn’t forget…
This story is told through the eyes of Sophie in journal format. Some days she has lots to say and others nothing more than a line or two. What I like about this is that we see concrete strides made by Sophie and her journey through grief. She doesn’t always have the answers or make the smartest choices, but she is progressing. She’s working through her grief and her emotions.
Throughout this book Sophie tries to return to her former self i.e. going to school and parties, but everywhere she goes the tragedy is always there. Life for her is unbearable yet she is always honest with her feelings and actions (to herself) and that I respect.
Sophie’s relationships played a big role in her grieving process. Her relationship with her mom seemed real. Very real. They both were so sad and overwhelmed by loss that they were shells of themselves, which caused them to avoid each other and in turn made things worse. The events also strained her friendships, especially with her best friend Abigail. You could feel each girls struggle to understand the other and the drift coming in between them. However, it is with a new friend Rosa-Leigh that Sophie is able to start channeling her emotions into something tangible.
The event itself is not told immediately in the story, just bits and pieces at first. I won’t give away the event, or what happened but I will say that I did not see it coming. Not at first anyway. Overall, I’m glad that someone wrote this story, even if it is fiction, because (sadly) somewhere this story hits home.
I think this is a great story about grief and the power of hope and perseverance. This is a must read for everyone.
I give this book 4 STACKS
STACKGirl Stacy - while reading this book I kept thing back to a book I read years ago, Go Ask Alice by Anonymous. The plots are completely different (Go Ask Alice is about depression), however both are about a young girls coming of age facing hard realizations and their choices. Go Ask Alice is another book every girl should read.
[...] I want to say that I truly enjoyed reading this novel (read my review here). It was a gripping story that I couldn’t but help feel for Sophie. Also, I thank you for writing [...]
Grief and hope are such important, universal, and poignant themes, so to find a book that handles them well is always great. Looking forward to this one! Thanks for your review.
@Shari – Can’t wait to hear what you think of it!