Author: Leah Scheier
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary mystery surrounding mental illness?
Page Count: 328
Rating: 4.5 Stars <3
Source: NetGalley and SourceFire Books in exchange for an honest review. This in no way impacted my rating.
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Synopsis: I was the one he trusted. I was the one he loved, the only one who believed him, even when his own mother had locked him up and thrown away the key.
And now, I was going to pass down the white tiled hallway, knock on his doctor’s office door, slam his secret notebook on her desk and make her read it, make her understand what he was hiding, make her see what only I had seen.
April won’t let Jonah go without a fight.
He’s her boyfriend—her best friend. She’ll do anything to keep him safe. But as Jonah slips into a dark depression, trying to escape the traumatic past that haunts him, April is torn. To protect Jonah, she risks losing everything: family, friends, an opportunity to attend a prestigious music school. How much must she sacrifice? And will her voice be loud enough to drown out the dissenters—and the ones in his head?
Review:
Consensus: Your Voice Is All I Hear is a heart-pounding contemporary mystery-ish book that tackles an issue as serious as Schizophrenia and does it without apology. Throughout the novel we see the effects schizophrenia has on the person and every person around them. This book is beautiful, it is harrowing, it is haunting, it is something you don't want to miss. Not only will you learn a lot about a mental illness that affects a surprising amount of people, you will be changed for the better. You will be changed for good. Please, do yourself a favor, read this book.
Consensus: Your Voice Is All I Hear is a heart-pounding contemporary mystery-ish book that tackles an issue as serious as Schizophrenia and does it without apology. Throughout the novel we see the effects schizophrenia has on the person and every person around them. This book is beautiful, it is harrowing, it is haunting, it is something you don't want to miss. Not only will you learn a lot about a mental illness that affects a surprising amount of people, you will be changed for the better. You will be changed for good. Please, do yourself a favor, read this book.
This book started out with a bang that completely intrigued me. The prologue definitely set the mood for the second half of the book, but not for the first half if that makes sense?
The first half of this book was a big set up for everything to follow afterwards. We meet our narrator friend, April, and she begins to tell her story to us. Of school, of her life, of her best friend moving away, of so many things... of her lack of friends... of her fear of being at school without her best friend... and the new kids arrive... and she meets Jonah.
and despite the OBVIOUS instalove, this freaking book was absolutely what I wanted to read, and just completely up my alley. For those of you that don't already know, I am completely fascinated with learning and understanding mental illnesses... this book, I feel, really helped me learn about schizophrenia and not only its effects on the person with the illness, but how it affects every single person around them. The damage it does, the pain it causes, the hearts it shatters.
This book is haunting, and for awhile, it doesn't seem that way, but it is. It's beautifully written, and I felt like I was there the entire time. Scheier teleported me to each scene through her vivid scenes and realistic dialogue.
It's honestly very hard for me to write about this book without completely spoiling it because there is just so much that is connected to every other thing.
I do, however, want to talk about the mental institution. It was very different from what I was initially expecting going in, because I have read various books that have mental institutions in them, so it was just different. and I think I liked it... but I also think it was a weaker point in the writing of the novel, because I didn't think it showcased anything that was happening there (I mean, this is probably because it was from April's POV. I think this is the one moment where I wished we had a dual POV, the rest of the novel I thought was fine in that regard other than that.)
The characters, to me, were very realistic. April was a typical teenage girl in most senses... Jonah is too difficult to explain but I felt for him every single page. Kris was very important to the story in showing how April transformed through her experiences with Jonah.
I absolutely adored Katie, Jonah's little sister because she is the TOTAL little sister/ little sibling. She is adorable and sweet and caring. There were a few moments that absolutely broke my heart. When she visited the mental institution, I teared up a little bit, because her feelings were so raw and what everyone else wanted to say but also couldn't because he was improving.
This book took me on an emotional roller coaster ride and I highly enjoyed it.
The last 10% was practically flawless. I loved that we got to see Ms. Lowry's assignment in its entirety and the effect it had on the students. It really tied together such a lovely book. I loved the ending, I thought it fit the story extremely well.
I would definitely recommend this book for anyone wanting to learn more about schizophrenia!
Before I forget to mention this, and sorry for the out of order thing... I write my thoughts as they come to me and rearranging things would make it sound funky. The familial dynamics were phenomenally displayed. I absolutely adored the way they played out. April and her mother were what you would expect, but then you have... so much that I can't say because its spoilery...
THERE IS THIS ONE PIVOTAL SCENE THAT JUST CRUSHED ME. IT WAS INSANE AND IT LED TO SO MANY THINGS AND JUST WOAH.
Lastly, I just need to comment on Jonah's talent. He's an artist, and he paints, and holy... I saw these pictures, I craved these pictures and the way they were incorporated put into perspective (even better than it would have without) the affects of schizophrenia.
- Cody @ Roecker Reviews <3 y'all!
It's honestly very hard for me to write about this book without completely spoiling it because there is just so much that is connected to every other thing.
I do, however, want to talk about the mental institution. It was very different from what I was initially expecting going in, because I have read various books that have mental institutions in them, so it was just different. and I think I liked it... but I also think it was a weaker point in the writing of the novel, because I didn't think it showcased anything that was happening there (I mean, this is probably because it was from April's POV. I think this is the one moment where I wished we had a dual POV, the rest of the novel I thought was fine in that regard other than that.)
The characters, to me, were very realistic. April was a typical teenage girl in most senses... Jonah is too difficult to explain but I felt for him every single page. Kris was very important to the story in showing how April transformed through her experiences with Jonah.
I absolutely adored Katie, Jonah's little sister because she is the TOTAL little sister/ little sibling. She is adorable and sweet and caring. There were a few moments that absolutely broke my heart. When she visited the mental institution, I teared up a little bit, because her feelings were so raw and what everyone else wanted to say but also couldn't because he was improving.
This book took me on an emotional roller coaster ride and I highly enjoyed it.
The last 10% was practically flawless. I loved that we got to see Ms. Lowry's assignment in its entirety and the effect it had on the students. It really tied together such a lovely book. I loved the ending, I thought it fit the story extremely well.
I would definitely recommend this book for anyone wanting to learn more about schizophrenia!
Before I forget to mention this, and sorry for the out of order thing... I write my thoughts as they come to me and rearranging things would make it sound funky. The familial dynamics were phenomenally displayed. I absolutely adored the way they played out. April and her mother were what you would expect, but then you have... so much that I can't say because its spoilery...
THERE IS THIS ONE PIVOTAL SCENE THAT JUST CRUSHED ME. IT WAS INSANE AND IT LED TO SO MANY THINGS AND JUST WOAH.
Lastly, I just need to comment on Jonah's talent. He's an artist, and he paints, and holy... I saw these pictures, I craved these pictures and the way they were incorporated put into perspective (even better than it would have without) the affects of schizophrenia.
- Cody @ Roecker Reviews <3 y'all!
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