The Mockingbirds by Daisy Whitney

Title: The Mockingbirds
Author: Daisy Whitney
Series: The Mockingbirds (Book #1)
Format- Hardcover
Publisher- Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published- November 2nd, 2010
Pages- 322
Source- Library

Some schools have honor codes.
Others have handbooks.
Themis Academy has the Mockingbirds.

Themis Academy is a quiet boarding school with an exceptional student body that the administration trusts to always behave the honorable way-the Themis way. So when Alex Patrick is date-raped during her junior year, she has two options: Stay silent and hope someone helps, or enlist the aid of the Mockingbirds-a secret society of students dedicated to righting the wrongs of the student body.

In this account of a teenage girl's search for her voice and the courage to use it, debut author Daisy Whitney reminds readers that standing up for someone, especially yourself, is worth the fight.

Alex doesn't wake up in her room. She wakes up next to a boy she doesn't know. As she tries to piece together the night it becomes clearer and clearer that she was raped. With a school that looks the other way and sweeps things under the rug she goes to The Mockingbirds, a secret society founded by her sister to right the wrongs that the school won't acknowledge. If it's proven through trial that the boy did indeed rape her that he will lose the one thing he loves the most. But, Alex isn't so sure what happened and as she starts to slowly remember she starts to think twice if she was raped or not.

Alex went to a party, got drunk, and was raped. She started getting accounts of what other people saw that day and she's starting to remember in her own way what happened. Her friends and sister want her to go to The Mockingbirds so she can get some justice, she's really reluctant but finally concedes. The friends and the sister... even Alex didn't seem to understand how big this was. It's rape. It's this disgusting thing. The worst thing you could do to a woman. You take away her confidence, her safety, and her freedom. I wanted them to be more upset and I wanted Alex to show a little more emotion. She did at points but more towards the end when everything was revealed and once when she was playing her piano. One of the most stand out moments was when she was playing her heart out on the piano because she felt he took her favorite song away from her. To take her music away from her was like to take her soul away so I liked that singular moment that showed deep pain.

Through all this she is realizing her feelings for this geekish boy who's always very respectful of her. He was very nice and all but I kept on thinking how these people didn't care that much. It was like she was the subject that needed to be fixed. It was weird. My mom mentioned how they should have went to the police. She didn't want to deal with that which I understand but more and more I think especially the ending made me think he should have paid more. You can imagine what my mother would think the most important thing a guy should lose after he raped someone. The guy denied the accusations. You just want to hurt him so much because you can hear the evil in his voice. He disgusted me. Even if I didn't feel like the friends and victim didn't react the way I wanted to. Alex was the victim. Nobody deserves to be scared that way. Nobody has to feel that pure terrifying feeling that I'm sure she felt when he came near her wondering what he was going to do. That's what made the story what it was.

I was surprised that the author was date raped. I know authors write about things that happened to them or have characters that resemble them but I didn't expect that. I think she wasn't given too much justice herself when I read her story but I guess to her having it acknowledged and putting the guy out in the open - that was justice enough. I think it's because I expected something different that I liked this story but not as much as I thought I would. It is a good attention grabber for teenage girls. It's good for them to know what the world is capable of and how there are people who care enough about you that they will stand by your side at your worst time. There is evil but there is also good.

For more info about Daisy Whitney and her books go to:

Comments

  1. Isn't this every woman's worst fear? I know it has always been mine. I agree with your mom, that you should always go to the police. Easier said than done, though.

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    1. It is! Going to college now and dealing with weird guys approaching you... it just scares the heck out of me. I guess I just couldn't not say anything. I have to tell someone but I do understand. You must feel shame and gross. It's the worst thing ever.

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  2. This sounds like a book that will make me think. Thanks for sharing the review and the background on the author. I am curious about this one and will probably read it. :)

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    1. Well, I'm happy my some what negative review didn't keep you from wanting to read the book yourself (:

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    2. Adriana- Your review actually made me curious because it wasn't what I was expecting. :) I think it will be one I borrow from the library.

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  3. I liked this book. Even if I didn't love it, I quite enjoyed it. ^^

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  4. I have this one still on my shelf waiting to be read. I guess I've been sort of nervous about it because it's not usually my kind of read, but it really does sound like the author put a lot of effort into doing this complex issue justice. I didn't know that the author had been date raped herself! How sad.

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    1. I'm like that with books but those are the books that end up surprising me and sometimes I end up loving. Yeah, her story really changed what I thought about the book.

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  5. Why every time I see Mockingbird in the title I remember the To Kill A Mockingbird sitting on my shelf! I mist read it. Anyway this book seems tough. I've read some of the books dealing with rape and I never could get into them. Although they make your nights sleepless I guess. Great review!

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    1. How many times do you see mockingbird in a title? lol. I should give To Kill A Mockingbird a second chance. School ruins everything -__-

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  6. Wow. I had no idea.

    This sounds excellent.

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    1. It's pretty good. Bringing out the issue of rape is what's really great about the book. It tells those girls who were date raped that they are not alone and hopefully they seek justice.

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  7. Wonderful review Adriana! This reminds me of the book Speak, where the girl was date raped but never told anybody. I find it really hard to read books like this but unfortunately it is something that happens and I think it's important for girls to know about it. I always hate when the victim doesn't go to the police about it, I just don't understand that line of thinking I guess.

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    1. I remember reading that book. I only really remember snippets of it. I remember the end clearly. It was powerful.

      It's a terrifying event. Some girls just don't want anyone to know about it. It's a shame because they might feel safer if only they told someone that did something about it.

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