Silence by Deborah Lytton {Book Review}

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This new book by Deborah Lyntton, Silence took me back to my high school! Set in a high school setting Stella, a shy girl who comes to a new school. Stella becomes the “cool kid” when she makes the lead role in the school play because of her amazing singing voice. Everything changes when a tragic accident leaves her deaf.  She cannot hear or much less sing!  Everything she ever dreamed of or hoped for sharters in one single moment.  Trapped and lost in this new world of silence she faces fears, loss of friends, loss of her voice and feels as those she loses her whole identity.  

Silence Book Description:

Stella was born to sing. Someday Broadway. Even though she is only a sophomore at a new high school, her voice has given her the status as a cool kid. But then a tragic accident renders her deaf. She cannot hear herself sing not to mention speak. She cannot hear anything. Silence. What happens when everything you have dreamed of and hoped for is shattered in a single moment?

Enter Hayden, the boy with blonde curls who stutters. He is treated like an outcast because he is not normal. And, yet, Stella feels an attraction to him that she cannot explain. As Hayden reaches out to help Stella discover a world without sound his own tragic past warns him to keep a distance. But their connection is undeniable. The two become friends, but Hayden worries that if Stella can ever hear again she won’t want to be around him anymore.  

Alternating between Stella’s and Hayden’s points of view, Silence is a story of self-discovery, clean romance, and resilience, of two people who learn to find their own voice through their silence. It is a story of friendship and hope with a lesson that sometimes it takes a tragedy to help us find beauty and love in unexpected places.

My Review:

Recently I have heard of the books that the teenagers in my area are in to. I hear them saying that they had to skip a whole chapter, or that there wasn’t too much bad language in it. Quite honestly it makes me nervous for my daughter.  She LOVES to read good wholesome books.  I wanted to read this book because I know she is going to want to read books like these as she gets older.  I ended up really liking the story.  It was sad, happy, clean and a fun read!  The book is a clean teen contemporary romance that although slightly romantic it doesn’t leave you feeling like you need to skip pages.  It also teaches a great lessons all teenagers need to discover.  The writing style is a lot different than I am used to and took a couple chapters to get used to, but by the end I really liked how different it was written compared to most books.  I think this is a great book for teenagers to read to help them realize that their life might not always go as planned.  Life has set backs, but it is important to figure out who we are and where we want to go despite those setbacks. 

About the Author:

Deborah Lytton is an established writer who began her work life as an actress at the age of six. She graduated from UCLA and Pepperdine University with a degree in law before becoming a writer. She lives in California with her two daughters and is an active blogger and member of SCBWI.

This book can be purchased HERE at Deseret book or on Amazon