Enchanting Review: Say The Word

SAY THE WORD
JEANNINE GARSEE
YA Contemporary
Bloomsbury
ISBN # 978-1-59990-333-0
360 pages
$16.99
Hardback- Available now

Rating: 4.5 Enchantments

Seventeen-year-old Shawna Gallagher is the perfect daughter and student. She follows her father’s every rule. Then one day a phone call from her mother’s partner, shatters her perfect world. Shawna doesn’t know how to separate the anger of her mother’s abandonment to live with her lesbian partner Fran and the grief of her mother’s sudden death. Then her father’s controlling and decisions hurt everyone, including the family of Fran. Shawna is not sure how to react especially when she wonders how Fran’s sons fit into the picture. Sometimes being perfect isn’t the same as doing what’s right.

I really enjoyed this tale. At first I was angry on what happened to Fran and her sons after the death of her partner. How can the laws not help gay partners? Shawna’s grief was very realistic as was her peers tormenting her on catching gayness from her mother. I loved watching Shawna’s growth throughout the book. Garsee does a wonderful job showing a teen conflicted with a difficult situation and how she draws strength from within. This is a must read book especially on showing how a not typical family survives difficult times.

Jeannine Garsee is the author of BEFORE, AFTER, AND SOMEBODY IN BETWEEN. She works as a psychiatric nurse in an inner-city hospital and lives with her family in a southwest suburb of Cleveland. Find out more on her website www.jeanninegarsee.com

Kim
Enchanting Reviews
April 09