THE MOCKINGBIRDS Review

EDIT: This is the real cover for the book. Thanks to Daisy Whitney for emailing me the correct picture. You can find her on twitter here if you like!


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 is date raped during her junior year, she has two options: stay silent and hope someone helps her, or enlist the Mockingbirds--a secret society of students dedicated to righting the wrongs of their fellow peers.

In this honest, page-turning account of a teen girl's struggle to stand up for herself, debut author Daisy Whitney reminds readers that if you love something or someone--especially yourself--you fight for it.
From Goodreads.com

I have always had a thing for books that tell it like it is, and this was one of them. Books that cover up the darker side of like - ex. girls being date raped while at school - are not worth my time because they don't tell a true story that relates to life. This is not to say that everyone has been date raped during their life, but it is these raw events that bring out the true emotions, the strong emotions, and that's what people can relate to.

Whitney does a great job at crafting these emotions into her characters. If you've been following my reviews, you'll have noticed that I enjoy reading strong characters, and this book was no exception. None of the characters were too far out there to relate too. I felt the character's embarrassment, fear, and anger right along with her, and this was what made her memorable.

And the idea of The Mockingbirds? Genius! My school doesn't have an issue with bullies and crimes not being taken care of, but it's easy to imagine a school where the administration pushes these sort of things aside in order to keep the reputation of the school strong. The Mockingbirds, a group of students working within the school to make sure wrongdoings are punished despite the school's indifference.

I loved the idea that students could make a difference and the lengths at which The Mockingbirds go to make sure the message gets through. It was shocking how effective their methods were, but they made sense in the context of the story. To be honest, it did seem a bit ideal, but had The Mockingbirds had no effect on the student body, the story wouldn't have made sense.

And way to jump right into the story. I'm sorry about my jumping around here in this review, but wow. What a starter to the book, and the story keeps rolling and building in a way that makes you continue reading. I finished The Mockingbirds in a single day. That was how much the story drew me in.

I sincerely hope that everyone who reads this story will walk away with something, whether is be the power to stand up for themselves or the idea that they can make a difference despite being only one person. The Mockingbirds is a story of persistence as well as a story of finding your own voice, which I completely enjoyed. A great read all around.

Rating: A-/B+