The Color of Silence

Gr 8 Up—Scarred by the trauma of a car accident that killed her best friend, Alex, 17, approaches her upcoming community-service assignment with a great deal of apprehension. She has barely spoken to anyone since the accident, still suffers with massive migraines, and can't get past the feeling that the accident was her fault. She is assigned to work at a hospital with a severely disabled girl about her age. Because of a neuromuscular disease, Joanie can't speak and is confined to bed. But in her head, her words and thoughts flow as beautifully as the colors of the rainbow she sees reflected in her room. Alex begins to think that Joanie can communicate more than people realize, and together they take some preliminary steps to try and get the words out of Joanie's head. In the process, Alex opens up to Joanie, talking to her more than to anyone else, and Joanie, in her own way, responds to Alex's friendship. When Joanie suffers from an untimely illness, Alex is forced to confront death once again, but this time she takes steps toward healing. The story alternates narrators-in one chapter Alex flashes back to the events leading up to the accident and then focuses on her current situation while in the next chapter, Joanie shares her thoughts and memories of the world around her. This plot structure takes a little getting used to, but it gives a more personal viewpoint to the events. The story starts slowly but builds to a strong emotional climax and gives readers a sense that Alex will recover from her trauma as her world slowly regains color.—Diana Pierce, Leander High School, TX