Katie's Book Blog!!

The Mockingbirds is an astounding debut novel from Daisy Whitney. I was blown away by her amazing writing and her gut-wrenching subject matter. Just plain wow.Alex Patrick is not a slut. That's why when she wakes up naked in a strange guys bed she knows something is wrong. It turns out she's right to be worried. She can't remember anything about the night before but she knows she had sex with the strange guy. When she finally admits that she was date raped she doesn't go to the police. No, she goes to the Mockingbirds. The Mockingbirds take on Alex's case but maybe things are so black and white after all.Word of Warning: The Mockingbirds is definitely not for younger teens. It has some graphic descriptions and language.Alex reminds me of myself. That is the first thing that I thought about after finishing the book. She is driven and smart but she is also shy and terrified. Now admittedly our reasons aren't the same but I loved the connection I felt to her. I loved how brave she was but how scared she was at the same time. She was a real three-dimensional character. Her feelings were real, her actions were real, and her spunk was real. What else could you want in a main character?The subject matter that Daisy Whitney chose is a very real problem but one that doesn't seem to get a lot of attention. I know this is the first time I have read about it. The way Daisy Whitney approached it though made it readable. I felt like I learned more about it but it was snuck in subtly, not told outright. It was brutally honest but beautifully written.Overall, The Mockingbirds is one of my top debut novels of the year. I think Daisy Whitney deserves a lot of recognition for writing about such a strong topic and tackling it head on. I know I will be passing this one along to my friends.