Book Review: The Mockingbirds

Some schools have honor codes. Others have handbooks. Themis Academy has the Mockingbirds. 

Themis Academy is 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 the student body. 

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This is the first book I've read that deals directly with rape and I think its definitely a valid topic, especially for teen girls nowadays. Daisy Whitney was able to write about a really difficult subject in a manner that was not only engaging, but also not overly creepy or disturbing. I think The Mockingbirds is a must read for girls so they know where they stand if they happen to find themselves in this kind of situation.

All the characters in this book were really great and it was easy to connect with each of them. Well except Carter. Talk about creeper to the max! He was just the epitome of everything gross and disgusting. Which is good because he is the bad guy. Anyway my two favorite characters were Maia and Martin. When Maia was introduced and they explained how she was half Asian I pretty much had a happy freak out session!!! Yay for books with fellow halfies! Haha. Maia was such a great friend to Alex and she was one kick ass lawyer! Then there's Martin. Oh Martin aren't you charming? You and your biology obsessed mind. I pretty much love him. I mean he's obsessed with biology, whats not to love? Oh and he's such a gentleman too. Yeah talk about perfect.

The actual way The Mockingbirds dealt out punishment was really rather fascinating. I was a little irked by the fact that they coerced students into coming to trial by stealing points and cake and stuff like that. It Seemed a little underhanded to me. But hey, Carter was one bad/gross/all around sleazebag guy so I guess he deserved it. I'm not normally into the justice system and stuff like that but I found that aspect of this book surprisingly enjoyable! I may never become a lawyer, but I definitely have a new appreciation for people who do decide to go down that career path.

Because this book does deal with rape there are some slightly disturbing moments. But as far as rape goes it definitely wasn't as freaky as it could have been.

I LOVED this books message. Don't be afraid to stand up for yourself. Its okay to feel scared, and confused but ultimately you need to speak out. This book empowers girls to stand strong against any type of abuse, be it rape or bullying. I hope to never be in Alex's situation, but if I ever was I would now feel more confident in speaking out about it because I read this book.

Overall the Mockingbirds was just plain AMAZING. I have a feeling I'm going to be recommending this book like crazy because I can already not stop gushing about it. The Mockingbirds gets 5 out of 5 ice cream cones!

Julia :)