Publishers Weekly
This melancholy tale of a village outcast unfolds through the thoughts of Judith, who was kidnapped, held prisoner, and maimed by her captor. Two years later, she has returned home at age 18, but because of her severed tongue, she cannot explain her misfortunes or the crime she witnessed the night she was taken. Most of the townspeople shun her, and even her own mother acts ashamed. In some ways, Judith’s silence protects her, but hiding the truth puts her and others at risk. Encouraged by an old friend, Judith is inspired to try to regain some speech. If she can find the means and courage to communicate what she knows, she and other innocent victims might find a form of salvation. Written as Judith’s internal monologue directed toward Lucas, the boy she loves, Berry’s (The Amaranth Enchantment) novel is suspenseful and haunting. Her poetic narrative (“There’s nothing so bright as the stream by day, nothing so black on a moonless night”) will draw readers in, and the gradual unveiling of secrets will keep them absorbed. Ages 12–up. Agent: Alyssa Eisner Henkin, Trident Media Group. (Sept.)
All the Truth That's In Me
by Julie Gardner BerryView All Available Formats & Editions
Four years ago, Judith and her best friend disappeared from their small town of Roswell Station. Two years ago, only Judith returned, permanently mutilated, reviled and ignored by those who were once her friends and family.
Unable to speak, Judith lives like a ghost in her own home, silently pouring out her thoughts to the boy who’s owned her heart as long
… See more details belowOverview
Four years ago, Judith and her best friend disappeared from their small town of Roswell Station. Two years ago, only Judith returned, permanently mutilated, reviled and ignored by those who were once her friends and family.
Unable to speak, Judith lives like a ghost in her own home, silently pouring out her thoughts to the boy who’s owned her heart as long as she can remember—even if he doesn’t know it—her childhood friend, Lucas.
But when Roswell Station is attacked, long-buried secrets come to light, and Judith is forced to choose: continue to live in silence, or recover her voice, even if it means changing her world, and the lives around her, forever.
This startlingly original novel will shock and disturb you; it will fill you with Judith’s passion and longing; and its mysteries will keep you feverishly turning the pages until the very last.
Editorial Reviews
From the Publisher
Praise for ALL THE TRUTH THAT'S IN ME by Julie Berry:"Twines lyrical writing with the sharp pull of suspense to tell a riveting tale of a young girl's struggle to reclaim her life."—Judy Blundell, author of What I Saw and How I Lied
“Powerful.”—Rita Williams-Garcia, author of One Crazy Summer
“While it is deeply poetic, the story reads like a thriller.”—Tim Wynne-Jones, author of Blink & Caution
"Every now and then, a novel comes along with such an original voice that readers slow down to savor the poetic prose. This is such a story." —Kirkus, starred review
"...suspenseful and haunting. [Julie's] poetic narrative will draw readers in, and the gradual unveiling of secrets will keep them absorbed." —Publishers Weekly, starred review
"Lyrical language, a good mystery, and a compelling heroine–this is a page-turner with substance." —School Library Journal, starred review
"heart-wrenching and...heart-pounding" —BCCB, starred review
"Berry keeps her readers on edge, tantalizing us with pieces of the puzzle right up until the gripping conclusion." —Horn Book, starred review
“effectively combines elements of traditional genre literature to create a distinctive novel that includes a powerful message about the value of women’s voices and what is lost when they are silenced.” —New York Times Book Review
School Library Journal
Gr 8 Up—The village setting of this novel evokes the rigid religious communities of Colonial times, but Berry cleverly sets her story in an unnamed time and place so the protagonist's anguish and the town's mystery are the focus. Sixteen-year-old Judith is still in love with Lucas, even after his father held her prisoner for two years and violently silenced her by cutting out part of her tongue. Another girl went missing at the same time and her body was found washed down a stream. Only Judith knows the truth of what happened to Lottie, but her muteness leaves her an outcast in the village, even from her own mother, and the truth stays bottled up inside her. Told from Judith's narrow, troubled perspective, the story unwinds in taut chapters that peel back what happened two years before and gradually allows Judith to find her voice again. The austerity of the village and its harshly judgmental inhabitants help sustain a mood of dread. Judith does find tenderness in surprising places, and these secondary characters relieve not just her isolation but also offer readers moments of fun and promise as well. Lyrical language, a good mystery, and a compelling heroine-this is a page-turner with substance.—Martha Baden, Prescott Public Library, AZKirkus Reviews
Eighteen-year-old Judith Finch gradually reveals the horror of her two-year disappearance in a stunning historical murder mystery and romance. One summer four years ago, Judith Finch and her friend Lottie Pratt disappeared. After two years, only Judith returned. Lottie's naked body was found in the river, and Judith stumbled back on her own, her appearance shocking the town--not just because she had returned, but that her tongue had been cut out, and she can't tell anyone what happened to her. Illiterate, maimed, cursed, doomed to be an outsider but always and forever in love with Lucas Whiting, Judith finds a way to tell her story, saying, "I don't believe in miracles, but if the need is great, a girl might make her own miracle," and as her story unfolds, all the truth that's in her is revealed. Set in what seems to be early-18th-century North America, the story is told through the voice inside Judith's head--simple and poetic, full of hurt and yearning, and almost always directed toward Lucas in a haunting, mute second person. Every now and then, a novel comes along with such an original voice that readers slow down to savor the poetic prose. This is such a story. A tale of uncommon elegance, power and originality. (Historical thriller. 12 & up)Product Details
- ISBN-13:
- 9780142427309
- Publisher:
- Penguin Young Readers Group
- Publication date:
- 08/19/2014
- Pages:
- 304
- Sales rank:
- 136,480
- Product dimensions:
- 5.50(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.90(d)
- Lexile:
- HL640L (what's this?)
- Age Range:
- 12 - 17 Years
Read an Excerpt
No one calls me by my name. No one calls me anything, save Darrel, who calls me Worm. Mother never really tried to stop him. When she calls me, it’s “You, shuck these,” “You, card that sack,” “You, grease this down,” “You, watch the tallow pot.”“You. Keep still.”The warmth I remember in her eyes is gone, replaced with iron. Father is long-since dead, and the daughter she remembers is dead to her. She buries the name with the memory.No one calls me by my name.Younger children do not know it.I remind myself each day at sunrise, lest one day I forget.Judith is my name.
What People are saying about this
From the Publisher
Praise for All the Truth That's in Me“effectively combines elements of traditional genre literature to create a distinctive novel that includes a powerful message about the value of women’s voices and what is lost when they are silenced.” —New York Times Book Review
"Twines lyrical writing with the sharp pull of suspense to tell a riveting tale of a young girl's struggle to reclaim her life."—Judy Blundell, author of What I Saw and How I Lied
“Powerful.”—Rita Williams-Garcia, author of One Crazy Summer
“While it is deeply poetic, the story reads like a thriller.”—Tim Wynne-Jones, author of Blink & Caution
"Every now and then, a novel comes along with such an original voice that readers slow down to savor the poetic prose. This is such a story." —Kirkus, starred review
"...suspenseful and haunting. [Julie's] poetic narrative will draw readers in, and the gradual unveiling of secrets will keep them absorbed." —Publishers Weekly, starred review
"Lyrical language, a good mystery, and a compelling heroine–this is a page-turner with substance." —School Library Journal, starred review
"heart-wrenching and...heart-pounding" —BCCB, starred review
"Berry keeps her readers on edge, tantalizing us with pieces of the puzzle right up until the gripping conclusion." —Horn Book, starred review
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