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The Weight of Silence Paperback – July 28, 2009
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Gudenkauf's tightly plotted debut packs a lot of unsavory doings into a few unfortunate summer days in Willow Creek, Iowa. Seven-year-old Calli Clark hasn't spoken a word in the three years since a particularly nasty run-in with her violent, wife-beating father, Griff. During a bender, Griff suddenly decides to haul his mute daughter into the nearby forest, where they get lost. At the same time, Calli's best friend Petra goes missing, and a manhunt is launched, led by deputy sheriff Loras Louis, who still carries a torch for Calli's mother. Gudenkauf moves the story forward at a fast clip and is adept at building tension. There's a particular darkness to her heartland, rife as it is with predators and the walking wounded, and her unsentimental take on the milieu manages to find some hope without being maudlin. (Aug.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Review
"Deeply moving and exquisitely lyrical, this is a powerhouse of a debut novel." -Tess Gerritsen "Beautifully written, compassionately told, and relentlessly suspenseful." -Diane Chamberlain "Gudenkauf moves the story forward at a fast clip and is adept at building tension." -Publishers Weekly"
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More About the Author
Heather Gudenkauf is the New York Times bestselling author of The Weight of Silence, These Things Hidden and One Breath Away. She lives in Iowa with her family.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
87 of 102 people found the following review helpful
By
Karen Ferrero
on September 18, 2009
Format: Paperback
1 Comment
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The story line of this novel was good and I think the author had a good idea upon which to formulate a story. There were many smaller themes--small town life, childhood friendship, first loves, alcoholism and its effect on a family, etc. This story was told in pieces--both in present and in the past, recalled in the speaker's memories. I thought that was a fine vehicle to deliver this story and I also thought it interesting in whose voices the author chose to tell the story, and whose were not chosen. I will say, too, that I raced through this novel--anxious to find out what happened to the two little girls and who was ultimately responsible.
But beyond that, there were several shortcomings in the book, most of which have already been covered here by other reviewers.
The writing is very amateurish. I don't expect everything I read to be a literary work of art and I don't seek that out either. But the writing here was very basic and undeveloped. I don't even agree with the reviewer that said it is more of a Young Adult read, just because of the simplistic writing style. I also enjoy YA reads from time to time and it is not simpler and inexperienced writing that makes a book YA, and to say that insults those authors. In my opinion, this author is simply inexperienced.
The other thing that really annoyed me about this book is the viewpoints and different voices. I appreciate that the author took this on, but what bothered me is that each one did not really have their own voice at all. They each created their own stories, sure. But their language and vocabularies did not vary, despite the range in ages (from 7 years old to 57 years old!) or their education level (first grader up to a college professor / department head)!Read more ›
But beyond that, there were several shortcomings in the book, most of which have already been covered here by other reviewers.
The writing is very amateurish. I don't expect everything I read to be a literary work of art and I don't seek that out either. But the writing here was very basic and undeveloped. I don't even agree with the reviewer that said it is more of a Young Adult read, just because of the simplistic writing style. I also enjoy YA reads from time to time and it is not simpler and inexperienced writing that makes a book YA, and to say that insults those authors. In my opinion, this author is simply inexperienced.
The other thing that really annoyed me about this book is the viewpoints and different voices. I appreciate that the author took this on, but what bothered me is that each one did not really have their own voice at all. They each created their own stories, sure. But their language and vocabularies did not vary, despite the range in ages (from 7 years old to 57 years old!) or their education level (first grader up to a college professor / department head)!Read more ›
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23 of 25 people found the following review helpful
By
Redlady
on August 27, 2009
Format: Paperback
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The Weight of Silence by Heather Gudenkauf is an absorbing novel that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page. It is the story of Calli, a 7 year old girl with selective mutism and her best friend Petra who both are found missing in the middle of the night. The story that ensues is not one that I usually like to read as a mother as it can be heartwrenching to read stories related to abduction. I found that Ms. Gudenkauf focused on so much more than an "abduction" so please don't let that sway you from reading this book as it is truly about so much more. It focuses on family dynamics, the unconditional love and acceptance of childhoold friends and the power that holds in our relationships and secrets that are often left unspoken.
The Weight of Silence focuses on three families, Calli who is dragged into the woods behind her house by her drunken and abusive father in the early hours of the morning. Her mother Antonia, searches for her and gets support from the sheriff which was her childhood sweetheart. Calli's older brother Ben is determined to find Calli as he knows the woods that they have explored as children. Petra is an only child and has a special connection to Calli and she accepts Calli and often speaks for her. She goes missing after seeing someone familiar from her window in the middle of the night and follows them. We don't know as a reader if it is Calli and her father or someone else until the story unwinds. Petra's father Martin is determined to find his daughter and is driven by his emotion and almost destroys his own family. Sheriff Louis still has a fondness for Toni who married another man instead of waiting for him to finish college. Louis' own marriage unravels as this story unfolds.Read more ›
The Weight of Silence focuses on three families, Calli who is dragged into the woods behind her house by her drunken and abusive father in the early hours of the morning. Her mother Antonia, searches for her and gets support from the sheriff which was her childhood sweetheart. Calli's older brother Ben is determined to find Calli as he knows the woods that they have explored as children. Petra is an only child and has a special connection to Calli and she accepts Calli and often speaks for her. She goes missing after seeing someone familiar from her window in the middle of the night and follows them. We don't know as a reader if it is Calli and her father or someone else until the story unwinds. Petra's father Martin is determined to find his daughter and is driven by his emotion and almost destroys his own family. Sheriff Louis still has a fondness for Toni who married another man instead of waiting for him to finish college. Louis' own marriage unravels as this story unfolds.Read more ›
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98 of 124 people found the following review helpful
By
J. Heifner
on July 29, 2009
Format: Paperback
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I was given the opportunity to read this book before its release and I have been telling everyone about it since. I found myself totally absorbed in the story and the characters. And like others, could not put it down. In fact I became so involved in the story that it felt like the search for the girls would stop if I didn't keep reading! The author did a great job of building the suspense, pulling me in and giving out just the right amount of information to keep me guessing. A "suspense" novel that truely is suspenseful.
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36 of 44 people found the following review helpful
By
Samantha C. Knuckles
on August 7, 2009
Format: Paperback
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The Weight of Silence is a debut novel by Heather Gudenkauf. I started the book this morning, and have finished it this afternoon. I couldn't put it down, I just had to get to the ending and see how the story would unfold.
Callie is a selective mute. Petra is Callie's best friend and acts as Callie's voice. The two girls go missing, and from there the story takes you on many twist and turns while their parents and police look for them.
The book is told from many different points of views that switch off throughout it. I liked this because you got a glimpse as to what each person was going through and how they saw the events that played out.
I enjoyed the book, and its bittersweet ending, and would definitely recommend it.
Callie is a selective mute. Petra is Callie's best friend and acts as Callie's voice. The two girls go missing, and from there the story takes you on many twist and turns while their parents and police look for them.
The book is told from many different points of views that switch off throughout it. I liked this because you got a glimpse as to what each person was going through and how they saw the events that played out.
I enjoyed the book, and its bittersweet ending, and would definitely recommend it.
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30 of 37 people found the following review helpful
By
Book Lover
on August 10, 2009
Format: Paperback
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The Weight of Silence started out with a bang and kept me riveted throughout. Not only is the "whodunnit" part of the book enthralling in its own right, but the thought provoking issue of silence/secrets also kept me interested and thinking. The only problem I had with this book was the fact that the narrator changed from chapter to chapter, yet the voice of each narrator was not distinct, thus the multiple narrator format was less successful than it could have been.
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