Lost for Words [Hardcover]

Alice Kuipers (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 11, 2010

My New Year's resolution: I'm moving on from everything that's happened. I'm not going to talk about it, think about it, let the memory pounce upon me like a waiting tiger, nothing.

All Sophie wants to do is forget. But it's not easy now that everything's changed. The house feels too big, school drags on for too long, lights are too bright, the room spins, and her hands get sweaty for no reason. And she can't remember why she was ever best friends with Abigail, who is obsessed with parties and boys. Only the new girl, Rosa-Leigh, with her prose poems and utter confidence, might understand. But talking to her seems impossible.

Lost in memories of the life she once had, Sophie retreats into herself. But there's only so long she can keep everything bottled up inside before she explodes. Maybe by confronting the tragedy of her past she'll figure out how to fix her future.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 8 Up—Sophie, 16, begins her second semester of high school feeling isolated and out of sync with her fellow British classmates. After witnessing the death of her older sister in a train bombing, she finds school pointless, her mother useless, and her friends a waste of time. Sophie begins to skip classes and leave early from parties only to become absorbed in memories of Emily. She is helped by a new student from Canada, who challenges her to write poetry, read books, and attend poetry slams. Despite anxiety attacks and overwhelming feelings of guilt, Sophie eventually saves herself through her journal entries and her words. The entire book is a series of journal entries as the protagonist describes life without her sister. Kuipers allows readers to gauge Sophie's feelings through her innermost thoughts and reactions to daily events. The teen's vocabulary and diction make the novel an easy read, great for reluctant or struggling readers. Touching and realistic.—Mary-Brook J. Todd, The Ensworth School, Nashville, TN
(c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Review

“Kuipers artfully manages to make Sophie’s tale achingly real and yet still hopeful. Her distinct, first–person voice and quirky details shine through the dark tragedy, giving familiar themes a fresh take.” (Kirkus Reviews )

“Touching and realistic.” (School Library Journal )

“This novel is gorgeous, heart-ripping, important.” (Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA) (Starred Review) )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 13 and up
  
• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: HarperTeen; 1 edition (May 11, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061429228
• ISBN-13: 978-0061429224
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,339,050 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Heart wrenching, and tear jerking...must read., May 15, 2010

By 

Falling Off The Shelf (http://fallingoffthesh... (Shippensburg, PA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lost for Words (Hardcover)

Sophie Baxter has a lot going on in her life, and it all started the day her sister was killed in a London bombing. Instead of finding an outlet, Sophie bottles up all of her feelings and holds onto them with the fierceness of a vice grip. It's only a matter of time before she can't handle the knowledge of the horrors she has endured, and she will explode. Her therapist gives her a notebook to begin writing down anything that will help her to cope, and this becomes her only outlet.

Lost For Words is written in journal entry form, and at first I thought this was going to be a big problem for me. I've never really been a big fan of reading books written to be like a journal, but in this case, it was the reason for it's success. I also thought that the short sentences would put a damper on my liking for this novel, but it only gave it more depth and feeling, as though a sixteen-year-old girl was truly pouring her heart out onto the pages.

I personally felt like I was prying into someone's private life when I started reading into the story. Sophie clearly didn't want anyone to know her dilemma, and wanted nothing more than to just forget. With her, we learn about how such a tragedy can take a toll on a whole family, and even the friends supporting it. You could literally feel how much Sophie wanted to turn back the tables and have everything be the way it used to.

The one thing that really got me in this book, was Sophie's feelings toward her sister. She was so heartbroken by her loss that nothing else mattered to her, not even her own life. It makes you think of what you may possibly be taking for granted. I have two younger sisters, and a little brother, and reading about Sophie's loss made me weep for her. Towards the end of this book I was bawling my eyes out, and practically hiccuping because I was so gripped by the story. It made me appreciate the family that I have, and since finishing it, I've been trying my hardest not to be so mean to them when they do little things that drive me insane. No one should have to go through the pain of losing someone so close to them.

5.0 out of 5 stars Everybody Hurts, Sometimes!, October 8, 2010

By 

Larissa (Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lost for Words (Hardcover)

Sophie is just trying to get on with things, isn't that what they tell you to do after something like this. She's sure she would be fine if people would just stop asking how she's doing. She doesn't want to talk about it, she doesn't even want to think about. She just wants to be left alone.

She's fine.

But slowly Sophie is coming to realise that she is not fine. Not by a long shot. Last summer Sophie's world was turned upside down and nothing has been right since, not her friendship with her best friend, not her relationship with her mother, and certainty not her own mind.

Sophie is angry all the time and living with the pain of what happened, the guilt, is tearing her apart. She doesn't want to think about it but its always on her mind, her sister is always on her mind and she can never forget her and what happened. But maybe, eventually, she can learn to live with it.

Lost For Words is a beautifully moving story full of heart about the loss, pain, confusion and anger felt when those you love are taken from you. Very much a bitter-sweet story of tragedy and grief, it is an emotional book that will bring tears to your eyes. Brilliantly written with feeling, you wont be able to put this book down.

4.0 out of 5 stars Emotional, August 30, 2010

By 

brandileigh2003 "brandileigh2003" (Holly Springs, NC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lost for Words (Hardcover)

This is an emotional book written in journal entry form. In some cases, this is a problem with me for books, but Kuipers writes to where it feels seamless to me. I got the feeling I was peeking into someone's private life, so she was successful getting me in Sophie's mind and world.

The friendships are really unstable in this book, but I think that it reflects real life and the stress these are put under (ed and ptsd).

It is frustrating yet also beautiful how the story unfolds, and finding out more about Sophie and Emily's relationship and how Emily died and how/if Sophie was involved/at fault.