Underneath

May 15, 2013
Like her name, Sunshine Pryce-Shah is a cultural hybrid with Pakistani and American hippie roots. Sunny's a strong swimmer occupying a slightly insecure niche among a small circle of friends old, like Spike, and new, like Cassie. During a race, Sunny hears an anguished voice and, disoriented, fails to finish. Hours later, she learns of her cousin Shiri's suicide and receives her personal journal in the mail. Sunny turns to it for answers when she, too, starts to hear the thoughts of those around her. But Shiri's no guide--unable to make peace with her ability, more torment than gift. It torments Sunny, too. Her old friends' thoughts contradict their words and contain hurtful judgments, causing a rift, while new friends to whom she's entrusted her secret want to use her, and it, for their own purposes. On the parental front, Shiri's mother leaves her abusive husband to move in with Sunny's family yet finds it hard to break free. There are no easy answers here. Friendships are challenging enough without hearing one another's thoughts, but unless Sunny can accept and forgive what she'd rather not hear, she faces a lonely future. This frustratingly slow-moving tale with more depth than breadth takes readers on a profound journey even if it ends not far from where it began. (Fiction. 12 & up)

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October 1, 2013

Gr 6-10-When her cousin commits suicide, Sunny begins to be able to "underhear" the thoughts of others. It slowly becomes clear through reading Shiri's journal that her suicide was somehow connected to the fact that she was also able to underhear the thoughts of others. Unsurprisingly, the thoughts of others can make high school difficult to navigate and Sunny finds herself adrift from her friends and more comfortable with a group of kids who are less popular. She must learn how to manage her new ability and how to coexist with people whose private thoughts are now transparent to her, albeit sporadically. It is very nice to see a book with a biracial lead character in which her heritage is not a critical component of the major conflict (Sunny's mother is of Pakistani descent). Unfortunately, several questions ultimately go unanswered: Where did Shiri's ability come from and how did it transfer to Sunny if it is something completely new? Why does Sunny seem to be reading Shiri's journal at an oddly slow pace, a pace at which the journal entries match the current action of the novel? Still, this is an enjoyable story in the hands of the right reader. Give to fans of Lisa McMann's Wake (S & S, 2008) and sequels.-Kristin Anderson, Columbus Metropolitan Library System, OH

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