The Silence That Binds Us is a story of protest and tragedy. At the start of her junior
year, May is still grappling with the suicide of her brother, Danny several months ago. At her
California school’s Junior Jam a parent stands up to blame her Asian parents and other
immigrants for what happened to Danny and several other teens, saying they create a
high-pressure environment and lead to these tragedies. Infuriated by these accusations about
her own family, May tries to create change by writing letters to the local newspaper. The
movement gains strength - but anything this powerful will have both positive and negative
consequences for May and her family and friends.
This was a powerful book - I found myself tearing up at several points and inspired at
others. From time to time it felt like the author spent to much time trying to communicate the
theme of the book rather than making the story cohesive and immersive, but I still thought the
message was communicated very well and at certain points, the author’s voice was extremely
compelling. I would give this book a four out of five stars.