The Last Words We Said by Leah Scheier was written for teenagers, but I must admit that I enjoyed it. It's not a childish book. It deals with issues that aren't exclusive to teenagers.
The dynamics between good friends change over the years, but nothing puts friendship under more stress than the disappearance and probable death of one of them. In this case, no body has been discovered.
Leah Scheier succeeds in a difficult format, telling the story from two timelines, alternating between after Danny's disappearance and before he disappeared. This format could be disastrous from a less talented writer, but Scheier makes it seem like the only sensible way to write the story.
Danny was Ellie's boyfriend, so most everyone is focused on her difficulties in accepting his most certain death in an accident. But her two best friends, Rae and Deenie, are also seriously affected by his disappearance. The three surviving friends must help each other to fully heal.
The Last Words We Said can also be considered a mystery, because only at the end do we discover what really happened the night of the accident.
Danny, Ellie, Rae and Deenie aren't just regular American suburban teenagers. They are from Modern Orthodox Jewish families and study in Jewish Day School, one with mixed- boys and girls together- classes. So besides the regular teenage issues, we're dealing with families that keep Shabbat, Kashrut and expect the girls and boys to keep their hands off of each other.
Scheier does an excellent job writing about realistic characters and universal issues. I highly recommend the book. To paraphrase an old ad:
"You don't have to be Jewish to read The Last Words We Said."
Product details
- Publisher : Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (August 31, 2021)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 320 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1534469397
- ISBN-13 : 978-1534469396
- Reading age : 12 years and up
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