A Silence of Mockingbirds (edition 2012)

Here, we have the abuse, torture, and death of a small child. Her death didn't have to happen, as the author shows the system broke down, or procedures weren't followed by child care officials. The mother certainly made bad choices, accused of putting her partying and golfing in front of her girl's well-being; the father, an immigrant, also made some bad choices out of fear of being investigated and deported. The author also notes that this girl was one of 18 who died in the state that year of child abuse, and the book ends with a call to help protect all our children by essentially adopting the new motto of NYC: see something, say something.

But here's my problem: this book felt to me like it was a little bit padded, like, if it were tightened up, it could make a much better long article. I never felt like I knew Sarah, the mother of the dead girl, and I am sure that was the point. But I also never got to know her boyfriend, the man convicted of the girl's death. The author talked to lots of people in Sarah's life, but the boyfriend (I can't even remember his name) is a black hole -- and maybe that is also intentional, or an artifact of her investigation, that none of his friends would talk (there were some emails from one friend ministering to him in prison, but they were unenlightening).

I generally dislike books by journalists, because I feel like their tales are disjointed - their works still seem like a collection of articles, rather than a complete work (the exception to this may be [b:Columbine|5632446|Columbine|Dave Cullen|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1275707896s/5632446.jpg|5803859], which was also a hard book to finish because of its subject, and its length). Of course I am disturbed and upset by this book, and I applaud the author's attempt to keep the poor child from becoming just a statistic.
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A Silence of Mockingbirds is a strange mix of nonfiction that reads much like a mystery of sorts. As Zarcharias shares the story, I was struck by how little people knew of the abuse that Karly was going through. The many signs are easy to pinpoint after the fact and Zacharias's kept me wondering what signs were visible, noticed, and what actions the adults in her life were taking. When you're not looking for abuse, it's hard to see it. It was heartbreaking to read Karly's reaction to the treatment and how she was internalizing the abuse.

A Silence of Mockingbirds left me much more sensitive to child abuse. It's a heartbreaking story and very well told.

ISBN-10: 159692375X - Hardcover $25.00
Publisher: MacAdam/Cage Publishing; 1 edition (April 1, 2012), 325 pages.
Review copy provided by the publisher and Meryl Zegarek Public Relations, Inc. ( )