The Quiet and the Loud (Helena Fox, Pan)

Helena Fox, author of award-winning debut How It Feels to Float, returns with another powerful, heart-tugging YA novel. Nine years after her dad disappeared under the lake, 18-year-old George is still haunted by the quietness of the water and the slow rocking of the waves as she was left to fend for herself. When George’s dad turns out to be alive and living in America and calls to tell her he is dying, George questions whether she can put the past behind her or if there is a way to live with it. In striking and intimate detail, Fox deftly illustrates the pressures weighing down on George’s mental health as she tries her best to not let anyone, including her family, know how much she is suffering. The story is set against the backdrop of the global climate crisis and the 2019–20 Australian bushfires, and the exterior turmoils are a brilliant reflection of the inner battles taking place inside George’s mind, bringing attention to the effects of domestic violence, complex PTSD, and anxiety in adolescents. Fox exquisitely encapsulates the complexity teens feel, the youthful belief that they can handle anything by themselves, and then the breathtaking relief of seeking help and learning that the support of others makes you stronger, never weaker. Ideal for readers aged 15 and above, The Quiet and the Loud is perfect for fans of Kathleen Glasgow and Rhiannon Wilde.

Books+Publishing reviewer: Aurelia Orr is a freelance reviewer and bookseller at Readings Kids. Books+Publishing is Australia’s number-one source of pre-publication book reviews.

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