All the Truth That's in Me

All the Truth That's in Me

by Julie Berry

Four years ago, two teen girls disappeared.  Days afterwards, the body of one of them was found.  Two years after that, Judith finally came home, though she wasn't whole.

For two years, Judith lived with her captor, unable to escape until he set her free after cutting off most of her tongue to make sure she couldn't talk.

Now Judith is more reviled than pitied.  Her mother has forbidden her to even attempt to speak, even to tell her own story. So people assume that she was raped and that her maidenhood has been taken, making her a burden on society because no one would ever want to marry someone who was impure. 

But there is one person who inspires Judith and makes her want to share her story.  He's the boy she's known all her life.  He's the one she watches.  And he watches her.

When their small town is attacked, Judith must seek out the one person she should avoid and she must either learn to speak or watch everything be destroyed.

Final thoughts: OK.  Let's start off with the cover, because this is what is messing with how I feel about the entire book.  The cover is amazing, but it has pretty much NOTHING to do with the story.  The cover shows a girl with a modern hairstyle and a TON of eyeliner.  The book is about a Puritan girl and an early settlement.  She wouldn't have shown her hair, let alone had that style, nor would she have worn make-up.  So the reader opens this book expecting one story and ends up in a completely different time period, which made it a shock to read and distracted during much of the first part of the book.  HOWEVER, the book is amazing!  Written in first person and addressed entirely as if she was speaking to the boy she loves, the initial few pages take some getting used to, but are completely worthwhile to read.  Judith is well-written, caring, selfless, and honest.  Her story is compelling and her love feels real.  A beautiful tale.

Rating: 5/5