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What We Hide
Americans Jenny and her brother, Tom, are off to England: Tom to university, to dodge the Vietnam draft, Jenny to be the new girl at a boarding school, Illington Hall. This is Jenny's chance to finally stand out, so accidentally, on purpose, she tells a lie. But in the small world of Ill Hall, everyone has something to hide. Jenny pretends she has a boyfriend. Robbie and Luke both pretend they don't. Brenda won't tell what happened with the school doctor. Nico wants to hide his mother's memoir. Percy keeps his famous dad a secret. Oona lies to everyone. Penelope lies only to herself.
Deftly told from multiple points of view in various narrative styles, including letters and movie screenplays, What We Hide is provocative, honest, often funny, and always intriguing.
Deftly told from multiple points of view in various narrative styles, including letters and movie screenplays, What We Hide is provocative, honest, often funny, and always intriguing.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published April 2, 2014
9 people are currently reading
1669 people want to read
About the author
Marthe Jocelyn
57 books179 followersCanadian born
22 books published for young readers"
22 books published for young readers"
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 78 reviews
April 14, 2014
From the summary, I expected this book to blow me out of the water with the various styles of writing used and the way it was described as "provocative, often funny, and always intriguing." Sorry to say, this book was absolutely none of those things.
With the Vietnam draft calling Americans to war left and right, Jenny and her brother Tom decide to go to school in England, Jenny to a boarding school and Tom to university. At Illington Hall, Jenny can be whoever she wants, which means she tells a couple of little white lies to look cooler. Jenny's not the only one with secrets, though, and some secrets can hurt much more than others…
Okay, so I didn't like this book. First, the summary claims it's super unique because it uses multiple points of view and modes to tell the story. While reading, though, the multiple points of view became very confusing because 4 or 5 people had chapters to narrate and wouldn't even mention some of the other characters. Especially in the beginning, it was almost impossible to keep all of the characters straight and some of their stories were just boring. Well, most of them were. The movie screenplays didn't make sense and the letters didn't have a context when they started, so they were hard to follow. I wasn't at all engaged in their stories and could really care less how things would end. Things finally picked up in the last chapter, but then it all just ends rather abruptly. Needless to say, it wasn't a pleasant reading experience.
With the characters, you think I would have liked at least one of them. Wrong. The characters weren't given enough time to develop and I got lost switching so much between all of them that I didn't really get to connect with anyone. And it seemed like they were all obsessed with sex. Seriously, didn't they ever think about anything else? It would have liked if the story had just focused on Jenny, as it seemed from the first chapter it would, but after the first chapter, we don't visit her again until way later. There was too much going on through focusing on so many people, but a lot of it was still boring and I didn't feel like a lot actually happened.
So, yeah, this book was not for me. The author had so much culture and politics to work with seeing as this was during the Vietnam war, but the only thing she really dealt with was how gays were treated then, and that's it. And that was only with two characters. If they hadn't mentioned the war in the beginning, I wouldn't have known that this book took place in the 70s because there were very little references to that time period. All of the other characters fell flat and there wasn't a whole lot of substance to work with. If you're looking for the next provocative and intriguing book, this is definitely not it.
With the Vietnam draft calling Americans to war left and right, Jenny and her brother Tom decide to go to school in England, Jenny to a boarding school and Tom to university. At Illington Hall, Jenny can be whoever she wants, which means she tells a couple of little white lies to look cooler. Jenny's not the only one with secrets, though, and some secrets can hurt much more than others…
Okay, so I didn't like this book. First, the summary claims it's super unique because it uses multiple points of view and modes to tell the story. While reading, though, the multiple points of view became very confusing because 4 or 5 people had chapters to narrate and wouldn't even mention some of the other characters. Especially in the beginning, it was almost impossible to keep all of the characters straight and some of their stories were just boring. Well, most of them were. The movie screenplays didn't make sense and the letters didn't have a context when they started, so they were hard to follow. I wasn't at all engaged in their stories and could really care less how things would end. Things finally picked up in the last chapter, but then it all just ends rather abruptly. Needless to say, it wasn't a pleasant reading experience.
With the characters, you think I would have liked at least one of them. Wrong. The characters weren't given enough time to develop and I got lost switching so much between all of them that I didn't really get to connect with anyone. And it seemed like they were all obsessed with sex. Seriously, didn't they ever think about anything else? It would have liked if the story had just focused on Jenny, as it seemed from the first chapter it would, but after the first chapter, we don't visit her again until way later. There was too much going on through focusing on so many people, but a lot of it was still boring and I didn't feel like a lot actually happened.
So, yeah, this book was not for me. The author had so much culture and politics to work with seeing as this was during the Vietnam war, but the only thing she really dealt with was how gays were treated then, and that's it. And that was only with two characters. If they hadn't mentioned the war in the beginning, I wouldn't have known that this book took place in the 70s because there were very little references to that time period. All of the other characters fell flat and there wasn't a whole lot of substance to work with. If you're looking for the next provocative and intriguing book, this is definitely not it.
September 9, 2016
Meh. This was well intentioned, I suppose, but curiously flat. Yet another in what seems to have been a series of books I've read recently whose reach exceeded their grasp in so many ways. I think this is the most disappointing.
First, there's the multiple points of view. I've complained about this in the past, and shall do so again (George R Martin does this brilliantly. Few others do). Multiple points of view are only interesting if they are truly distinct and if the different viewpoints give you new insights into what's going on or point out something about the world. "Everyone has their own truth?" I'm sorry, but that's SO last century. I think this novel might have been more interesting had it been solely from one character's viewpoint, so that we could see that person learning and growing.
Then there's the main idea, which is that everyone has secrets. Okay...? Yes...? Not a huge revelation about the world, so let's make those secrets interesting, or at least the motivations for hiding things. Well, we've got one girl who lies about having a boyfriend (shock!! horror!!). One who is groped by a doctor (interesting, but never revisited or explored). One -no, two - boys are gay. (shock!! horror!!). And so on.
Then, there's the fact that it's set in the late sixties or early seventies, solely, as far as I can tell, in order for the boy one of the girls pretends is her boyfriend to be serving in Vietnam and for her brother to be a stoner draft-dodger. Well, let's investigate those more closely or take some time to look at attitudes towards the war or something. SOMETHING!! Anything to make this more interesting. I think the author might have been trying to say something about attitudes to homosexuality, but again there's nothing new here.
Then we have it set in England, but again there's little to tell us except that people say "bollocks" or "shagging" or "snogging" all the time - a North American's version of England and the English, with no real nuance. And I don't know whether people in England in the sixties actually did say "snogging" then. I'm almost certain the word "sucks" was not used then as it is now (didn't that come in with Bart Simpson, primarily?).
So, really, a whole lot of fuss about not much, no opportunity to get to know characters who don't seem terribly interesting in the first place, and quite a bit of anachronism that a careful editor or a bit more research ought to have gotten rid of. I'm beginning to think 2 stars are generous.
First, there's the multiple points of view. I've complained about this in the past, and shall do so again (George R Martin does this brilliantly. Few others do). Multiple points of view are only interesting if they are truly distinct and if the different viewpoints give you new insights into what's going on or point out something about the world. "Everyone has their own truth?" I'm sorry, but that's SO last century. I think this novel might have been more interesting had it been solely from one character's viewpoint, so that we could see that person learning and growing.
Then there's the main idea, which is that everyone has secrets. Okay...? Yes...? Not a huge revelation about the world, so let's make those secrets interesting, or at least the motivations for hiding things. Well, we've got one girl who lies about having a boyfriend (shock!! horror!!). One who is groped by a doctor (interesting, but never revisited or explored). One -no, two - boys are gay. (shock!! horror!!). And so on.
Then, there's the fact that it's set in the late sixties or early seventies, solely, as far as I can tell, in order for the boy one of the girls pretends is her boyfriend to be serving in Vietnam and for her brother to be a stoner draft-dodger. Well, let's investigate those more closely or take some time to look at attitudes towards the war or something. SOMETHING!! Anything to make this more interesting. I think the author might have been trying to say something about attitudes to homosexuality, but again there's nothing new here.
Then we have it set in England, but again there's little to tell us except that people say "bollocks" or "shagging" or "snogging" all the time - a North American's version of England and the English, with no real nuance. And I don't know whether people in England in the sixties actually did say "snogging" then. I'm almost certain the word "sucks" was not used then as it is now (didn't that come in with Bart Simpson, primarily?).
So, really, a whole lot of fuss about not much, no opportunity to get to know characters who don't seem terribly interesting in the first place, and quite a bit of anachronism that a careful editor or a bit more research ought to have gotten rid of. I'm beginning to think 2 stars are generous.
August 4, 2016
[Note: I received this book from the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for a review. Many thanks to both Netgalley and the publisher!]
I really hate to say it, but this book was a huge disappointment to me. It seemed like it was going to be everything I love - a POV-switching, character-driven historical novel about teens with secrets - but all of those things fell flat for me.
Most egregiously, the characters never managed to actually feel like people. That's a huge problem in a book that relies so much on character and character development to keep the reader going; there's no actual "plot" here. They all felt like caricatures, with the possible exception of Percy, and there was very little differentiating the narrative voices. As other reviews have said, there were also too many characters, and I don't feel like some of them - Nico, say, or Oona - added anything to the story at all, and they left the author with not enough space to deal with things like Penelope's mother or Robbie's hostile family situation in any kind of detail.
The setting also added very little to the story. Why set a novel during the Vietnam War if you're not going to deal with much of anything specific to that era? It almost felt like an excuse to explore gay-bashing, through Luke and Robbie, in a setting where it was slightly more likely to happen than now. (Which is weird, because it still happens now, and there are ways to deal with it without turning your novel into the capital-I Issue book that this one seemed to be at times.) That might make sense if the majority of the characters weren't hetero, cisgender teenagers, but in this novel, they were.
STILL: there were things I enjoyed about it, to the extent that I almost feel bad giving this only two stars. As flat as the characters often felt, I became very fond of a lot of them. Percy was extremely sympathetic, Jenny was charming, and I love self-destructive mean-girl characters like Penelope. The boarding school setting is also a really effective one for characters who need to keep secrets but can't seem to; I could read about all of these kids awkwardly and self-centred-ly negotiating their claustrophobic world all day. I was just really hoping for a lot more in the way of character development than I actually got.
I really hate to say it, but this book was a huge disappointment to me. It seemed like it was going to be everything I love - a POV-switching, character-driven historical novel about teens with secrets - but all of those things fell flat for me.
Most egregiously, the characters never managed to actually feel like people. That's a huge problem in a book that relies so much on character and character development to keep the reader going; there's no actual "plot" here. They all felt like caricatures, with the possible exception of Percy, and there was very little differentiating the narrative voices. As other reviews have said, there were also too many characters, and I don't feel like some of them - Nico, say, or Oona - added anything to the story at all, and they left the author with not enough space to deal with things like Penelope's mother or Robbie's hostile family situation in any kind of detail.
The setting also added very little to the story. Why set a novel during the Vietnam War if you're not going to deal with much of anything specific to that era? It almost felt like an excuse to explore gay-bashing, through Luke and Robbie, in a setting where it was slightly more likely to happen than now. (Which is weird, because it still happens now, and there are ways to deal with it without turning your novel into the capital-I Issue book that this one seemed to be at times.) That might make sense if the majority of the characters weren't hetero, cisgender teenagers, but in this novel, they were.
STILL: there were things I enjoyed about it, to the extent that I almost feel bad giving this only two stars. As flat as the characters often felt, I became very fond of a lot of them. Percy was extremely sympathetic, Jenny was charming, and I love self-destructive mean-girl characters like Penelope. The boarding school setting is also a really effective one for characters who need to keep secrets but can't seem to; I could read about all of these kids awkwardly and self-centred-ly negotiating their claustrophobic world all day. I was just really hoping for a lot more in the way of character development than I actually got.
June 21, 2018
I won a copy of this book from LibraryThing.
What We Hide wasn’t horrible, it’s probably an okay read. It just wasn’t for me. I found it incredibly boring. I also found Jenny’s chapters annoying. I understand that she’s an American, that she is now going to school in England, and she was learning new words. Every single time it said something meant something, I wanted to throw the book across the room.
“Great jumper!” Penelope ran her fingers along my newly fluffed hem.
Jumper means “sweater.” – Page 20
“I dunno how you ever snogged either of them.” said Kirsten. Snog means “kiss.” – Page 21
For where to send it, I had to ring Tom.
Ring means “call.” – Page 118
It was clear by day two that the maths they were learning in England (maths means “math”) was far beyond what we’d been doing in the States… – Page 120
What We Hide wasn’t horrible, it’s probably an okay read. It just wasn’t for me. I found it incredibly boring. I also found Jenny’s chapters annoying. I understand that she’s an American, that she is now going to school in England, and she was learning new words. Every single time it said something meant something, I wanted to throw the book across the room.
“Great jumper!” Penelope ran her fingers along my newly fluffed hem.
Jumper means “sweater.” – Page 20
“I dunno how you ever snogged either of them.” said Kirsten. Snog means “kiss.” – Page 21
For where to send it, I had to ring Tom.
Ring means “call.” – Page 118
It was clear by day two that the maths they were learning in England (maths means “math”) was far beyond what we’d been doing in the States… – Page 120
December 10, 2017
I did not enjoy this book. There are waay too many characters, and too many perspectives, and it's hard to keep up with their individual stories. Like, i kept having to look at the blurb every time i read a new chapter cuz i couldn't remember the characters story. That's what made it hard to understand, and very boring. Each chapter didn't have much in it. And the characters lacked a lot of development. Nothing really happens in this book, and it goes on forever. It's legit just about people lying and keeping secrets. The only thing I liked was that it took place in the past, around the time of the vietnam war, and I like history, so i like the little history that was mixed in. I liked seeing the efforts people made to avoid getting drafted.
December 13, 2023
The strength behind this book is its voice. All of the characters are loud, in your face, and quintessentially adolescent. The downside? There's too many people to keep track of. They all have secrets--thus the title--and after the third or fourth tragic history I could not be bothered to try and keep track of them anymore. I enjoyed it well enough, but it deserved a tighter focus or more length to explore the quantity of issues brought up.
January 22, 2014
not a bad read, too many unanswered questions, would like to see another book set, say 10 years in the future, see how everyone turned out. Could introduce things that were socially relevant in the 1980's and another 10 years. A quick read for those cold winter nights!
August 21, 2015
[See the full review at thoughts and afterthoughts]
Rating: 3/5
Should this book be picked up? the tl;dr spoiler-less version:
- Follows 8 POVs, changing tenses, and told in varying narrative styles (i.e. letters, screenplays, prose-fiction)
- Timeframe set during the 1960-70s, themes involve: lies and betrayal, LGBT, social status, sexuality (not crude though), bullying; all relevant to the average teenager
- Ensemble-driven rather than fully developing specific characters; some of which are more/less developed than others
- Individuals have their reasons for what they do in order to remain relevant. By remaining stagnant, the possibility of growth and revelation diminishes, and characters face the same challenges in a constant cycle
Initial Thoughts:
England? Check.
Boarding school? Check.
I think we both know where my thoughts are going. Not.
This is going to be one perplexing review because I’ve never had to critique something like this before. Maybe it was the various perspectives which threw me off (eight distinct voices in total) or maybe it was the sheer nonlinearity of the plot—or at least how it felt like when reading What We Hide—that makes it difficult to assess. At first, I was going to scrutinize each character…but I’m still not quite sure how I truly feel about this book since I enjoyed what I think it set out to achieve but it wasn’t extremely captivating or game-changing.
Full disclosure: I received an advanced reader copy of What We Hide through NetGalley for an honest review. I extend my thanks to Tundra Books at Random House of Canada Limited for providing me the opportunity to review this book.
Disclaimer: There may be spoilers inherent to this review from this point onward.
Rating: 3/5
Should this book be picked up? the tl;dr spoiler-less version:
- Follows 8 POVs, changing tenses, and told in varying narrative styles (i.e. letters, screenplays, prose-fiction)
- Timeframe set during the 1960-70s, themes involve: lies and betrayal, LGBT, social status, sexuality (not crude though), bullying; all relevant to the average teenager
- Ensemble-driven rather than fully developing specific characters; some of which are more/less developed than others
- Individuals have their reasons for what they do in order to remain relevant. By remaining stagnant, the possibility of growth and revelation diminishes, and characters face the same challenges in a constant cycle
Initial Thoughts:
England? Check.
Boarding school? Check.
I think we both know where my thoughts are going. Not.
This is going to be one perplexing review because I’ve never had to critique something like this before. Maybe it was the various perspectives which threw me off (eight distinct voices in total) or maybe it was the sheer nonlinearity of the plot—or at least how it felt like when reading What We Hide—that makes it difficult to assess. At first, I was going to scrutinize each character…but I’m still not quite sure how I truly feel about this book since I enjoyed what I think it set out to achieve but it wasn’t extremely captivating or game-changing.
Full disclosure: I received an advanced reader copy of What We Hide through NetGalley for an honest review. I extend my thanks to Tundra Books at Random House of Canada Limited for providing me the opportunity to review this book.
Disclaimer: There may be spoilers inherent to this review from this point onward.
February 8, 2015
For more reviews, gifs, Cover Snark and more, visit A Reader of Fictions.
Marthe Jocelyn’s What We Hide was a completely unknown quantity when I picked it out. I’d never heard of it before it appeared in the YABC book haul, the cover tells me nothing, and no one I know has read it. Books like this don’t come along often, but it’s always a joy to find a hidden gem like What We Hide. This book has so much to love, for readers who appreciate slower-paced, thoughtful fiction. Through brilliant use of multiple points of view, What We Hide tells the story of a small British boarding school’s inhabitants.
Through the course of What We Hide, Marthe Jocelyn touches on a lot of important themes. While I can’t say she deals with any of them in a deep way, I think the novel promotes thought and understanding in a really healthy way. My favorite discussions were those of The Vietnam War and of homosexuality. What We Hide is set in the early 1970s, and the draft is what creates the frame story for the novel. Jenny’s brother Tom has to go to college to escape the draft, and his parents want to be sure that he won’t get pulled anyway by sending him abroad. Jenny, though not at risk, gets to go to a nearby British boarding school for a semester. Though the Vietnam War is very distant from the plot itself, it does come up in small ways throughout, and I really enjoyed that aspect.
Marthe Jocelyn tells this story from a bunch of different perspectives and even uses some different formats. Most of the narration is straight forward first or third person, but Oona writes letters and Percy writes film scripts. Mixing styles like this is very tricky to pull off, but all of the narrative really worked for me, and there weren’t a lot of quick switches which helped keep things clear. I’m very impressed whenever authors do multiple POVs well and Jocelyn succeeded I am proud to say. Aside from the perspectives being distinct and fitting the characters, they were all interesting. When the POV switched, I was always okay with it, and glad to get new information.
There’s not a whole lot of plot to What We Hide; it’s very much a portrait of this place and time. The multiple points of view enable the reader to see the small group of characters from all angles and really delve into their characters. You get to see what Oona, for example, says about herself and then see how others react to her. It builds a fuller picture than just one perspective and leaves the reader to make a few judgment calls on precisely what went down in some cases.
As the title suggests, the real point is that everyone is hiding something. They all have secrets that they’re keeping, and the ending shows a couple of them getting past that and owning up to their lies or pretenses. Jenny’s pretending to have a boyfriend off at war. Nico’s pretending he doesn’t have a famous mother who wrote about his childhood. Percy’s hiding his famous dad who never visits. Robbie and Luke are hiding the fact that they’re gay. Brenda’s keeping the school doctor’s inappropriate touching quiet. Oona’s trying to keep her betrayal from her best friend. My favorite plot line was definitely that of Robbie and Luke, which is pretty heartbreaking, because they’re so cute and people are such assholes.
What We Hide could benefit I think from a bit more direction, but I did still find it a satisfying read, and I greatly enjoyed its uniqueness. It’s not the typical high scandal boarding school book. It’s slow and thoughtful and beautiful for those who appreciate these sorts of more experimental stories.
Marthe Jocelyn’s What We Hide was a completely unknown quantity when I picked it out. I’d never heard of it before it appeared in the YABC book haul, the cover tells me nothing, and no one I know has read it. Books like this don’t come along often, but it’s always a joy to find a hidden gem like What We Hide. This book has so much to love, for readers who appreciate slower-paced, thoughtful fiction. Through brilliant use of multiple points of view, What We Hide tells the story of a small British boarding school’s inhabitants.
Through the course of What We Hide, Marthe Jocelyn touches on a lot of important themes. While I can’t say she deals with any of them in a deep way, I think the novel promotes thought and understanding in a really healthy way. My favorite discussions were those of The Vietnam War and of homosexuality. What We Hide is set in the early 1970s, and the draft is what creates the frame story for the novel. Jenny’s brother Tom has to go to college to escape the draft, and his parents want to be sure that he won’t get pulled anyway by sending him abroad. Jenny, though not at risk, gets to go to a nearby British boarding school for a semester. Though the Vietnam War is very distant from the plot itself, it does come up in small ways throughout, and I really enjoyed that aspect.
Marthe Jocelyn tells this story from a bunch of different perspectives and even uses some different formats. Most of the narration is straight forward first or third person, but Oona writes letters and Percy writes film scripts. Mixing styles like this is very tricky to pull off, but all of the narrative really worked for me, and there weren’t a lot of quick switches which helped keep things clear. I’m very impressed whenever authors do multiple POVs well and Jocelyn succeeded I am proud to say. Aside from the perspectives being distinct and fitting the characters, they were all interesting. When the POV switched, I was always okay with it, and glad to get new information.
There’s not a whole lot of plot to What We Hide; it’s very much a portrait of this place and time. The multiple points of view enable the reader to see the small group of characters from all angles and really delve into their characters. You get to see what Oona, for example, says about herself and then see how others react to her. It builds a fuller picture than just one perspective and leaves the reader to make a few judgment calls on precisely what went down in some cases.
As the title suggests, the real point is that everyone is hiding something. They all have secrets that they’re keeping, and the ending shows a couple of them getting past that and owning up to their lies or pretenses. Jenny’s pretending to have a boyfriend off at war. Nico’s pretending he doesn’t have a famous mother who wrote about his childhood. Percy’s hiding his famous dad who never visits. Robbie and Luke are hiding the fact that they’re gay. Brenda’s keeping the school doctor’s inappropriate touching quiet. Oona’s trying to keep her betrayal from her best friend. My favorite plot line was definitely that of Robbie and Luke, which is pretty heartbreaking, because they’re so cute and people are such assholes.
What We Hide could benefit I think from a bit more direction, but I did still find it a satisfying read, and I greatly enjoyed its uniqueness. It’s not the typical high scandal boarding school book. It’s slow and thoughtful and beautiful for those who appreciate these sorts of more experimental stories.
April 2, 2014
How I Came To Read This Book: I received an ARC from the publisher.
The Plot: The book is a series of interwoven stories, all told from the perspective of students and townies around a boarding school called Illington Hall, located in Yorkshire, England. Set in the 1970s during the Vietnam War, our entry into the school is through an American girl named Jenny, that's sent away for a semester abroad, in part to keep her brother, a draft dodger named Tom, company while he attends Sheffield University. Once there, we meet a rather large cast of characters, from a slutty girl with a tragic family life named Penelope to a gorgeous Greek boy named Nico that has a famous mother to a gay townie boy that's the younger brother of a tough, prejudiced arse. Although many characters only earn themselves one or two chapters, their story and presence is picked up in other characters' plotlines.
The Good & The Bad: This was an interesting book, in that it reminded me a LOT of a certain retro style a la Peyton Place, where it's not really about just one character, but a certain place at a certain time. The varying narrative styles kept things from getting boring, but they also were a bit confusing as some sections even changed tenses between them (I would have at least aimed to keep everything in the same tense, but that's just me). I liked how as I got further into the book, I was able to recognize characters that had only been mentioned obliquely at the beginning, and the way everyone's stories sort of organically crossed paths (although the big reveal about who spilled the beans about Robbie and Luke was a bit underexplained). In that sense, this book stands apart from most YA fiction these days.
Of course, it's also quite different because it's set in the 1970s AND it's set in England. The infusion of dialect for each character was lovely, it helped define your Robbie's from your Nico's from your Percy's from your Jenny's, although Jenny's tick in her earlier chapters of defining every British term is a little annoying (but understandable for the uninitiated to British slang). Again, it made this feel like not-quite-YA fiction. That being said, I found the book a little oddly modern. Apart from the fact letters are the main source of communication and The Beatles still rule wedding playlists, few things really placed this book in the 1970s, even though the Vietnam War factors in throughout. Even the cover doesn't make any sense, given the girl has friggin' ombre hair. It bothered me throughout, although maybe the whole point was to try and draw a line from teens today to teens then. I don't know.
The other thing is this book really could have stood to use an extra 100 pages (maybe), assuming the author knew what to do with them. The story ends pretty abruptly, to the point where it almost feels like this is going to be a series of books - something I honestly wouldn't be opposed to. Since some of the characters just had slivers of stories, I felt like they either needed to play into the main plot more (Oona and Percy, I'm looking at you) or they should have been left out in favour of further developing the more prominent characters' stories. Still, I enjoyed the pastiche of storylines here and thought it was a nice break from all the dystopian stuff on the shelves.
The Bottom Line: While refreshingly different and nuanced, the book suffers from too much happening in too short a frame.
Anything Memorable?: Nope.
60-Book Challenge?: Book #18 in 2014
The Plot: The book is a series of interwoven stories, all told from the perspective of students and townies around a boarding school called Illington Hall, located in Yorkshire, England. Set in the 1970s during the Vietnam War, our entry into the school is through an American girl named Jenny, that's sent away for a semester abroad, in part to keep her brother, a draft dodger named Tom, company while he attends Sheffield University. Once there, we meet a rather large cast of characters, from a slutty girl with a tragic family life named Penelope to a gorgeous Greek boy named Nico that has a famous mother to a gay townie boy that's the younger brother of a tough, prejudiced arse. Although many characters only earn themselves one or two chapters, their story and presence is picked up in other characters' plotlines.
The Good & The Bad: This was an interesting book, in that it reminded me a LOT of a certain retro style a la Peyton Place, where it's not really about just one character, but a certain place at a certain time. The varying narrative styles kept things from getting boring, but they also were a bit confusing as some sections even changed tenses between them (I would have at least aimed to keep everything in the same tense, but that's just me). I liked how as I got further into the book, I was able to recognize characters that had only been mentioned obliquely at the beginning, and the way everyone's stories sort of organically crossed paths (although the big reveal about who spilled the beans about Robbie and Luke was a bit underexplained). In that sense, this book stands apart from most YA fiction these days.
Of course, it's also quite different because it's set in the 1970s AND it's set in England. The infusion of dialect for each character was lovely, it helped define your Robbie's from your Nico's from your Percy's from your Jenny's, although Jenny's tick in her earlier chapters of defining every British term is a little annoying (but understandable for the uninitiated to British slang). Again, it made this feel like not-quite-YA fiction. That being said, I found the book a little oddly modern. Apart from the fact letters are the main source of communication and The Beatles still rule wedding playlists, few things really placed this book in the 1970s, even though the Vietnam War factors in throughout. Even the cover doesn't make any sense, given the girl has friggin' ombre hair. It bothered me throughout, although maybe the whole point was to try and draw a line from teens today to teens then. I don't know.
The other thing is this book really could have stood to use an extra 100 pages (maybe), assuming the author knew what to do with them. The story ends pretty abruptly, to the point where it almost feels like this is going to be a series of books - something I honestly wouldn't be opposed to. Since some of the characters just had slivers of stories, I felt like they either needed to play into the main plot more (Oona and Percy, I'm looking at you) or they should have been left out in favour of further developing the more prominent characters' stories. Still, I enjoyed the pastiche of storylines here and thought it was a nice break from all the dystopian stuff on the shelves.
The Bottom Line: While refreshingly different and nuanced, the book suffers from too much happening in too short a frame.
Anything Memorable?: Nope.
60-Book Challenge?: Book #18 in 2014
May 6, 2014
I got my hands on a copy of this book when I was at a library conference back in January. I was lucky enough to meet the author and get my copy signed (yes, this is why I love library conferences). Of course, as soon as I get the book at home it languishes on my book shelf. I decided to give it a try this weekend and I was sucked into life at an English boarding school.
What We Hide was completely unexpected. From the cover, I was expecting something more girly and less serious, and frankly more romantic. But, in this case, I'm glad my expectations were not met. This was a great novel, and one that I think will have a wide appeal. What We Hide is told in multiple viewpoints from the students attending Illington Hall, a boarding school in England. Each of these students is very different, but they all have one thing in common, they are all hiding something. These secrets range from the serious to the superficial, but it's what binds them together in this narrative. Only the reader is treated to the undisclosed truth.
Aside from the less frivolous subject matter that I was expecting, I was also surprised by the historical setting. I assumed that this would be a contemporary book; however, What We Hide is actually set during the Vietnam War. One of the narrators, Jenny, is an American who has come to England to study with her brother, who's dodging the draft by attending university overseas. When I read the description, it didn't click that there would be anything historical about this one, but it totally worked. This era lends another layer to a complex plot and really added something to several of the character's stories and impacted the secrets that they kept. It not a period where I've read a lot of fiction, so I felt that I learned something about the era and the social norms and custom expected. In a lot of ways, it's not all that different from today, especially considering the prejudices and preconceived notions that these teens had about others and for themselves.
There were moments when I was questioning each character's actions and moments when I wanted to give of them a hug and stop them from making a bad decision. But at the end of the day, I think What We Hide offers a very realistic picture of growing up and the things that kids (everyone, really) will do to fit it. Sometimes it's funny and sometimes it's plain heartbreaking. But there's always a reason to hide something.
Ultimately, I thought this was a fantastic read. My expectations went up in smoke, but that was not a bad thing. This This book turned out to be a smart, thought provoking read. This author knows how to write, and it was a pleasure to read. While I don't think any of these characters will stop having secrets, I do think each learned something or changed in some way during the novel. Most significantly was Jenny (the American). Her final thoughts for the book are one of my favourite quotes from the book:
"What you arrive with somewhere is never what you take home anyway." (p. 275)
If that doesn't sum up the experience of growing up, I don't know what does.
For similar reviews, see The Book Adventures.
What We Hide was completely unexpected. From the cover, I was expecting something more girly and less serious, and frankly more romantic. But, in this case, I'm glad my expectations were not met. This was a great novel, and one that I think will have a wide appeal. What We Hide is told in multiple viewpoints from the students attending Illington Hall, a boarding school in England. Each of these students is very different, but they all have one thing in common, they are all hiding something. These secrets range from the serious to the superficial, but it's what binds them together in this narrative. Only the reader is treated to the undisclosed truth.
Aside from the less frivolous subject matter that I was expecting, I was also surprised by the historical setting. I assumed that this would be a contemporary book; however, What We Hide is actually set during the Vietnam War. One of the narrators, Jenny, is an American who has come to England to study with her brother, who's dodging the draft by attending university overseas. When I read the description, it didn't click that there would be anything historical about this one, but it totally worked. This era lends another layer to a complex plot and really added something to several of the character's stories and impacted the secrets that they kept. It not a period where I've read a lot of fiction, so I felt that I learned something about the era and the social norms and custom expected. In a lot of ways, it's not all that different from today, especially considering the prejudices and preconceived notions that these teens had about others and for themselves.
There were moments when I was questioning each character's actions and moments when I wanted to give of them a hug and stop them from making a bad decision. But at the end of the day, I think What We Hide offers a very realistic picture of growing up and the things that kids (everyone, really) will do to fit it. Sometimes it's funny and sometimes it's plain heartbreaking. But there's always a reason to hide something.
Ultimately, I thought this was a fantastic read. My expectations went up in smoke, but that was not a bad thing. This This book turned out to be a smart, thought provoking read. This author knows how to write, and it was a pleasure to read. While I don't think any of these characters will stop having secrets, I do think each learned something or changed in some way during the novel. Most significantly was Jenny (the American). Her final thoughts for the book are one of my favourite quotes from the book:
"What you arrive with somewhere is never what you take home anyway." (p. 275)
If that doesn't sum up the experience of growing up, I don't know what does.
For similar reviews, see The Book Adventures.
June 11, 2014
This review originally posted at More Than Just Magic
As the title suggests What We Hide is a book about secrets. Not just about keeping secrets and the dangers of keeping the wrong secrets but also about the motivations behind it. Why do we hide parts of who we are? What makes us distrust those around us?
The story opens on an American girl named Jenny, who has just come over from America with her draft-dodging brother. She’s attending an English boarding school and sees this as an opportunity to reinvent herself. No one knows her at this school she could say anything and they would believe it. This sets the tone for the entire novel. Though it opens on Jenny and her new version of herself this theme is reflected in every other character you meet as well. They all have a way they wish to be perceived and they all mold the truth to try and reflect that.
But in addition to secrets this is a book about perspective. About how the same world can look different depending on who’s looking at it. Even in such a small sampling of the world the reader is treated to the perspectives of eight different students who all see their surroundings in completely different ways. This point is emphasized during a particular discussion between the characters Nico and Jasper.
“Who is telling this story?…The story of the English lesson on Friday morning in a shabby ex-stable that hasn’t had the windows washed in a hundred years. We have-” he looked around- “Sixteen stories in here right? And all of them are true, right? According to the narrators.”
I think this is a great point to keep in mind, not just when you’re reading but in real life as well. You never know what someone else’s story looks like. What’s true to you isn’t always true to others.
I think the most compelling examples of this truth are Robbie and Luke. What We Hide takes place in 1970s in a small town. Being gay and openly dating another guy was absolutely unthinkable. And yet somehow Robbie and Luke found one another and had a real connection. When reading chapters from their perspective the world looks very different from that of Jenny, Nico, Oona or Brenda. (Which is not to say that they all didn’t face their own challenges.) But what made it really interesting was how it looked different from one another. Even though they were keeping the same secret it still affected their perspective differently.
Juggling eight unique perspectives is challenging. Juggling eight perspectives with their own set of secrets and lies is even more so, but Marthe Jocelyn makes it look easy. In under 300 pages she has created a rich and layered world within the walls of Ill Hall. Though there are some characters I could relate to better than others, I wouldn’t be able to pick out a single one I didn’t love reading about. What We Hide has a simple premise but it doesn’t take long to suck you into its complex world.
As the title suggests What We Hide is a book about secrets. Not just about keeping secrets and the dangers of keeping the wrong secrets but also about the motivations behind it. Why do we hide parts of who we are? What makes us distrust those around us?
The story opens on an American girl named Jenny, who has just come over from America with her draft-dodging brother. She’s attending an English boarding school and sees this as an opportunity to reinvent herself. No one knows her at this school she could say anything and they would believe it. This sets the tone for the entire novel. Though it opens on Jenny and her new version of herself this theme is reflected in every other character you meet as well. They all have a way they wish to be perceived and they all mold the truth to try and reflect that.
But in addition to secrets this is a book about perspective. About how the same world can look different depending on who’s looking at it. Even in such a small sampling of the world the reader is treated to the perspectives of eight different students who all see their surroundings in completely different ways. This point is emphasized during a particular discussion between the characters Nico and Jasper.
“Who is telling this story?…The story of the English lesson on Friday morning in a shabby ex-stable that hasn’t had the windows washed in a hundred years. We have-” he looked around- “Sixteen stories in here right? And all of them are true, right? According to the narrators.”
I think this is a great point to keep in mind, not just when you’re reading but in real life as well. You never know what someone else’s story looks like. What’s true to you isn’t always true to others.
I think the most compelling examples of this truth are Robbie and Luke. What We Hide takes place in 1970s in a small town. Being gay and openly dating another guy was absolutely unthinkable. And yet somehow Robbie and Luke found one another and had a real connection. When reading chapters from their perspective the world looks very different from that of Jenny, Nico, Oona or Brenda. (Which is not to say that they all didn’t face their own challenges.) But what made it really interesting was how it looked different from one another. Even though they were keeping the same secret it still affected their perspective differently.
Juggling eight unique perspectives is challenging. Juggling eight perspectives with their own set of secrets and lies is even more so, but Marthe Jocelyn makes it look easy. In under 300 pages she has created a rich and layered world within the walls of Ill Hall. Though there are some characters I could relate to better than others, I wouldn’t be able to pick out a single one I didn’t love reading about. What We Hide has a simple premise but it doesn’t take long to suck you into its complex world.
March 2, 2015
Warning: thematic spoilers below the fold.
It's the late 60s or early 70s, and Jenny's off to England for a semester abroad in boarding school. Her older brother is in university in England—away from the States and away from the draft—but their close friend has shipped out to Vietnam.
But the story is not only Jenny's, and this was what I found both most frustrating and most compelling about the book.
"I think about this all the time," said Nico. "Like, for instance, who is telling this story?"
"Which story?" Jasper seemed a bit bemused.
"This one!" said Nico. "The story of the English lesson on Friday morning in a shabby ex-stable that hasn't had the windows washed in a hundred years. We have"—he looked around—"sixteen stories in here, right? And all of them are true, right? According to the"—he twitched his fingers to show that he was quoting—"narrators. But all of them are unreliable, if you're one of the other fifteen people. So how can it be some literary genre, the unreliable narrator? There isn't anything else." (124)
The story is told in so many different voices—there's Jenny, of course, but then there's Nico (trying to live outside his mother's shadow) and Penelope (missing her mother and always keeping her ears and eyes open) and Robbie (trying to deal with his horrible older brother and also his own sexuality) and on it goes.
'She's trying to do too much,' I said to my s.o. when I was about halfway through. 'Too many people's stories in one book.' And it does feel that way in places—I'd get invested in one character's story, but then the POV would switch, and it would be another 90-odd pages before the book moved back to that character.
But then I realised—quite late in the book—that that's kind of the point. We leave Jenny's head and go into Robbie's, for example, and to Robbie Jenny's story is not crucial. Or even on his radar. To Brenda, Robbie is (inadvertently) part of her life, but again...she has other things to worry about. What's more, each character sees the others differently. Jenny shreds her uniforms in a last-ditch attempt at a fashion statement; to her it seems to work, but later you can see other characters raising their eyebrows, privately.
I didn't love the book. There was surprisingly little to place it in time (odd, given the Vietnam War in the—distant—background), and very, very few of the characters' stories come to any real conclusion...although that's another love/hate thing, as it's far more realistic than having lots of tidy endings. Ultimately I wanted more space, I think, for (some of...) the characters' lives to be explored...but it does some pretty cool things in terms of perspective and reliability.
Brief witterings about POV here.
It's the late 60s or early 70s, and Jenny's off to England for a semester abroad in boarding school. Her older brother is in university in England—away from the States and away from the draft—but their close friend has shipped out to Vietnam.
But the story is not only Jenny's, and this was what I found both most frustrating and most compelling about the book.
"I think about this all the time," said Nico. "Like, for instance, who is telling this story?"
"Which story?" Jasper seemed a bit bemused.
"This one!" said Nico. "The story of the English lesson on Friday morning in a shabby ex-stable that hasn't had the windows washed in a hundred years. We have"—he looked around—"sixteen stories in here, right? And all of them are true, right? According to the"—he twitched his fingers to show that he was quoting—"narrators. But all of them are unreliable, if you're one of the other fifteen people. So how can it be some literary genre, the unreliable narrator? There isn't anything else." (124)
The story is told in so many different voices—there's Jenny, of course, but then there's Nico (trying to live outside his mother's shadow) and Penelope (missing her mother and always keeping her ears and eyes open) and Robbie (trying to deal with his horrible older brother and also his own sexuality) and on it goes.
'She's trying to do too much,' I said to my s.o. when I was about halfway through. 'Too many people's stories in one book.' And it does feel that way in places—I'd get invested in one character's story, but then the POV would switch, and it would be another 90-odd pages before the book moved back to that character.
But then I realised—quite late in the book—that that's kind of the point. We leave Jenny's head and go into Robbie's, for example, and to Robbie Jenny's story is not crucial. Or even on his radar. To Brenda, Robbie is (inadvertently) part of her life, but again...she has other things to worry about. What's more, each character sees the others differently. Jenny shreds her uniforms in a last-ditch attempt at a fashion statement; to her it seems to work, but later you can see other characters raising their eyebrows, privately.
I didn't love the book. There was surprisingly little to place it in time (odd, given the Vietnam War in the—distant—background), and very, very few of the characters' stories come to any real conclusion...although that's another love/hate thing, as it's far more realistic than having lots of tidy endings. Ultimately I wanted more space, I think, for (some of...) the characters' lives to be explored...but it does some pretty cool things in terms of perspective and reliability.
Brief witterings about POV here.
January 1, 2015
Yeeeee. -.-
I expected the best from this novel. I wanted a contemporary novel with so much happening, but all I got was this BORING book. One minute I thought that something big was going to happen, the next I was completely out. I was confused with what was happening. What should've I expected?
So the plot started off really well. When I was at 20%, I thought that I would give this a four start rating, but eventually it slowed down and nothing really changed. This is one of those cheesy boarding school stories, just wanted to let 'ya know.
So many POVs are hard to deal with, even if you know who's telling the story. There were just too many here to keep up with. I don't even know some of the characters' reasoning and point to be in this book, and they had this huge POV. It was kind of dumb because the different POVs were written in different formats, which made me laugh because I could tell that the author wanted to "change it up." Aha, letter format? PLAY FORMAT?! Don't kill me of laughing.
The only UP was the beginning and end. Those two things were the probably only good things, but they captivated me, so that's all that matters.
Like I said before, I really disliked the characters, especially Penelope and Alec. Yuck.
And this is where I say that I don't understand what the author was going for because I don't really understand why she wrote her characters like that.
... This was a really "nothing special" kind of book. I didn't see any specialty in it, and I'm disappointed because I really was expecting better.
December 1, 2013
I debated pretty hard between 3.5 and 4 on this one. There's an underdeveloped quality to it: too many stories, too many strands all going at once. And mostly, they weave together very nicely but some - Percy's, say, or Nico's - don't really need their own focus.
That's the thing about this book. It switches POV a LOT. Some don't even repeat more than once, and I don't think any go more than three times, maaaybe four. Trimmed down to, I don't know, Robbie, Brenda, Jenny, and Penelope, I think it would have been fine.
Set during the Vietnam war, the first chapter (Jenny's) follows an American girl to England where she is spending a semester abroad in a boarding school as a ...statement of support(?) for her draft-dodging brother, who also goes to England for college. (And then we proceed to see very little of him, which I think is a shame. Ditto Matt, their childhood friend who ends up in the war. So much of both their stories - Tom's and Jenny's - revolve around Matt's situation, but we see so little of those relationships that it all feels a little theoretical.)
The story proceeds to fold in other cast members' stories: Robbie, a townie who struggles with his sexuality; Penelope, a boarding school girl who struggles with, well, everything; among others. Only Robbie and Jenny's stories felt concluded or rounded out by the end - Penelope, especially, I would have liked to have more closure with, even if it was negative.
All this critique aside, Jocelyn grapples with serious issues among teens and does a great job with it. She highlights the imperfect but (mostly) bearable, and the concept of camouflage and blending in - major stuff for teens. Things get a little racy - I wouldn't recommend this to anyone under 15; Jocelyn's very frank about sex, masturbation, and desire, though never in a distasteful way and it's all very appropriate for the boarding school/teen environment.
That's the thing about this book. It switches POV a LOT. Some don't even repeat more than once, and I don't think any go more than three times, maaaybe four. Trimmed down to, I don't know, Robbie, Brenda, Jenny, and Penelope, I think it would have been fine.
Set during the Vietnam war, the first chapter (Jenny's) follows an American girl to England where she is spending a semester abroad in a boarding school as a ...statement of support(?) for her draft-dodging brother, who also goes to England for college. (And then we proceed to see very little of him, which I think is a shame. Ditto Matt, their childhood friend who ends up in the war. So much of both their stories - Tom's and Jenny's - revolve around Matt's situation, but we see so little of those relationships that it all feels a little theoretical.)
The story proceeds to fold in other cast members' stories: Robbie, a townie who struggles with his sexuality; Penelope, a boarding school girl who struggles with, well, everything; among others. Only Robbie and Jenny's stories felt concluded or rounded out by the end - Penelope, especially, I would have liked to have more closure with, even if it was negative.
All this critique aside, Jocelyn grapples with serious issues among teens and does a great job with it. She highlights the imperfect but (mostly) bearable, and the concept of camouflage and blending in - major stuff for teens. Things get a little racy - I wouldn't recommend this to anyone under 15; Jocelyn's very frank about sex, masturbation, and desire, though never in a distasteful way and it's all very appropriate for the boarding school/teen environment.
June 2, 2014
Everyone has a different story, and you won’t know it unless they tell you. But they’re story could all be a made up lie. This is what ‘What we Hide’ is about there and many perspectives and different stories but everyone hides a lie in their stories. Tom is faced with two decisions to move to England or be drafted. He decides to move to England and he takes, his little sister, Jenn. There Jenn makes multiple friends but when they get to know her she doesn't tell them the whole truth about herself. She tells them thing that would make her look cool. Throughout the book you learn about her many other friends’ stories as well and what they all hide. You might or might not find out what everyone hides, but that’s the mystery behind it all. You will find out that behind different other stories you will find clues to the other peoples stories.
What We Hide is a very diverse book. It took place back in the 1950’s, back when the Vietnam War took place. If you are into historical fiction this would be a good book for you it doesn't have a lot talking about the Vietnam War but it has little facts here and there. There is also a little romance between many characters. Jenn and Matt, and Tom and Penelope is the main romance throughout the whole book. Also if you like a little comedy but not much this might be the book for you there is not so much that you laugh 24/7 but you have a little here and there to make this a light easy read.
I gave What We Hide by Marthe Jocelyn three out of five stars. It was a good read and I read it fairly quick and sort of got into it but there is just something about it that I don’t like. I don’t like how there are multiple narrators. For example each chapter switches to a different person and tells their perspective, which was quiet confusing but at the same time it was good. It was good only because every story tied into the next and you just keep finding more and more clues. From the beginning it hooks you and the end hooks you as well the mystery that lies behind it all makes it a good read, however throughout the book was kind if slow and dragged on. But overall it was a decent read.
What We Hide is a very diverse book. It took place back in the 1950’s, back when the Vietnam War took place. If you are into historical fiction this would be a good book for you it doesn't have a lot talking about the Vietnam War but it has little facts here and there. There is also a little romance between many characters. Jenn and Matt, and Tom and Penelope is the main romance throughout the whole book. Also if you like a little comedy but not much this might be the book for you there is not so much that you laugh 24/7 but you have a little here and there to make this a light easy read.
I gave What We Hide by Marthe Jocelyn three out of five stars. It was a good read and I read it fairly quick and sort of got into it but there is just something about it that I don’t like. I don’t like how there are multiple narrators. For example each chapter switches to a different person and tells their perspective, which was quiet confusing but at the same time it was good. It was good only because every story tied into the next and you just keep finding more and more clues. From the beginning it hooks you and the end hooks you as well the mystery that lies behind it all makes it a good read, however throughout the book was kind if slow and dragged on. But overall it was a decent read.
May 10, 2016
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review from Tundra Books via LibraryThing's giveaway.
Ducking the Vietnam War draft, Tom leaves America for a college education in England. Bringing along his sister Jenny, she begins a fresh school year at a Quaker boarding school where she quickly realizes she can be whoever she wants to be. What We Hide gathers the voices of numerous teenagers who, despite their conflicting personalities, social cliques, and attitudes on sexuality, share a single similarity -- they all hold stories that either cannot be told or they have quietly fabricated.
The novel does not lack in attempts -- the attempts themselves, however, fall short. Jocelyn packs in a crowd of voices, some of whom are characteristically memorable, while others far less. Sectioning off the book into chapters, eight characters including Jenny (but not Tom) narrate eight distinct stories during their school year, some of which weave into others. Readers may struggle to find coherence in the early portions of the book as characters flow in and out of narratives, and can grow frustrated by the second half as they continue to lack depth and substantial development. What We Hide also daringly explores multiple narrative styles at the expense of the reader, who is jostled through letters, first person narratives, and even screenplays that only serve to blur voices even further.
As readers will note, this book quickly veers away from a focus on the two characters with greatest potential, Tom and Jenny, to push forth a sizable cast of characters that remain unpolished till the end. Failing to take advantage of the historical time frame that propels the book's beginning, this novel quickly risks losing its audience's interest, leaving them disappointed in its promises.
I post my book reviews on my book blog! ♡
Ducking the Vietnam War draft, Tom leaves America for a college education in England. Bringing along his sister Jenny, she begins a fresh school year at a Quaker boarding school where she quickly realizes she can be whoever she wants to be. What We Hide gathers the voices of numerous teenagers who, despite their conflicting personalities, social cliques, and attitudes on sexuality, share a single similarity -- they all hold stories that either cannot be told or they have quietly fabricated.
The novel does not lack in attempts -- the attempts themselves, however, fall short. Jocelyn packs in a crowd of voices, some of whom are characteristically memorable, while others far less. Sectioning off the book into chapters, eight characters including Jenny (but not Tom) narrate eight distinct stories during their school year, some of which weave into others. Readers may struggle to find coherence in the early portions of the book as characters flow in and out of narratives, and can grow frustrated by the second half as they continue to lack depth and substantial development. What We Hide also daringly explores multiple narrative styles at the expense of the reader, who is jostled through letters, first person narratives, and even screenplays that only serve to blur voices even further.
As readers will note, this book quickly veers away from a focus on the two characters with greatest potential, Tom and Jenny, to push forth a sizable cast of characters that remain unpolished till the end. Failing to take advantage of the historical time frame that propels the book's beginning, this novel quickly risks losing its audience's interest, leaving them disappointed in its promises.
I post my book reviews on my book blog! ♡
April 22, 2014
Huge thank you to Tundra Books and Netgalley for this ARC!
2.5
I am torn when it comes to What We Hide. It has an intriguing premise with a lot of mystery surrounding the characters within the story, and each character is connected to another by a small thread. The writing is gorgeous, it keeps you guessing, and yet, I struggled to connect with it.
There are so many perspectives in this novel, and I think that's what's problematic about it. I never felt like I understood a lot of the characters or their motives, so a lot of their secrets didn't feel naturally exposed, and to be honest I ended up with more questions than answers, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but it made for a confusing story a lot of the time.
There is also so much intertextuality in this book, which you don't see in a lot of YA, but when you do it can be a nice break in the story. In What We Hide however, it just become more questions and often it made the text very jarring to read because the transition between letters, scripts and first person perspectives feel so mashed together instead of being placed in such a way that the reader would understand WHY the change in format.
I guess for me, it boils down to taste. I think with the right reader, this story will resonate well, but for me I just felt lost and confused a lot of the time. Even when I got to the end I found myself asking more questions and not feeling satisfied with results presented to me. What We Hide is not a bad book, but it definitely requires a ton of patience on the reader's part.
2.5
I am torn when it comes to What We Hide. It has an intriguing premise with a lot of mystery surrounding the characters within the story, and each character is connected to another by a small thread. The writing is gorgeous, it keeps you guessing, and yet, I struggled to connect with it.
There are so many perspectives in this novel, and I think that's what's problematic about it. I never felt like I understood a lot of the characters or their motives, so a lot of their secrets didn't feel naturally exposed, and to be honest I ended up with more questions than answers, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but it made for a confusing story a lot of the time.
There is also so much intertextuality in this book, which you don't see in a lot of YA, but when you do it can be a nice break in the story. In What We Hide however, it just become more questions and often it made the text very jarring to read because the transition between letters, scripts and first person perspectives feel so mashed together instead of being placed in such a way that the reader would understand WHY the change in format.
I guess for me, it boils down to taste. I think with the right reader, this story will resonate well, but for me I just felt lost and confused a lot of the time. Even when I got to the end I found myself asking more questions and not feeling satisfied with results presented to me. What We Hide is not a bad book, but it definitely requires a ton of patience on the reader's part.
August 24, 2014
I wanted to like this book and while the potential was high, the reality fell flat.
Boarding school? Check.
Complicated friendships?
Haves vs Have Nots (townie vs private school style)? Check.
Interesting (ish) characters and multiple focalizers? Check and check.
So what went wrong???
It all felt superficial. Everyone had their personality and there was no real depth to anyone. The new girl who lies in an attempt to "reinvent" herself, the boy-slut who's actually still a virgin, the girl-slut with a sad home life, the shy boy who's secretly gay, the tough boy who's secretly gay, the artsy kid who...well, who is just artsy. From start to finish, those were the characters and nothing changed or evolved or wavered in the slightest.
Speaking of the finish, the book just...ended. The new girl confessed her reinvention lie in a totally impact-less non-event and then decided that maybe she'd come back for one more semester after all. End Scene. No resolution (or mention) of the townie girl trying to navigate a complicated dating life/trauma or the boys who were nearly beat up for being gay. No resolution for anyone except Jenny and her tied-in-a-bow ending took all of 3 sentences!
The most interesting (and again, underdeveloped) part of the book was the portrayal of male homosexuality.
Boarding school? Check.
Complicated friendships?
Haves vs Have Nots (townie vs private school style)? Check.
Interesting (ish) characters and multiple focalizers? Check and check.
So what went wrong???
It all felt superficial. Everyone had their personality and there was no real depth to anyone. The new girl who lies in an attempt to "reinvent" herself, the boy-slut who's actually still a virgin, the girl-slut with a sad home life, the shy boy who's secretly gay, the tough boy who's secretly gay, the artsy kid who...well, who is just artsy. From start to finish, those were the characters and nothing changed or evolved or wavered in the slightest.
Speaking of the finish, the book just...ended. The new girl confessed her reinvention lie in a totally impact-less non-event and then decided that maybe she'd come back for one more semester after all. End Scene. No resolution (or mention) of the townie girl trying to navigate a complicated dating life/trauma or the boys who were nearly beat up for being gay. No resolution for anyone except Jenny and her tied-in-a-bow ending took all of 3 sentences!
The most interesting (and again, underdeveloped) part of the book was the portrayal of male homosexuality.
July 3, 2014
I'm still wrapping my head around this book. Reading this book is like being dropped into a moment and specific place in time , and getting the perspectives of many participants . The dialogue is just so well written. The interweaving of so many different narrators and perspectives is also great. It took me a little bit to get into it, because it seems to come completely out of nowhere, by that I mean it is completely unique - and there is no familiar structure in YA - except for the fact it's set in a boarding school. The author's decision to choose these stories seems so deliberate and I would be curious about her motivations. It almost seems to have a diary-like quality. I'm really happy these characters exist, though it was sometimes hard to remember it is set during the Vietnam war years. The female characters were so strong it seems very contemporary. I loved that about the book- it takes characters that wouldn't really have been given a strong voice in the past and gives it to them in retrospect . It's sad and also somehow uplifting, in a realistic way. I like also how it doesn't shy away from teen sexuality. Maybe it's trying to pull off a little too much with so many perspectives and mini stories. But it works surprisingly well.
April 16, 2014
*3.5*
Overall I enjoyed this book. It takes place in a boarding school in England during the early seventies. It follows mostly students at this school and the secrets that they keep.
Of all the books I've read with multi-perspectives this one did a very good job at distinguishing between the characters and their point of views. The style of writing was very different for each character and there were distinct personalities shown.
That being said I think that there were too many perspectives. It was a relatively short book (275 pages) and covered 8 different characters. It felt more like a bunch of short stories with overlapping characters than a fully fleshed novel with a distinct plot. I think there should have been fewer perspectives with more focus on each or it should have been a longer book.
I enjoyed the characters and would really liked to have known more about them, or heard more about their individual stories. I felt that we missed a lot at times because we were hearing things from so many people.
That said I did like this book and almost wish that there would be another book with the same characters. I definitely want to know more about their lives!
Overall I enjoyed this book. It takes place in a boarding school in England during the early seventies. It follows mostly students at this school and the secrets that they keep.
Of all the books I've read with multi-perspectives this one did a very good job at distinguishing between the characters and their point of views. The style of writing was very different for each character and there were distinct personalities shown.
That being said I think that there were too many perspectives. It was a relatively short book (275 pages) and covered 8 different characters. It felt more like a bunch of short stories with overlapping characters than a fully fleshed novel with a distinct plot. I think there should have been fewer perspectives with more focus on each or it should have been a longer book.
I enjoyed the characters and would really liked to have known more about them, or heard more about their individual stories. I felt that we missed a lot at times because we were hearing things from so many people.
That said I did like this book and almost wish that there would be another book with the same characters. I definitely want to know more about their lives!
August 25, 2016
eh. this book was a mess it would've been so much better if she'd picked like three povs and stuck with them. I saw other reviews say this, but it's like.....nobody really grows (I mean there is some character development, mainly where Jenny is concerned, and that was sweet, but nothing really happens) and you don't really get to see what's happening with them, and there's just really no emotional impact. I honestly would have preferred it have been all from Jenny's POV (though my true wish is that the book would've just been from Luke and Robbie's POV but whatever). That being said it's not like it was....bad, it just....didn't have anything truly substantial to it ?? but whatever. I just feel like I didn't even actually read anything, you know. I kept waiting for stuff to happen but it was just.....anecdotes about shit happening in random kids' lives. Like......okay? It'd be disappointing but this was just a random book I picked up and I didn't really have any expectations. It's basically just a bunch of empty pages. Or maybe that's my empty stomach talking.
July 18, 2015
Pár megjegyzés ehhez a könyvhöz, mielőtt bárki elkezdené:
- ne számíts semmiféle történetre
- ne számíts kidolgozott karakterekre
- ne számíts semmiféle érzelemre
Szóval úgy általában semmi esetre sem érdemes nekikezdeni. Ez tipikusan az a fajta könyv, aminek a fülszövege ott vág át, ahol csak tud, bár úgy 40 oldal után rájössz, hogy valami nem stimmel.
Azt hiszem a legnagyobb gond a szerkezetből adódik, körülbelül 4-5 POW-t kapunk, ami rengeteg egy ilyen rövid regényhez. Plusz mondvacsinált problémákkal küzdenek a szereplők többsége, arról nem is beszélve, hogy mennyire antipatikusak, ráadásul kidolgozatlanok, szóval egybemosódnak. Most sem tudom, mi volt a különbség mondjuk Brenda és Kirsten között, de nem is érdekel.
Órákat lehetne beszélni még arról, hogy miért pocsék ez a regény, ám mivel leginkább érdektelenséget váltott ki belőlem, ezért nem is pazarlom az időmet ennek a leírásával. Egyszerűen csak hagyjátok a fenébe. Még a GLBTQ szálért sem éri meg elolvasni.
- ne számíts semmiféle történetre
- ne számíts kidolgozott karakterekre
- ne számíts semmiféle érzelemre
Szóval úgy általában semmi esetre sem érdemes nekikezdeni. Ez tipikusan az a fajta könyv, aminek a fülszövege ott vág át, ahol csak tud, bár úgy 40 oldal után rájössz, hogy valami nem stimmel.
Azt hiszem a legnagyobb gond a szerkezetből adódik, körülbelül 4-5 POW-t kapunk, ami rengeteg egy ilyen rövid regényhez. Plusz mondvacsinált problémákkal küzdenek a szereplők többsége, arról nem is beszélve, hogy mennyire antipatikusak, ráadásul kidolgozatlanok, szóval egybemosódnak. Most sem tudom, mi volt a különbség mondjuk Brenda és Kirsten között, de nem is érdekel.
Órákat lehetne beszélni még arról, hogy miért pocsék ez a regény, ám mivel leginkább érdektelenséget váltott ki belőlem, ezért nem is pazarlom az időmet ennek a leírásával. Egyszerűen csak hagyjátok a fenébe. Még a GLBTQ szálért sem éri meg elolvasni.
February 15, 2016
I received a copy of Marthe Jocelyn's "What We Hide" compliments of LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program and appreciated the opportunity.
This YA novel shares the unique perspectives of a group of teenagers who are attending a boarding school in the UK. Each chapter is written in the voice of one of the characters, shedding light on their hidden "secrets", what they see that others may not. There is a tonne of drama along the way, as is the standard life of most teens. It did have some laughable humour throughout and I did enjoy the authentic UK dialogue used by the author.
This easy read was just so-so for me. I finished it in two sittings, not necessarily because I was so intrigued, more because I truly wanted to get through to the end as fast as possible. I am not sure that I can recommend this one, it was a bit of a bore.
This YA novel shares the unique perspectives of a group of teenagers who are attending a boarding school in the UK. Each chapter is written in the voice of one of the characters, shedding light on their hidden "secrets", what they see that others may not. There is a tonne of drama along the way, as is the standard life of most teens. It did have some laughable humour throughout and I did enjoy the authentic UK dialogue used by the author.
This easy read was just so-so for me. I finished it in two sittings, not necessarily because I was so intrigued, more because I truly wanted to get through to the end as fast as possible. I am not sure that I can recommend this one, it was a bit of a bore.
June 14, 2014
What We Hide is a slower paced Young Adult novel that takes place in a British boarding school during the Vietnam War era. If you're expecting some major conflict to occur, you'll be disappointed. The narrative revolves around eight different protagonists, all of whom are wrestling with their own darkness. This is a story about how our actions and choices influence how others see us, and how people tell lies and put on airs in order to be viewed (or not viewed as the case may be) in a certain way.
Due to the slower pacing of the book, the multiple protagonist POV, and the sexual content, this is definitely not a book for everyone. However, the writing is enjoyable and thought provoking as readers are exposed to characters from a variety of different backgrounds.
Due to the slower pacing of the book, the multiple protagonist POV, and the sexual content, this is definitely not a book for everyone. However, the writing is enjoyable and thought provoking as readers are exposed to characters from a variety of different backgrounds.
March 20, 2015
I really loved this book. Great use of multiple person POV, and I liked how each POV was structured differently-- some in first person, some in third, others in letters and even a screenplay. Very interesting. Each character felt distinct and fully realized, and perhaps the most effective thing about multiple POV in this book was getting to see the different characters through the eyes of other characters. I'm a sucker for any book that revolves around secrets and lies, and WHAT WE HIDE does it masterfully. Not to mention, the writing is beautiful and the setting-- a boarding school in England during the Vietnam War-- is really cool. I'm definitely going to seek out more books by Marthe Jocelyn!
May 20, 2015
I was slightly put off by the poorer reviews for this novel, but since I've enjoyed a couple of Marthe Jocelyn's previous books, I had to read this.
I wasn't disappointed. I thought the multiple perspectives of the characters would be hard to follow, it wasn't. The writing style reflected what the book was all about: perspective (and truth, is that a theme?).
I wasn't super keen on Jenny's story because it seemed childish what she was doing... I just don't think it was written in a believable way. Yet, that might've been on purpose. Because her story was not believable. I also thought that the presence of war wasn't very well ingrained in the story. It stuck out, in a bad way, like it didn't quite fit. The ending was a bit abrupt, everyone suddenly chummy.
Overall, I enjoyed this book.
I wasn't disappointed. I thought the multiple perspectives of the characters would be hard to follow, it wasn't. The writing style reflected what the book was all about: perspective (and truth, is that a theme?).
I wasn't super keen on Jenny's story because it seemed childish what she was doing... I just don't think it was written in a believable way. Yet, that might've been on purpose. Because her story was not believable. I also thought that the presence of war wasn't very well ingrained in the story. It stuck out, in a bad way, like it didn't quite fit. The ending was a bit abrupt, everyone suddenly chummy.
Overall, I enjoyed this book.
November 21, 2014
Arghhh this review crashed on me thrice so I am too annoyed to say much.
Ambitious working from multiple characters from multiple viewpoints, so I was hesitant to read but this book managed to pull it off.
Each character had distinct backgrounds, ideas, and voices. The more unique voices stemming from Oona and Percy who used a different approach to tell their story — Oona from writing letters to her best friend Sarah who moved to Canada and Percy in his screenplay writings (perhaps subconsciously influenced by his never-present famous movie director father).
However, I was pretty ticked off by a few characters, namely air-headed Oona and unrepentant Penelope.
Ambitious working from multiple characters from multiple viewpoints, so I was hesitant to read but this book managed to pull it off.
Each character had distinct backgrounds, ideas, and voices. The more unique voices stemming from Oona and Percy who used a different approach to tell their story — Oona from writing letters to her best friend Sarah who moved to Canada and Percy in his screenplay writings (perhaps subconsciously influenced by his never-present famous movie director father).
However, I was pretty ticked off by a few characters, namely air-headed Oona and unrepentant Penelope.
January 21, 2015
I liked this book. I enjoyed the multiple points of view, which is nice when so many things are going on. But it seemed rather short, and I think it ended rather abruptly. I had to turn back to the last page because I couldn't believe that was the end. I don't know if future books are planned to follow this one, but I feel like I need more. I like books about boarding schools and this one being set in the past and in England did not disappoint.
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