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Talking In Whispers
An exciting, uncompromising political thriller, set in Chile under the military junta.
Sixteen-year-old Andres becomes a wanted man and the target of security forces after the driver of a car that he is travelling in is shot and his father is taken away. Then Andres meets an American journalist who provides him with evidence that will be ‘more valuable than bullets’ against the oppressive military regime.
An exciting and uncompromising political thriller, Talking in Whispers was awarded the German Buxtehuder Bulle, which celebrates outstanding teenage fiction dealing with human rights themes.
Sixteen-year-old Andres becomes a wanted man and the target of security forces after the driver of a car that he is travelling in is shot and his father is taken away. Then Andres meets an American journalist who provides him with evidence that will be ‘more valuable than bullets’ against the oppressive military regime.
An exciting and uncompromising political thriller, Talking in Whispers was awarded the German Buxtehuder Bulle, which celebrates outstanding teenage fiction dealing with human rights themes.
144 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1983
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
March 3, 2014
I read this book in school and still had the old copy among my things so I decided to re-read it. I'm glad I did because it's a short but exciting and sad adventure set in Chile under the military Junta. It manages to convey the atmosphere of fear and oppression of that time and you really empathise with the characters on their journey of rebellion in the face of despair. It's an especially good means of teaching young and not so young people of the plight of the oppressed and the value of human rights.
July 17, 2020
Not as good as The Freedom Tree (set in the Spanish Civil War) but still a lovely example of radical historical fiction for teens, of which there seems to be a real dearth at the moment.
July 8, 2010
I studied this book for gcse and found it again recently, wondered what it would be like without disecting every syllable. I wish I had not bothered! It was not exciting and I just ended up with more questions than when I started.
May 9, 2014
Not only quite a poor story but also very badly edited: lots of (grammar) mistakes and the entire book printed in bold!
April 10, 2021
Until I had read this book in 1989, then I had no idea that political genocide and assassinations were a reality and had recently taken place. I remember how nightmarish and real that the writer made the story, bringing awareness of a genocide that most Western governments wished to keep secret.
June 3, 2023
Great story written from the view point of a teenager. I read this book as part of my English Literature class over 20 years ago and it still lives with me today. It opens your eyes to a world outside of your own that pre Internet or smart phones was hard to do.
July 12, 2020
A book that highlights many issues, most importantly the freedom of speech and the press. A book that should probably be on every school syllabus.
March 19, 2009
This book was about the Chilean Revolution in the 1970's. It had many relevances to the real atrocities that happened and how bad the government was back then, how they killed Allende as the rich hated his regime!
This book is centered around a boy who grew up in the town of Santiago. He and his dad are musicians and the Junta (a strict dictatorship of generals who ran the country) ambushed them on the way back and take Andreas' dad captive. Andreas struggles for survival as people are looking for him. He also sees many deaths on his way to freedom, but in the end Andreas has seen and gone through enough for a life time...
An exciting book which brings the shocking reality to us. It's very educational in many ways while having a bit of a story to it. I enjoyed this book and learnt a lot from the atrocities that happened in Chile and how badly Allende was respected in their country!
This book is centered around a boy who grew up in the town of Santiago. He and his dad are musicians and the Junta (a strict dictatorship of generals who ran the country) ambushed them on the way back and take Andreas' dad captive. Andreas struggles for survival as people are looking for him. He also sees many deaths on his way to freedom, but in the end Andreas has seen and gone through enough for a life time...
An exciting book which brings the shocking reality to us. It's very educational in many ways while having a bit of a story to it. I enjoyed this book and learnt a lot from the atrocities that happened in Chile and how badly Allende was respected in their country!
October 25, 2011
This book was about a boy named Andres and his two friends Isa and Beto. Andres had a dad named Juan that disappeared and they had no idea what to do. So they went on an adventure to find clues and solve the mystery of Andres missing father Juan.
August 8, 2014
very well written book really enjoyed it
August 26, 2014
Good FANTASTIC but Grammar Mistakes
July 24, 2015
I read this book in school and again in my twentys. I enjoyed reading it both times. In my twenties I couldn't put it down.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews