THE OTHER SIDE OF SILENCE
by Margaret Mahy
The Rappers—one of the most endearingly quirky families on record in seasons—are all gifted and a little idiosyncratic. Mother Annie is a bestselling authority on childrearing; father Mike loves being a househusband; older sister Ginevra, after leaving the family in a snit, now makes "pots of money" in Australia; brother Athol always has his head in a book; younger sister Sap adores using arcane words; and Hero has not spoken a word in three years. When two things happen—Ginevra returns and Hero takes a job with Miss Credence, who lives down the street—to disturb the relative calm in the Rapper household, readers will find themselves in the midst of Mahy (The Greatest Show Off Earth, 1994, etc.) at her best. Fascinating characters, a profound mystery, agonizing suspense only made bearable by the right doses of humor, a palpable atmosphere of dread, and a shocking denouement lead to only one conclusion: Mahy is a writer who just keeps getting better with every book. (Fiction. 10+)