Saying It Out Loud — Joan Abelove

For fans of Lurlene McDaniel, this is a heartwrenching chronicle of a teen girl's experiences with her mother's brain cancer, based on the author's own life

Mindy has always relied upon her mother-to listen to her, to ease the tension between Mindy and her withdrawn father, to love her. Then her mother is diagnosed with a brain tumor. After her surgery, she is no longer a laughing, lively presence. She has lost the power of speech, and her memory-and Mindy has lost her mother forever. Based upon Joan Abelove's own life, here is the wrenching story of a girl losing her mother early, a girl with a father who will not acknowledge what is going on-a girl who could have been you, or someone you know.