BOOK REVIEW: Every Ugly Word

This is a book review for Every Ugly Word by Aimee L Salter. Seventeen year old Ashley Watson endures bullying and taunts from classmates every day. She also can't seem to make her best friend Matt fall in love with her. But Ashley also has a secret: when she looks in the mirror she can see her twenty-three-year-old self. Her older self has already been through all the bullying and the taunts and the heartache. But there is one thing her older self is keeping from her: something terrible is about to happen to Ashley. Something that will change her life forever.

The book starts with Ashley meeting with a therapist. She begins telling the story of everything that leads up to the "incident." The book alternates between the past and present. This is a powerful narration about the effects of bullying. I think a lot of people were bullied as children. I was. I wasn't bullied quite to the extent that Ashley was, but the author did an amazing job of portraying Ashley's fear and hopelessness. There were a lot of different narratives going on between the time jump from past to present and also the conversations between Ashley's older self and her younger one. But it never got confusing. It was enthralling. And I read the entire book in one day so that should say something.

Amy's relationship with her mother was infuriating. Every time her mother insulted her, I sympathized with Ashley and I felt her anger. What did bug me was Ashley's idolization of Matt. He started going out with one of the girls who hated Ashley and she didn't stand up for herself at all. It was hard to understand some of Ashley's decisions. It was frustrating when Matt tried to get Ashley to hang out with her bullies so they could become friends, but it was equally frustrating that Ashley didn't tell Matt everything they were putting her through. The therapy session was interesting because we got to see the doctor question Ashley on some of her decisions and feelings throughout this ordeal. The main issue I did have with the book was the ending, with the final scene in the office. It started out disheartening. The point of the whole story was for Ashley to see what was real and what wasn't and to glimpse at her trauma and see how it influenced Older Ashley and her reality. But the scene just turned chaotic and confusing. It also bordered more on fantasy than reality.

I did find the overall conclusion to the book very uplifting and hopeful. This was a powerful look at a very real and important issue. I give this book a 4/5.