ARC Arrival: The Weight of Silence by Heather Gudenkauf

The Weight of Silence by Heather Gudenkauf

Publisher: Mira Books

I received this book from the publisher through Shelf Awareness.

About the book: It happens quietly one August morning. As dawn's shimmering light drenches the humid Iowa air, two families awaken to find their little girls have gone missing in the night.

Seven-year-old Calli Clark is sweet, gentle, a dreamer who suffers from selective mutism brought on by a tragedy that pulled her deep into silence as a toddler. Calli's mother, Antonia, tried to be the best mother she could within the confines of marriage to a mostly absent, often angry husband. Now, though she denies that her husband could be involved in the possible abductions, she fears her decision to stay in her marriage has cost her more than her daughter's voice.

Petra Gregory is Calli's best friend, her soul mate and her voice. But neither Petra nor Calli has been heard from since their disappearance was discovered. Desperate to find his child, Martin Gregory is forced to confront a side of himself he did not know existed beneath his intellectual, professorial demeanor.

Now these families are tied by the question of what happened to their children. And the answer is trapped in the silence of unspoken family secrets. (from the back cover)

About the author: Heather Gudenkauf has spent the past sixteen years working with students of all ages and is currently an instructional coach, an educator who provides curricular and professional development support to teachers. As an individual with a hearing impairment, Heather chose to write The Weight of Silence to, among other things, highlight the struggles faced by children with communication disabilities. She lives in Dubuque, Iowa, with her husband, three children and a very spoiled German shorthaired pointer. The Weight of Silence is her first novel. (from the back cover)

The Weight of Silence
Publisher/Publication Date: Mira Books, August 2009
ISBN: 978-0-7783-2740-0
384 pages