One night changes everything.... Melanie and her two sisters, Jan and Erika, are trying to cope with their parents' divorce and Jan leaving for college. Each sister handles the stress quite differently; Melanie prefers spending time with her friends and going to parties. Unfortunately, one night the line between yes and no becomes blurred. Only Melanie knows what really happened that night and her memories are fuzzy. How will Melanie and her sisters deal with the aftermath?
I struggled to remain interested at the beginning of THE WORD FOR YES. At times, it seems there were far too many competing storylines, from the divorce of the parents, to Jan's relationship issues and her first year at college, to the strained (and sometimes quite hostile) relationship between the sisters. I wanted to delve more into what happened to Melanie that night, but that topic isn't what consumed most of the story.
Melanie is also a very prickly character. She has a lot of friends, but honestly I struggled to understand how she kept those friends at times. And wow, she's just mean to her sister, Erika! However, I think Claire Needell did this because Melanie is exactly the sort of character you don't want to like—but what happens to her is inexcusable. I like that Claire Needell takes this approach as it is a good reminder that no one, for any reason, deserves to be victimized.
THE WORD FOR YES left me feeling quite unsettled after I finished it. Part of the reason is that once the storyline about the date rape finally kicked in, we get far too many perspectives thrown at us. I even found myself feeling sorry for the male who raped Melanie at one point—and that is just an icky feeling I don't want to ever have again!
I wanted to like THE WORD FOR YES a lot more than I did. Claire Needell addresses a topic every parent should address with their child, whether male or female, because the issue of what constitutes consent is an important one. I love that Claire Needell didn't hesitate to dive right into the various opinions on the subject, as our characters get quite an earful at times. Hopefully, THE WORD FOR YES will get youth and their parents talking about the issue of date rape, and its effect on everyone involved.
At once honest and touching, Claire Needell's debut novel is a moving look at date rape and its aftermath, at the love and conflicts among sisters and friends, and how these relationships can hold us together—and tear us apart. The gap between the Russell sisters—Jan, Erika, and Melanie—widens as each day passes. Then, at a party full of blurred lines and blurred memories, everything changes. Starting that night, where there should be words, there is only angry, scared silence. And in the aftermath, Jan, Erika, and Melanie will have to work hard to reconnect and help one another heal. The Word for Yes will inspire necessary conversation about a topical and important issue facing our society. The book includes a thoughtful author's note that provides resources for readers.
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