THE QUIET AND THE LOUD is the first book by Helena Fox I've read and now I want to read everything by this author. The depth of character in this novel is very compelling.

Georgia's growth in this story is significant. She finds her voice, her power to say no, after her co-dependency lands her exactly where she does not want to be. It's painful to watch (read) and written in such a way that I couldn't look away. When the precise moment that started Georgia's behavior is revealed, it's surprising *and* infuriating given the present-day expectations placed on Georgia.

The other characters are fairly well-rounded with Laz going through depression and anger over climate change as the fires rage near Sydney. His growth into an activist feels earned. Tess is less developed, coming off as one-dimensional and self-centered for a lot of the book even though she, too, faces herself by the end of the story.

One of the best parts of THE QUIET AND THE LOUD is Georgia's family and the realistic dynamics between Georgia, her mom Sara, Mel (Sara's wife), and Gramps (Sara's father). They bicker and, at times, fail themselves and each other, but they have a bond that they all clearly value and work to maintain. They each play a different role--and influence--in Georgia's life and it's very compelling to see her grow in each of these relationships.

THE QUIET AND THE LOUD is a book I'll use as an example of character development and it's something I'll recommend to students, friends, and family as an overall great read.

Thank you to Penguin Teen and Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I've heard good things about Fox's debut How It Feels to Float and it's been sitting on my shelf for a while now. I will eventually get around to it, but in the meantime I picked up this one which follows teenager George. George has a lot of unresolved trauma around her relationship with her father, his alcoholism, and the way he left them. When George's best friend gets pregnant and expects George to be part of the parenting strategy, George doesn't know how to say no. Then George meets Calliope who is so easy to talk to and George wants to spend more time with her.

This book is such a good exploration of trauma, c-PTSD, and navigating relationships as they grow and change. I really enjoyed George's character and I wanted so much for her. Her best friend kind of annoyed me with how she would constantly bulldoze George into doing what she wanted. Especially with how she expected George to help her raise this child when George never volunteered herself for this plan or asked to co-parent. It was a super unbalanced friendship for a lot of the book and while we get to see George start to assert herself, it didn't feel like we got enough in this case.

I really enjoyed the romance between Calliope and George. These two were so sweet and I really liked them. I was happy to see how they worked out the issues they had. Also I loved the therapy rep in this. Almost all the characters go to or have gone to therapy at one point. And it's not only talk therapy. George does a lot with art therapy and I love seeing various kinds of therapy since one form doesn't work for everyone.

All in all, this book has a lot of feelings and was very emotive. Definitely recommend.