Every Ugly Word

She always kept my attention and this book exceeded all my expectations and made it hard for me to put it down.

I felt for Stacy on a personal level, and the way she was treated by her peers was just so sad and heart wrenching.

A great read for anyone looking for something different and changing it up for a bit.

I loved this book! It didn't sugarcoat what bullying really is,and my favorite thing is that the adults were not understanding and helpful.I purchased it at 7:00 at night and read until I couldn't stay awake any longer and immediately began reading again when I woke up.

This was a beautiful, terrible story filled with raw emotion. Even those not bullied to the extent of Ashley can relate to her extraordinary self-doubt. This is a must-read; I finished it in just over a day.

Excellent portrayal of emotions and true-to-life example of how many kids claw their way through the pain of bullying. This author needs to write more and do the talk show rounds in order to shed more light on it.

Every Ugly Word allows you to see what effect abuse at the hands of those intertwined in an individual's life can have on that person's sense of self worth and esteem. A good read, I recommend it ... Loved the surprise ending!!

A fantastic debut. I don't usually read books that are set so thoroughly in contemporary, familiar settings, but even so I couldn't put 'Breakable' down. The story shape is elegant and ties up in a wonderfully satisfying conclusion.

Eh. The book never climaxed. The books that this book was compared to were far better than this book. I can't tell if the book was supposed to be very introspective and deep or if it started to be introspective but missed the mark. Either way it doesn't make this book any better.

Every Ugly Word really took me by surprise. I thought, after reading the summary, that it was going to be a book about bullying with a small dose of magical realism. And it was, but the magical realism element was really unique. It had a psychological thriller aspect to it that kept me thinking about the story long after I finished reading it.

I am glad that the authors of YA literature are starting to write about bullying. It is a very relevant topic, and worthy of inclusion in the YA genre. I think that nearly everyone experiences bullying at some point in their life, whether they are the victim, the bully, or their friend is affected.

Ashely is the target of two of her school's most popular kids: Finn and Karen. For whatever reason---do bullies ever have a good reason for picking on someone?---Finn and Karen set out to make her life miserable. And they succeed in full. Ashley is depressed, constantly tortured at school and via social media, and can't even take solace in her mother's care: her mother thinks that the bullying is Ashley's fault. To add to her desperation, Ashley is hopelessly in love with her best friend, Matt, who sadly does not share her feelings. Matt's friendship is Ashley's only buffer in the storm of high school, and when Matt and Karen start to date, he becomes less of an advocate for Ashley, right when she needs him the most.

Just this premise alone would have made for a great, emotional read. But the addition of magical realism: the fact that when Ashley looks in the mirror, she can see herself six years in the future, made this book so unique and intriguing. I loved Ashley's interactions with Older Me. They made me remember my high school years, which were not always great, and I remembered that desperate feeling of wanting to know that things would be better for me when high school was over. Salter captured those feelings perfectly, and the emotions of both present-day Ashley and future Ashley jumped off the pages. I found myself tearing up several times while reading Every Ugly Word, because of how invested I was in Ashley's emotional well-being.

The ending of the book really took me by surprise. For most of the book, it was very clear which Ashley was narrating: the present-day Ashley or the older Ashley. However, at the end, the two stories converged. Twice, I actually had to flip back a few pages to make it clear which Ashley was the current narrator. This slight confusion was the only thing I didn't love about this story.

If you are new to magical realism, don't shy away from Every Ugly Word. This book is a perfect blend of contemporary fiction with a dash of magical realism, and an emotional journey full of character growth. I highly recommend Every Ugly Word and look forward to reading more from Aimee Salter.

**Please note - This review was published at a time when "Every Ugly Word" was titled "Unbreakable" and was self-published by the author. The character now known as Ashley used to be named Stacy.**

I received an email from my friend Brittany a few weeks ago recommending this debut novel from Aimee Salter. Now, I'm not one to normally review a self published author that I don't already have a relationship with, but the synoposis of BREAKABLE and Brittany's insistance that I read it convinced me to pick it up. And I'm so glad I did. Folks, this is one of my favorite reads this year.

Before I get into the beautiful story here, I want to mention a really important piece. If you're hesitant to pick up self published books because you're afraid of the writing caliber, listen very carefully to me. The three traditionally published books I read right before BREAKABLE (one by a best selling author) were not written as well as this. The dialogue, the pace, and the emotion conveyed through this story are some of the best I've read. There is no doubt that Aimee Salter loves to write. Shelf any of your self pubbed hesitations right now.

Now, onto the story. Be prepared to FEEL when you pick up BREAKABLE. This is a story about a girl named Stacy who is suffering from severe bullying. And not just from classmates. (Let's just say that Stacy's mom does NOT have it going on.) Every single relationship that should be safe for Stacy isn't. Even the one with her future self she sees and confides in when she looks into the mirror can't provide her reassurance. She finds solace in the secret love she holds for her best friend, Mark. But he doesn't know just how bad things are for Stacy. She doesn't want Mark to see how horribly she is treated by her classmates for fear that he, too, will begin hating her and take away the friendship she uses to anchor herself. It is heartbreaking to see her suffer through the emotional and physical bullying, but the real tragedy lies in the fact she has NO ONE to seek out for help. Everyone, and I do mean EVERYONE, blames her for the fact that she's bullied.

And THAT's the reason I wish every single high schooler (and their parents!) could read this book. I don't know that this was Salter's intent with this story, but a huge underlying question for me coming out of this read is, "Who is to blame for bullying?" Stacy blames her bullies, her bullies blame her, and there are seemingly no answers on how to stop it. Stacy puts herself in situations that make it easy for her tormentors to do their thing (*cries*) and it's obvious that the ones doing the bullying are to blame. But what about the ones pretending it isn't happening. Is there blame there, too? Lots of good conversations to start once you read this--so pick it up so we can have them!

The biggest villain of all in this book has raised the bar for all villains. He is ruthless, unrelenting and absolutely one of the worst characters I've ever encountered in any book. The reason he's so scary, I think, is because he's SO REAL. I knew one of these boys in ninth grade. We'll just leave it at that.

Salter has delivered an incredible story in a very unique way. You learn Stacy's story in a series of "flashbacks" she shares with her psychiatrist after an "event" that lands her in therapy. You'll be eager to learn what exactly this "event" is and the tension you'll feel getting there will remind you of how emotional a book can make a reader feel. I had to put the book down because of the intensity at one point, but came back 10 minutes later because I couldn't stay away. That's a sure sign of a good book.

Includes A note from the author, and Discussion Questions.

EveryUglyWordFuture Ashley has been seeing Past Ashley in a mirror for five years, trying her best to get her to make different decisions without revealing her future. A psychiatrist is the only thing that stands between her release and being able to help Past Ashley with the most important decision of her life, but Doc wants to hear her whole story from the very beginning. With her heart in her mouth, and an eye on the clock, Future Ashley begins to talk.

Ashley is seventeen, and for the last 5 years has been severely and constantly bullied by former friends both in and out of school. She can’t tell her teachers what’s going on, while her mother blames her for everything. Matt is the only friend she has left, but she doesn’t dare let him know she’s in love with him because she doesn’t want to lose him too.

Spending time with Matt, hoping to get a scholarship to art school, and talking to her future self are the only things keeping her sane. Ashley just wants to make it through the rest of her senior year, but Matt’s girlfriend and friends are determined to make her life a living hell. As the bullying intensifies, will Ashley find the strength to fight back or sink under pressure?

Having been the victim of constant bullying up until 11th grade, I found it very difficult to read about Ashley’s tormented life without reacting. It is my sincerest hope that bullies will see themselves in this book, understand how deeply their actions hurt, and that they will STOP. I also hope bystanders see themselves, and know how much they are needed to help someone who’s being bullied so they don’t feel alone. Finally, I hope victims gain strength from this book and realize they are important and valued.

Recommended for ages 14 and older.

This is a book that creatively delves into the emotional chains of bullying and abuse and how it reshapes a person's ability to see themselves and others around them, how it affects their coping abilities, the way they think and respond to abuse, aggression, and patterns of hostility. It is not simply about being a victim but about survival, every gritty, aching struggle, every learning mistake, every decision, conflict, grief, hope, the constant war of emotional battery. In the end, most of all, she is a survivor. That she found a way to believe in herself. That she gained insight along with the courage to look beyond the shaping others impressed upon her, and began to find her new self, one shaky but hopeful step at a time. Another heart-wrenching, well-written read. Some people may find it confusing, disappointing, or disjointed until the end resolution, whereas I found it enlightening. This is the second book I've read by Aimee L. Salter, and I would definitely read more and would recommend it to the strong-heart and compassionate. It is truly a heart-wrenching read but truly and carefully crafted.

(Source: I received a digital copy of this book for free on a read-to-review basis. Thanks to Mark My Words Book Publicity and NetGalley.)
17-year-old Ashley is stuck in an institution talking to a psychiatrist.
What happened to lead Ashley to the institution? Is she really crazy? And where does she go from here?

This was an interesting story, but it was difficult to know what was real and what wasn’t.

Ashley was an interesting character, and I felt so sorry for her and the bullying she had to put up with. I too know what bullying is like and it is not nice, and I totally understood why Ashley found her life so unliveable at times.

The storyline in this was quite interesting, the story alternated between Ashley and a psychiatrist, and the events that Ashley was describing. I found the mystery over what had happened quite compelling, and I wanted to know what had gone on so badly!
The bullying in this was truly awful and reminded me of why I am so glad to be finished with school. The treatment that Ashley received from people who were supposed to be her friends was disgusting, and I hated what they did to her so much. The fact that she had to go through this was just shocking, and to have no-one to turn to was even worse.

There was a touch of romance in this one, but it wasn’t too much. I did have issues about how the romance would develop though, as it seemed to be quite a difficult position that Ashley was forced into.

The ending to this was a little confusing, and I’m still not 100% sure what exactly happened. I was pleased that Ashley finally got some relief though, and seemed to finally be getting something worthwhile out of her life.
Overall; interesting story about bullying,
6.5 out of 10.