Even though Things We Didn't Say may be Green's debut novel, she writes with the skill of a season veteran. I honestly didn't know what to expect coming into this novel, a debut story conveyed through fictional letters, notes, and general correspondence. After a few late nights, I can definitely say that Green is an author I'll be watching for in the future.
First, I loved the style of storytelling Green chose to use. Readers start the book off knowing our main character Jo has been accused of treason before plunging back into a timeline of written correspondence that chronical her journey to those accusations. I was a little concerned for chapter 1 but won over by chapter 3. The letter format really added to the atmosphere of the story, it doesn't read like just another WWII story, the characters feel so much more personal and real with the appearance of reading their letters and watching the story unfold without the aid of an omniscient narrator.
This storytelling style also gave so much more connection with the main character Jo. Jo is such a fun character, she's whip smart and ambitious with a heart that tries it's best while lacking social niceties. In most setting that type of character can feel rough around the edges, just because that's often how that personality comes across. Giving Jo access to her written words, her rough drafts, and the protection of a typewriter allowed Green to highlight Jo as she envisioned while still highlighting all of her best bits that are often overlooked with those characters.
The style also allowed for some greatly realistic musing and moral questions. One of my biggest frustrations with Christian fiction is the obligatory moral sermon that many books seem to plop down somewhere due to genre constraints. Letters seem to allow for more musings and natural conversations about deeper things (or that could be my letters I'm a notorious rabbit trailer). The deeper questions between Jo and Peter and Jo and Pastor Sorenson felt so natural and true to character especially amid the backdrop of what was happening in their lives.
Green picked some interesting areas to highlight in her story. While I was familiar with the internment camps in North America after Pearl Harbour, I was not familiar with the fact that P.O.W camps existed in the midwest. Green's ability to take these events, research the history, and create characters who explore humanity completely won me over.
Honestly, if you are a fan of WWII novels but want a fresh approach to the genre I would highly recommend giving Things We Didn't Say a chance.
4.5 stars out of 5.
"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc."
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