Teen Tuesday and Audiobook Review: Radio Silence by Alice Oseman

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

Radio Silence by Alice Oseman. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~11 hours. Read by Aysha Kala. Harper Teen/ HarperCollins Publishers, March, 2017. 9780062474612. (Review of e-audiobook borrowed from public library.

Happy Tuesday! I am a huge fan of the Heartstopper graphic novel series by Alice Oseman, as are many seventh and eighth graders, probably propelled by the popular Netflix series. Did you know that Ms. Oseman also writes novels? In fact, Charlie was a minor character in her debut novel, Solitaire, which was published in 2014, when she was only twenty years old! But Teen Tuesday isn't featuring Solitaire. I couldn't find it on audio, though I do intend to read it some day. 

Teen Tuesday features Radio Silence. This book was published in 2016 and is her second novel following the publication of two novellas. Radio Silence is narrated by Frances Janvier, who introduces her self with this: “I was study machine Frances Janvier. I was going to Cambridge . . . Uni, job, money, happiness. That’s what you do. That’s the formula." She's top girl at her school and despises the top boy. She also has a loose group of "friends" she really doesn't relate to or feel close to. What she does love with all her heart is a podcast called "Universe City." It's dark and brooding and Frances frequently publishes her fan art to Tumblr under the pseudonym, Toulouse. She's shocked and delighted to received a message through the app from the creator, who loves her art and wants permission to use it even though he can't pay her.

Turns out that the creator is none other than her across the street neighbor, Aled and twin to her former best friend, Carys. Aled is brilliant and headed to university and Carys struggeld in school and ran away two years earlier. Frances feels it is her fault. Frances and Aled strike up a fast friendship and work on the podcast together through the summer. After a social media influencer gives the podcast a shoutout, Universe City goes viral and the fandom are rabid to discover the identities of Aled and Frances.

This nuanced, layered novel explores themes of friendship, identity, familial relationships, societal expectations and being true to yourself. Frances' wry narration reveals her to be bright, honest, self-deprecating, driven and doubtful. I was immediately smitten. She also has a brilliant mother. I went into this vaguely thinking it would be a romance along the lines of Heartstopper. It's not, but it's utterly engaging. Mature teen readers questioning the status quo and looking for a challenging read  will enjoy Radio Silence.