More than We Can Tell by Brigid Kemmerer
Reviewed by Mary B.
More Than We Can Tell by Brigid Kemmerer tells the story of Rev Fletcher and Emma Blue. Emma is a gamer just like her father and even created her own online game called “otherLANDS.” Her mother, who is a doctor, urges Emma to consider a different, more realistic passion. This causes tensions between her and her mother and parents. Emma does not show the game to her father because she wants to perfect it so that he will be proud of her. On the other hand, she does not show her mother because she is afraid her mother will shut it down. A few minutes away, Rev lives with his adoptive parents and foster brother. He struggles with leaving his abusive birth father in the past.
The novel switches between the two perspectives of Emma and Rev to show the complex family lives of the teenagers. Both characters attend the same high school but never cross paths until they run into each other outside of a church in the town that they live in. Emma and Rev instantly connect and find themselves able to confide in each about their family struggles. Emma, struggling to feel accepted by her mother, loved by her father, and stuck in the middle of her parents fighting and Rev, uncertain about how to feel now that his birth father has started emailing him. Emma and Rev were able to comfort each other when their best friends Cait and Declan were unavailable They found that talking to each other as complete strangers was much easier than confiding in their loved ones. Their relationship grows throughout the novel as they face the challenges life throws at them together.
The characters in this novel are complex which is similar to the writing style. Many of the characters are clearly made to be good or evil, however, there are a few characters that have a deeper meaning. One of these characters is Rev’s foster brother Matthew who initially seems violent and dangerous but then turns out to be a misunderstood teenager who has a kind soul. Another one of these characters is Ethan, Emma’s online gaming friend, who sounds like a good friend but was lying about his identity. Emma and Rev are shown to be good characters from the start but are not perfect in any way. Kemmerer uses this to connect to the title of the book, More Than We Can Tell, and shows how people are often misunderstood at first and have more going on in their lives than they show. The complex nature of the characters contrasts the sentence structure of this book which is very simple. The switching perspectives, however, adds to the complexity of the novel. I would rate this book as good because the switching of perspectives between Emma and Rev allows the reader to know what both of them are thinking about each other. I also enjoy reading about the way that Emma and Rev grow as people and how their relationship grows.
This book would appeal to readers who enjoy realistic fiction, romance, and teenage stories. It should also be noted that this book deals with heavy topics such as abuse and catfishing. Because of this, readers should be around high school age or older. This book most appeals to high schoolers as well because the two main characters are in high school. Other books that are similar to this are Stay Sweet by Siobhan Vivian and Tell Me Three Things by Julie Buxbaum also about high schoolers with unexpected, tragic events. Brigid Kemmerer also wrote a book titled Letters to the Lost which is about some of the characters in More Than We Can Tell.