This is one of the most beautiful stories I have read in a while. Poignant and perfect in every way. Though it is a short story, so much is conveyed within the pages. Emotion leaps from the words and the characters change and evolve as the plot twists and turns.
Five friends made a pact, three years ago. They made a memory box to be opened by their future selves around the time when their group just started to fracture. Alix was one of these friends and she is terrified. This meeting may end up revealing a secret that she has hidden from her friends for most of her life. When the three years are up, they gather together to open the box but only four of them return. Their fearless leader, Millie, who was also Alix’s confidant, is dead; honestly, it is for her that they are meeting up. Meanwhile true feelings are unveiled and secrets are no longer kept.
The story that follows shows grief as multi-faceted from the different ways the characters are coping with Millie’s death. It deals with complex and current issues in a delicate yet honest way. At times the tone is blunt to the point of cutting and at others it leaves you weeping into the pages.
This book is by Non Pratt for Barrington Stoke and it is specially designed so that dyslexic readers can enjoy it as well. This is a great step in bringing contemporary teen fiction to a wider audience, so everyone can enjoy these brilliant stories.
Unboxed is a beautiful story that will stay with you for a long time.