THE SECRET LANGUAGE OF SISTERS by Luanne Rice is a story that gives you another view of the bond between sisters. It reminds you of mistakes that are made…and how they can be fixed. It teaches you to be cautious. It is a realistic novel that really grabs the reader’s attention.

The book is written from two different point of views. There are two sisters, Roo and Tilly, who are only a couple of years apart. One day, Tilly is waiting for Roo to pick her up, and for some reason, Roo is running late. She is never late. Tilly soon learns that on the way, Roo got in a car crash and was rushed to the hospital. They do not know what caused the crash.

"I would recommend this book to teenagers, especially those with siblings. It reminds you of how important they are."

Roo is the smart one. She is very sensible, prepared and responsible --- after all, she is going off to college. So it is a shock that something so bad happened to her, of all people. Roo falls into a coma, which makes Tilly and her best friend’s lives even harder. Although no one knows, Roo is actually awake. They think she is going to die, because she is asleep. But really, Roo is trapped inside her own body, screaming for help.

Tilly now has to deal with the stares in school. She is still shocked by all of this. But Tilly does not want to lose faith in her only sister. She already lost her dad, and she does not want to lose another family member. So, as fate would have it, Tilly is the one to find that Roo is awake in her unmoving body. She hears her sister when no one else did.

Roo is put under intensive care --- taken to a different hospital, given a special doctor. They find that she has a rare case that causes her to be stuck in her body, but awake at the same time. So naturally, they find ways to help her communicate. With technology these days, we can do almost anything.

But the thing about being trapped in a still body is that people forget that you are awake. That you can hear everything. That’s what happened with Roo. Certain exchanges of words caused a rift between the sisters. They go through a journey of pain, friendship and discovery to help recover their old bond.

I would rate this book a five out of five, in the sense that it is realistic, it catches the reader’s attention, and it has a good moral. Join Roo and Tilly on a journey to discover the true meaning of sisterhood and of friendship. I would recommend this book to teenagers, especially those with siblings. It reminds you of how important they are.