I was very interested in the premise of the story as described on the cover...that a young girl, without the words to express what she feels, becomes convinced of the uselessness of words and stops talking. I think this is brilliant! (I often wonder what is in my own children's minds when they stare off in silence.)<br /><br />However, I was quite unimpressed with the story's unfolding. I was left feeling rather annoyed by the abundant use of voice over which spoiled the whole idea of her silence for me. I wanted to see things as she saw them and feel the tension that only silence can create but instead I was assaulted by a constant stream of interpretations and explanations that were already there in the action or in her beautifully expressive face.<br /><br />While the child actors were usually very engaging, I found it difficult to reconcile the erratic speech patterns as written, especially in the adults, with an interpretation of the world from the young girl's point of view.<br /><br />In all, I was disappointed. Such a wonderful premise but such poor writing and character development.<br /><br />Deep sigh.