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Pan's Whisper

3.74 of 5 stars 3.74 · rating details · 103 ratings · 27 reviews

When you’re fighting to forget, what would make you remember?

Pan Harris is brash, loud and damaged. Ordered into foster care, Pan is full of anger at the mother who abandoned her, and the older sister who kept her from her father. Pan is certain that she knows the reality of her past – until she meets Hunter, the boy who understands her story better than anyone else, and w...more

Paperback, 346 pages

Published October 1st 2011 by Walker Books

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Dec 19, 2011 Shirley Marr rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: people who own a lot of tissues

Shelves: aussie-ya

I was staring through the leaves at the only patch of blue in the sky, when this memory drops out of nowhere and smashes me right between the eyes...

In ancient Greek myth, Pandora was the mortal woman who opened a forbidden box thereby releasing evil into the world - by the time she tried to close it, it was too late. Although if it was any consolation, she also found Hope lying at the bottom of the box. Modern day Pandora (who prefers to go by Pan) is a damaged girl hiding secrets. Ordered from...more I was staring through the leaves at the only patch of blue in the sky, when this memory drops out of nowhere and smashes me right between the eyes...

In ancient Greek myth, Pandora was the mortal woman who opened a forbidden box thereby releasing evil into the world - by the time she tried to close it, it was too late. Although if it was any consolation, she also found Hope lying at the bottom of the box. Modern day Pandora (who prefers to go by Pan) is a damaged girl hiding secrets. Ordered from a dysfunctional family into foster care, Pan carries on her physically, a cat-shaped pyjama case from her childhood, filled with bits & pieces that trigger memories within her and more importantly - the voice of her older sister which might be her one saviour. So Pandora in this story is literally the box, with a tragic story inside her that needs to be released if she wants to move on.

None of this is implicitly stated anywhere. I just made the connection while reading it and I just think this premise - which would make any publisher jump up and shout 'print that shizzle!' - is absolutely beautiful. In fact I am jealous 'cos I wish I'd thought of it!

Firstly, let me comment on Sue Lawson's writing. It's evocatively Australian in its simplicity and plainness. And there's something about it which is kinda daggy. But as Goodread's reviewer Reynje noted on her review of Have You Seen Ally Queen? by Deb Fitzpatrick, this is actually an Australian sign of affection. It's comforting in the same way that a daggy pair of worn slippers or an even daggier pot of chicken flavoured Maggi noodles is.

There is one reason why I have read every Sue Lawson novel to date (and will subsequently read anything published in the future) and that's because she's writes emotion like no one else. I was crying by page 22. So even though her characters use endearingly outdated 'swear words' like 'mutant' and 'psycho' and fly unreasonably off the handle in moments a little too contrived, I'm so emotionally invested that I'm there till the end.

So subsequently, my favourite parts are actually the chapters where Pan's sister Morgan (full name Morgana - gahhh, I love the Arthurian reference too) drifts into Pan's sub-conscious, during moments that feel almost like magic-realism. Showing the reader the true fragments of Pan's broken childhood and contrasting them to Pan's own blinkered recollection. These totally broke my heart with their realism. Cue more crying.

What didn't work for me as well is the "romance" plotline involving Pan and Hunter the boy she meets - with him set up as the key that will finally make her open her proverbial box. Don't get me wrong, I found the shy advances they made toward each other kinda yummy, but despite Sue Lawson's good intentions and Hunter being solidly enough written, he doesn't feel like he finds his place in this novel as either a friend or boyfriend. He kinda drops off before the heart-in-mouth pivotal scene at the end when Pandora confronts her past.

Overall, I really enjoyed this novel. The conclusion (with a twist) ends on quite the note and the novel packs enough emotional punch for it to linger for a while.

If you want a solidly written contemporary YA that falls in the middle - around age 14/15 - that deals realistically and tenderly with family issues and emotions, then I'd say you'll enjoy this. I read Sue Lawson for the tear-jerking! She is sheer comfort food and writes what I call "chicken soup books" (good for the mind and soul).

PS - I am sorry Sue Lawson for calling Hunter an *nsync member because he has blond tips. I have since been reassured he is supposed to be more Chase Crawford. If you think you want to challenge Shirley on her tastes in boys then please by all means read this book (and I'll meet you in the carpark afterwards)!

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Dec 15, 2011 Reynje rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: australian, books-that-linger, books-to-be-hugged, read-2011, young-adult, dual-or-multiple-pov, contemp-or-realistic

“Seems to me, we all have these places, like rooms, deep inside us where we lock away everything we can’t or don’t want to face. Some of us have something so big, so terrifying inside us that it takes up a whole room. I reckon ignoring that thing only feeds it, making it grow so huge that it spills out of the room to search us out, sucking up all our light and joy as it goes.”

We often talk about catharsis in terms of its benefits, and the good that comes of opening up things held tightly insid...more

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Mar 19, 2012 Arlene rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to Arlene by: Street Corner Bookers Aussie Tour - Flannery

Shelves: aussie-books, read-2012, ya-contemporary, young-adult

Let me just say upfront that I’m probably not going to have much to say about this book because I know I’ll run the risk of sounding repetitive. Maybe I should qualify that statement by clarifying that Pan’s Whisper is written by Sue Lawson, an Australian author. For those of you that know my reading preferences and the fact that I declared Aussie books as their own genre in 2011 that should say heaps about how I felt about this story.

I loved it to pieces! The characters felt real, the storyline...more

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May 21, 2012 Watermelon Daisy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Pan’s Whisper is possibly the most heart-wrenching book I’ve read this year.

The main character is a definite change from the Damsel in Distress females we see in YA. She, just like the description states, is loud and angry. But she has full right. Her story is one which I won’t forget.

This book was skilfully woven because it carries a lot of different morals. For one, when you’re trying to forget things, you truly do make up memories/avoid the bad parts and focus on the good. It’s what our human...more

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Jan 22, 2013 Mandee rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: aussie, walker-books, ya-lit, 2011-release, for-review, contemporary-fiction, i-have-a-copy, aww2013, aussieya2013, realistic-fiction, mental-illness, grab-a-box-of-tissues, review-on-the-blog

Pan’s Whisper by Sue Lawson is set in Melbourne. Pandora, preferably known as Pan, has been put into foster care after an incident involving her mother and older sister, Morgan. She has vague, and mostly happy, memories of her childhood but it’s clear from alternating flashbacks from her sister, that her childhood wasn't as happy as she thinks she remembers.

I’d seen this book around on Goodreads and had assumed from the tiny cover image that this was a fantasy set in Asia. This book is actually...more Pan’s Whisper by Sue Lawson is set in Melbourne. Pandora, preferably known as Pan, has been put into foster care after an incident involving her mother and older sister, Morgan. She has vague, and mostly happy, memories of her childhood but it’s clear from alternating flashbacks from her sister, that her childhood wasn't as happy as she thinks she remembers.

I’d seen this book around on Goodreads and had assumed from the tiny cover image that this was a fantasy set in Asia. This book is actually a contemporary/mystery set in Australia but there was just something about those falling petals that made me think fantasy!

So, going into this I really didn't know what to expect and it ended up being quite an emotional read for me.
The story is mostly told from Pan’s perspective, but every now and then when she remembers something from her childhood, it’s followed by Morgan’s point of view of that event and it explains what really happened. Pan now has a court appointed social worker and has been placed into a foster home, where two other foster kids already live. She has been told she cannot go back to her mum for the time being and it’s not clear what happened to cause this placement. Pan isn't the easiest character to like, she’s whiny, defensive, suspicious, and self-absorbed, but after reading a few of Morgan’s memories, it’s clear that Pan has always been protected from her mother’s highs and lows occurring due to her being bi-polar and in a way Morgan’s protection babied her and I can’t blame either girl for that. In fact, Pan often made my heart crack, because she kept refusing to let anyone be nice to her, so despite being quite abrasive, I wanted to protect her, too.

The secondary characters were also strong; The McMinns, her foster parents, were such good people and I loved them for never treating her in the way that she expected. Her foster sister Livia was a bit of a brat, but she was once where Pan was, and her foster brother Nate was so sweet. Hunter, the boy from school, was also really lovely and I kept wanting Pan to wake up and realise that he was hurting as well.

I found the pacing was perfect, I was enthralled by Pan’s story and was keen to find out what had happened to her, her mother, and to Morgan. Slowly, her memories get closer to the incident and finally we find out what caused her to be placed in foster care. It broke my heart and I found myself crying for the last few chapters.

Pan’s Whisper is a bittersweet story of a girl trying to recover from years of living with an abusive mother, and the new family and friends trying to be there for her.

Thank you to the wonderful people at Walker Books Australia for my review copy.(less)

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Apr 10, 2012 Alexa rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: aussie, tour, 2012-reads, borrowed, young-adult, favorites, contemp-challenge, to-buy

My review can also be found on my blog Collections.

This book was so heartbreaking and beautiful. The summary makes it seem like it would be all about Pan's relationship with a guy named Hunter, but it's more than that. It's about her desperately trying to remember her past through the memories she has of her sister Morgan. Morgan was such an amazing person, and their relationship was precious, yet gut-wrenching because of their circumstance. Hunter was also a wonderful character. Sometimes a dam...more

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Apr 07, 2013 L. E. Armbruster rated it 5 of 5 stars

I have to say, that I devoured this book quickly and without any hesitation and it was the structure and the way that the narrative was managed that really helped in this.

The structure is dictated by the relationship between the two girls and more importantly by the intensely incongruous images painted of Kylie. It isn't hard to piece together that the main difference was birth order and age, but because Pan controls much of the narration, I was always filled with a sense of anticipation and rel...more I have to say, that I devoured this book quickly and without any hesitation and it was the structure and the way that the narrative was managed that really helped in this.

The structure is dictated by the relationship between the two girls and more importantly by the intensely incongruous images painted of Kylie. It isn't hard to piece together that the main difference was birth order and age, but because Pan controls much of the narration, I was always filled with a sense of anticipation and relief that her vague memories would be drawn out and explained by Morgan's insights. Especially when I realised that this was a recurring pattern. I think I would have lost interest, not to mention my sanity, if I only had Pan's fallible memories to help me construct the character of Kylie. She was, after all, tragically flawed but so revered.

I felt the main theme of memory and perspective were vital in the structure. The final few chapters had Pan's memories finally intruding into her narrative space pg 324- 327, and this almost feels like the build up of pressure leaking into her narrative. I applaud the way that Lawson utilises Morgan's narrative as a third person account because that way, we feel that her narration of objective and reliable, when first person is not. Pan mentions several times in her thought patterns about her lack of memory, and this also helps to create the three act structures because of the lack of detail we receive about Morgan. I was sure she had died and that "visiting Morgan" that Rose keeps suggesting would be a grave. I was pleasantly surprised that she was still alive, albeit a vegetable. (Although I was not clear about how damaged she was and felt that this was dealt with too quickly. I mean, if she is going to recover well and be Morgan again, then it's a happy ending, but if she is permanently brain damaged or disabled, then I felt a real sense of rage towards Kylie, and I would like to know which one to feel)

In some dual narratives, one perspective seems to eventually take over the other (novels like Cormier's After the First Death and We All Fall Down are like that), so I was surprised that Morgan's voice never really dominates. Whilst I appreciate this, I feel that, in many ways, Morgan's story then is made less important than Pan's and I am not sure I agree with that balance.

Really loved this book....Love, love love!(less)

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Feb 23, 2012 Ernie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult-book

Pan’s Whisper
by Sue Lawson
ISBN 978-1-742032-06-1
Black Dog Books, 2012. 346pp
Pan (Pandora) is a very angry teenager dressed and made up as a Goth hiding a scar under her hair fringe and beneath threatening eyes. She is taken by a social worker into middle class suburbs which she scorns as Legoland where she is cared for by plastic people, experienced foster parents Rose and Ian who also have tow other foster children, Livia, the same age and Nate who is in year 6.
Lawson gives her story the immedi...more Pan’s Whisper
by Sue Lawson
ISBN 978-1-742032-06-1
Black Dog Books, 2012. 346pp
Pan (Pandora) is a very angry teenager dressed and made up as a Goth hiding a scar under her hair fringe and beneath threatening eyes. She is taken by a social worker into middle class suburbs which she scorns as Legoland where she is cared for by plastic people, experienced foster parents Rose and Ian who also have tow other foster children, Livia, the same age and Nate who is in year 6.
Lawson gives her story the immediacy of Pan’s first person present tense narration varied with her brief letters to her older sister Morgan which link with a third person narration of Pan’s memories of her chaotic life with her mother, Kylie. The mystery of Pan’s anger develops with problems in the new school where she seeks to hide herself between angry outbursts triggered by mistrust and misinterpretation of peoples’ motives. This links with her intelligent responses to Romeo and Juliet with which she is familiar from her previous school but she can only see that she is fated to always stuff up her life.
Her talisman is a soft toy cat with a zippered pocket into which she has put the few toys and photos that had not been lost in the many house moves that her mother Kylie made in her manic-depressive mood swings. Lawson controls the pace of the revelations by making her character suppress most of her past so that clues given to the readers emerge from the various crises she suffers at school and in foster care. Detention with the art teacher who is painting the backdrops for the school production of West Side Story becomes the main support for her rehabilitation as younger readers might not recognise the skilful patience of the foster parents. Hunter, a talented musician in her class was too good a character for me but he provides another character who is rejected then gradually trusted and befriended.
Lawson mediates the chaos and violence of Pan’s past life and the final crisis which took her away from her mother and older sister and into care. This I found totally believable and convincing as it encourages readers to interpret the younger Pan’s experiences as she is protected by her older sister from Kylie and the men in her life.
The result is an accessible text that would appeal to most students in years 8 – 10. Wide reading links: families, kids as carers, living on the edge, friendship, outsiders, school life.
Ernie Tucker
Choices for English
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Nov 08, 2011 Rebecca rated it 4 of 5 stars

Pan's Whisper is a very good book. The characters are well-developed and interesting, and the story is fantastic.
Basically, the story is this:
Pan (real name is Pandora) is put into yet another foster home. She is a teenage rebel who hates everything and doesn't trust anyone. She keeps having strange flashbacks and bits of memory floating into her mind, but she can't make sense of them. When she starts at a new school, she instantly becomes an outsider and a freak, to everyone but Hunter, a kin...more

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Sep 19, 2012 Rachel rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: aussie-ya-reads, absolutely-freaking-loved-it, favorites

wow, what can I even begin to say about this beautiful book? When I started it I wasn't expecting too much, but then a few chapters in and I was hooked. The flashbacks in Morgan's POV were so heartbreaking and the ending was so emotional for me! I loved every moment reading this and I grew to love all the characters - Pan, Rose, Ian, Hunter, Nate, even Livia (I guess..haha). And Morgan is such a wonderful older sister ; the flashbacks were among my favourite scenes. Towards the end of the book,...more

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Mar 27, 2012 ~Tina~ rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: bookers-tour, young-adult, aussie-reads-2012, contemporary

Touching. Emotional. Raw.

Pan's Whisper is another great Aussie experience!
These characters felt so real. Each and every one of them.
Pan's story is heartbreaking. I don't even blame her for being the way she is. If it was me I'd probably push away harder. I'm glad that she had good people to look out for her. You can't ask better then Rose and Ian or even Livia and Nate. Hunter is another one who could really relate to Pan's problems and for once I'm glad that this didn't focus on romance but mor...more

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Dec 04, 2012 Tammy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Pan’s Whisper is a captivating novel of family & memories. Pandora, or Pan as she likes to be called, just wishes she could go back to before, with her sister Morgan & her living together to get away from their abusive, alcoholic mother. But when her mother comes back to taunt them, something happens, something Pan has blocked out of her memory, and suddenly she finds herself in a foster home with strangers, struggling with her repressed memory. Can Pan trigger the memories back to move...more

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Jul 16, 2012 Sarah marked it as to-read

Research indicates that this is yet another Aussie title not available in the US.

You know what would make a lot of sense? If there weren't georestrictions on ebooks. Because I would buy a hell of a lot more foreign titles if I could buy from ebookstores. I'm just way less likely to buy from Fishpond (which sucks ass) and wait a million years for the paper book to actually appear.

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Apr 07, 2013 Lissa rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-i-own, easy-reads, favorites, favourites, inspirational

Beautiful. Touching. Deeply moving. I finished this book in a single sitting.

"Pan's Whisper" enthralled me, drew me in. So much so that this has become one of the few book that have actually made me cry.

5 stars, I fully recommend it.

*Lissa

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Mar 25, 2012 Amreen rated it 4 of 5 stars

A beautifully written story and couldn't be written any better. The story is really interesting and I found the end really depressing. :) I can really connect to the story and it's easy to understand Pan's moods and what she must be going through.

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Aug 18, 2012 Julie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Read this in a day - very moving and authentic. Pan is a troubled girl about to meet her new foster family. She is angry, angry, angry. Why? And what has happened to her protective half-sister?
Bravo to Sue (again).

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Jan 05, 2012 Trinity rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: hearts-a-mess, home-grown-aussie, young-adult, library-lovin, contempo-casual, aussie-ya-challenge, read-in-2012

3.5 stars

A tiny review cos my kid just woke up.
Felt like a midday movie for most of it but I still choked up at the end.

Will think more later. First parenting. You could learn from me Kylie.

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Jun 18, 2012 Jane Robertson rated it 3 of 5 stars

Emotional read by another fantastic Australian young adult author.Really deals with human issues with compassion and honesty.

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Mar 10, 2013 Claire Catacouzinos rated it 5 of 5 stars

Easy to read through and instant page turned with multiple perspectives. Recommended for any teenager.

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Feb 23, 2012 Laura The Book Ninja rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: awesome-cover, people-with-issues, mystery, realistic, romantic

A really nice, sweet book that helped me enjoy the day. :)

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Mar 27, 2012 Toni rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: my-favourites

I think this book is extremly good i loved it

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Aug 02, 2012 Charlee added it

An unforgettable book

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Nov 29, 2011 Jenny Wood rated it 4 of 5 stars

Have tissues handy

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Apr 22, 2013 Shannon Davidson rated it 3 of 5 stars

I wasn't sure what to rate this book, whether I thought it deserved 2 or 3 stars.

At first I really struggled with the book, I found it hard to get into the story, but eventually the story began to unravel somewhat and caught my interest. Then I found I enjoyed it more.

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Dec 30, 2011 Michael Earp rated it 4 of 5 stars

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Jan 21, 2012 oliviasbooks rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to oliviasbooks by: Shirley Marr

Shelves: author-from-down-under, problem-focused, young-adult-fiction, ya-contemporary, borrowed-and-returned, cry-a-little, favorites-of-2012, multiple-povs-letters, want-to-own, read-2012, favorites

Loved it. Stayed up much, much too late to finish reading it.

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Sep 27, 2012 Designer Girl;) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Sad but sweet. I liked it.

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May 17, 2013 Beth marked it as to-read

May 17, 2013 Machonacho marked it as to-read

May 16, 2013 Sara marked it as to-read

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