The Unspoken (review)

A school project about the gods should have been easy for Pandora, the daughter of Prometheus: after all, her father still has a piece of his liver that was pecked out after his godly theft, saved in a jar and ready for show and tell. Pandora is bored with jarred liver, however, and thus begins a horrible mistake leading to a life-changing adventure as she instead selects a small forbidden box to bring to school. Of course, the box is opened, and seven evils and miseries are immediately released into the world (unlucky Pandora here manages to slam the box shut before Hope can, as in the original, make its way into the world as well). Although the gods' first "solution" of simply torturing Pandora and her family for all eternity is temporarily discarded, the task she is given to avoid that fate will be nearly impossible: Pandora must recapture all of the evils in only six months. It quickly becomes clear that this novel is the first in a series, with Pandora only seeking one of the evils, jealousy, in this outing. Even with little realistic uncertainty about whether Pandora will ultimately emerge triumphant (she is remarkably quick-witted in spite of her clumsiness, and she is surrounded by admirably well-suited friends and allies who are secretly assisting), Hennesy ably creates tension through unpredictable pacing, the inclusion of unexpected villains, and the satisfyingly over-the-top interventions of the gods. In an increasingly rich field of mythology-based fiction for upper elementary and middle school students, Pandora's attempts to save herself, her family, and the world represent a worthy addition.