Find Another Book

Book details

The secret history of us

Jessi Kirby - Author

This is a reflective recovery story about memory, identity and relationships. Olivia’s attempts to reconstruct her past bring questions about whether remembered experience, present feeling or other people’s accounts should define who she is.

Add to Compare Explore

Book Analysis

At a Glance

Discover

Identity· ExplainedMemory· ExplainedChange· Explained

Consider

Violence and harmGrief and lossRelationships and intimacy

Personalised Fit

Beyond the Cover

identitymemorychangefamilysecrecytrustfriendshipromanceloss

FictionNovel

Themes in Context

Identity beyond memory

Olivia has lost memories of several formative years and tries to work out whether her former choices still define her.Exploratory / explanatory

How the book presents it: The story explores identity as something Olivia must reconsider rather than simply recover.

Talk about: If some memories remain inaccessible, can Olivia still choose what kind of person she becomes?

Protection and truth

Olivia’s family and friends provide information about her past but are reluctant to explain some details of the rescue and her life.Ambiguous

How the book presents it: The book presents care and control as potentially overlapping, inviting questions about who gets to shape someone’s story.

Talk about: When, if ever, might withholding information protect someone, and when might it prevent informed choices?

Relationships after change

Olivia no longer recognises her boyfriend and discovers that friendships and romantic feelings may not fit the life others describe.Unresolved

How the book presents it: Relationships are treated as changing connections rather than guaranteed continuations of the past.

Talk about: If Olivia’s feelings have changed, what responsibilities might she have to Matt, Walker and her friends?

Why It May Be Worth Reading

It may offer a useful opening for discussing how families can try to protect someone while also shaping the story they receive. Olivia’s changed friendships and uncertain relationships keep that tension personal rather than purely abstract.

What Deserves Attention

A parent may wish to discuss the accident and hospital recovery beforehand, then check in around Olivia’s distress, memory loss and uncertainty about close relationships. The story also includes a rescue involving CPR and broken ribs.

A Conversation Worth Having

If Olivia’s memories do not return fully, what might help her decide which parts of her life still matter? How should she respond when other people’s versions of her conflict with her present experience?

Reading Approach

Read alongside the child if the accident or memory loss feels intense, pausing to separate what Olivia remembers from what others tell her. Afterward, discuss identity and relationships without requiring a single interpretation.

Confidence & Basis

Theme indicators describe how the book presents a topic; they are not a verdict on the whole book or your family's values. Confidence reflects how much book-specific material was checked. Only part of the book information was available, so some details remain unconfirmed.

What remains unconfirmed

Identity beyond memory: The extracts do not establish how completely her memories return or what final answer the book gives.
Protection and truth: The extracts do not fully establish everyone’s motives or whether the withheld information is justified.
Relationships after change: The extracts give only a partial account of the ending and do not establish how each relationship is resolved.

LibrisNotes: The Secret History of Us by Jessi Kirby

Limited information

Checked: 23 September 2026.

Relevant to: Identity beyond memory; Protection and truth; Relationships after change

THE SECRET HISTORY OF US

Limited information

Checked: 22 September 2026.

Relevant to: Protection and truth

downtherabbitholeblog.com

Limited information

Checked: 22 September 2026.

Relevant to: Relationships after change

The Secret History of Us by Jessi Kirby | Open Library

Limited information

Checked: 22 September 2026.

Relevant to: General book context

Benefits, discussion questions and reading approaches are suggestions. Your knowledge of your child remains part of the decision.

Heidi

Heidi

The secret history of us

At a Glance

Discover

Consider

Personalised Fit

Beyond the Cover

Themes in Context

Identity beyond memory

Protection and truth

Relationships after change

Why It May Be Worth Reading

What Deserves Attention

A Conversation Worth Having

Reading Approach

What remains unconfirmed