Book Review: Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

"Art follows lunch like a dream follows a nightmare" and so high school goes for Melinda. Everyday is a struggle as she copes with the consequences of that terrible summer night that made her an outcast. As she closes herself off from the world, her art teacher breaks through to help her express herself and to give her the courage to take back her life.

This powerful story about the effects of trauma showcases the struggles of fitting in during a time in life when acceptance feels like the only thing that matters. In the beginning the reader can feel how much of and empty shell Melinda has become as she describes they world around her with a feeling of loss and otherness. AS she starts to care for less, the reader feels her desperation for a lifeline which she begins to find in her art. Using the medium to help express the darkness she feels helps her work through the trauma of her rape at the summer party and to find  the voice and strength to tell he attacker no. Once she is able to stand up to him, the reader begins to see Melinda take back the control she has been so in need of and to find her way back to who she is. This story is impactful in showing that trauma can color every part of a person's life and that they often need help to work through it. The realities of high school are clear in the everyday interactions Melinda ahs with the students and teachers around her lending a sense of connection to school aged readers and a sense of nostalgia for those past their school years. 

"The plot is gripping and the characters are powerfully drawn, but it is its raw and unvarnished look at the dynamics of the high school experience that makes this a novel that will be hard for readers to forget." - Kirkus Review

Book Information:

Anderson, L. (1999). SPEAK. New York: Farrar Straus Giroux. ISBN 9780374371524

What Next?

This powerful story was turned into a graphic novel illustrated by Emily Carroll. 

"...this visual adaptation takes readers outside Melinda’s head and sits them alongside her, seeing what she sees and feeling the importance and power of her desire to create art and express herself. Carroll’s stark black-and-white illustrations are exquisitely rendered, capturing the mood through a perfectly calibrated lens. With the rise of women finding their voices and speaking out about sexual assault in the media, this reworking of the enduring 1999 classic should be on everyone’s radar." - Kirkus Review