Speak
By: Laurie Halse Anderson
Have you ever felt stuck in your own skin?
"I'm waiting for the clock to end the daily torture-by-algebra session when WHAMMO!--a thought slams into my head. I don't want to hang out in my little hidy-hole anymore. I look behind me, half expecting to see a sniggering back-row guy who beaned me with an eraser. Nope--the back row is struggling to stay awake. It was definitely an idea that hit me. I don't feel like hiding anymore" (Anderson 191-192).
Incoming freshman Melinda is already starting out high school with a bad reputation. Over the summer Andy Evans a senior held a huge party, and Melinda called the police. No one truly knows why Melinda called the police, but to them it does not matter. They hate her. Melinda's freshman year of high school is filled with tears, anger, regret, guilt, and fear. Fear of what could happen, and fear of what did happen.
Speak Trailer
Awards
National Book Award Finalist
A Booklist Top 10 First Novel
A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
Laurie Halse Anderson is a New York Times bestselling author.
Reasoning behind Speak
Laurie Halse Anderson confessed some reasoning behind Speak. She announced that 10% of the book is true and the other 90% is fiction. Behind that 10% of truth she shares that she at one time went through the same situation that ruined Melinda's life.
Praises for Speak
“In a stunning first novel, Anderson uses keen observations and vivid imagery to pull readers into the head of an isolated teenager. . . . Yet Anderson infuses the narrative with a wit that sustains the heroine through her pain and holds readers’ empathy. . . . But the book’s overall gritty realism and Melinda’s hard-won metamorphosis will leave readers touched and inspired.”—Publishers Weekly, Starred Review
“Melinda’s pain is palpable, and readers will totally empathize with her. This is a compelling book, with sharp, crisp writing that draws readers in, engulfing them in the story.”—School Library Journal