Speak
Author: Laurie Halse Anderson
Publisher: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux
Publication date: October 1999
Speak is the brutally realistic narrative of one girl and her challenge to rise whole from her traumatized life. Melinda Sordino is a black girl in ninth grade. Her friends are now her enemies, and all her parents do is fight. The events of summer haunt her and she cannot even find the confidence to be herself in art class, let alone tell anyone what happened or how scared and scarred she is. But opening the door to her memories may grant her the courage to move on. Speak is harrowing but triumphant - a story about overcoming shame and fear, both of yourself and others. The concepts addressed and descriptive content make this a book suited for mature young adult or adult readers. The story itself is well-crafted, with a tenacious grip on the struggles of high school and issues that women often feel they must suffer through alone. Melinda perfectly fits the story, submissive enough to make her thoughts and pain believable yet passionate enough to yank both herself and the reader through her roiling emotions. There is a reason this book was a National Book Award finalist. While Speak is a tough, gritty, emotional read, it should be high on the lists of mature YA and above readers who enjoy realistic fiction.
D. K. Nuray, age 13
