Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson | Teen Ink

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

October 25, 2013
By KyliC BRONZE, Thornton, Colorado
KyliC BRONZE, Thornton, Colorado
2 articles 0 photos 0 comments

Speak is an amazing book. It is one of my favorites and I will read it over and over again. This
book will inspire young readers who have experienced what Melinda goes through. Melinda is an
average high school student who goes through the hardships of high school and finds a way to get
through them. Melinda fights herself and others throughout the book. Also, the author makes the book
realistic, and puts imagery into your head while reading. The imagery makes the book even more
interesting, because you can picture every scene in your head. The pictures the author puts in my head
helps me understand the novel. Speak is a book I would recommend to teenage girls to inform them
about an important topic.
A 14year
old teenage girl, Melinda Sordino, called the police at an end of the summer party.
Because of this, she enters freshmen year with no friends and acquaintances and people she doesn't
even know, hate her. Melinda stands out from the crowd just because she tried to protect herself. Her
friends won’t even give her the chance to tell them what really happened. If she told the story to her
parents, they wouldn’t understand. It’s not like her parents are ever around anyways. In order to be
safe, Melinda must stand alone. Memories from the party play replay in her head constantly. Being
alone sometimes isn’t safe. Melinda has no choice, but to speak the truth.
Speak is definitely a relatable and realistic novel in the world we live in today. Speak is the
perfect novel for high school students, especially girls. The book is easy to relate to for some young

women. The author includes characteristics from high school forming a perfect setting, including the
cliques, the outsiders, the hardships,etc. The author provides real solutions to Melinda’s life, making the
novel more realistic and relatable. I was able to relate to Melinda throughout the novel.


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