Customer Reviews

Speak: 10th Anniversary Edition

5 star:		(56)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

As a black male in my late 20's, I didnt think I would get as interested as I did in the novel. I'm a Librarian and I always see the book being checked-out or returend to the branch so I picked it up...WHOA!!!

From the beginning I was intrigued by the main character, Melinda. She has a voice that is forgotten in the literary world. It remineded me of "Catcher in the Rye". The settings and chracters take you back to a time when High School was all that mattered.

I recommend the novel strongly. It's a quick/easy read and by the end of the novel, your cheering for Melinda.

PS. I gave the book for my wife to read and she got the "secret" right away...is this a woman's intuition???

The Story

Speak is an absorbing story of a 9th Grade girl, Melinda. She has entered high school and very rarely speaks to anyone... not her peers, teachers, and least of all her parents. Something deep inside Melinda is haunting her and keeping her voice trapped within. Transforming from a normal, happy middle-school girl to a lone, outsider with very little friends and failing grades, her teachers and family do not know what to do to help her. This is because she won't tell them what has caused her to climb within her walls and hide there.

The Review


Some of my book club gals were discussing this book in June. I keep hearing that this is a book that I should read because I of my middle-school aged daughters. I also understood that, although this was written 10 years ago, there has been a recent resurgence of the book and renewed popularity. As I only heard great things, I purchased it.

Written in the first-person viewpoint, the reader sees and hears the story through the eyes and ears of a deeply troubled young lady. Although the reader is in her mind, she won't even speak the truth of what happened to her in there. Therefore, not only does it take the other characters of the story considerable time to understand what's happened to Melinda, but the reader as well. As to avoid spoiling the book for new readers, I will share that the subject matter is heavy. However, it is a topic of discussion that parents should undertake with their teenage daughters, especially upon entering high school.

I felt particularly sad for Melinda because she felt that she could not turn to her parents to deal with her issues. She falls into such a great depression and isolation that I feared the worst for her while reading this story. Laurie Halse Anderson does a commendable job in writing in the voices of the youth. The story that she creates is realistic and relatable right from the beginning of the book.

Unfortunately, to keep the spoiler apart from this review, the only other points that I can expand upon are my observations of the cruelty of children/teens to one another. How they have the power to so deeply injure a fragile and developing psyche is a marvel to me. I mean, I do recall feeling angst and strong emotions when I was in high school... but, it's a much different story reading it as a mother.

The Rating

I'm on the fence about sharing this book with the twins for maybe another year or so. I think they are just still a tad-to-young for it. However, I will be sharing this book with them in the future. This book is also one that I will most likely mention to other moms of tweens that I know.

One thing that I wasn't aware of is that there is a movie version of this book. I'm interested in renting it. I think it's the same actress as the one in Twilight. I wonder if the movie is anywhere near as good as the book?

My rating, genre:Fiction-Young Adult, is a 9 out of 10!

It's so difficult to do a review justice where most everything alludes to or gives away an essential part of the story that each reader should experience for themselves. All I can say is that this book is a *must* read.

Anderson has crafted such a difficult journey for Melinda, actually such difficult journeys, that it's almost impossible to be unfeeling towards her. Despite the fact that the reader isn't fully aware of all of the circumstances behind Melinda's sudden outcast status, we are able to draw the conclusion that whatever it was that happened was something extremely traumatic. It would have to be to remove her will to communicate.

Virtually friendless, doing poorly in school and at a point where her relationship with her parents begins to progress to all out failure Melinda embraces one part of her life -- art. It is through the power of artistic immersion and expression that she begins to come to terms with the events of her life. Slowly but surely we are brought to the ultimate place of recognition where the answers are shown to the major questions in this story.

Anderson has written an extremely thoughtful story portraying a great deal of emotion. Anxiety, depression, and fear all claw at Melinda at various times throughout. However, through it all she shows a quiet perseverance. He inner monolog is both insightful and entertaining -- Melinda has a quick wit and sarcastic humor. Her inner thoughts are, at times, just the break we need from the heavier more depressing issues she's facing.

Despite being unable to reveal any real insight into major points of the story one thing I can give you is encouragement. I think Speak is a fabulous read that lovers of fiction (despite genre preference) should grab hold of. There is great beauty in Melinda's strength and a great many lessons to be learned for us all.

Have you ever shouldered a secret so big, so dark that it took everything inside of you to not scream it aloud? Melinda Sordino has. Something happened this summer at her first high school party, something so bad she can't speak about it. The problem? No one around her knows- all they know is that she is the snitch that called the cops and got some of her most popular classmates busted. Now Melinda not only has to deal with the stress that comes with ninth grade but also deal with the snickers, the glares and the carefully aimed thrown cafeteria food attacks that comes with being the school outcast narc. As Melinda's grades, relationships and sense of style deteriorate in a downward spiral her only lifeline seems to be her art project- to make the idea of a tree come alive in multiple medias. As Melinda searches for methods to make her tree appear alive on paper she begins to discover ways to bring herself back to life as well. But for her full resurrection she must decide she is finally ready to Speak.

Melinda Sordino starts her freshman year in high school as an outcast. She was just like any other kid in eighth grade, she was popular and had many friends, but there was a problem over the summer. While attending a party with some friends, Melinda ended up having to call the police. Now her friends won't talk to her and most of the kids in her school know she's the one who made the call so they shun her as well. The story takes place throughout Melinda's school year as we see how her silence deteriorates her and eventually comes out at the end with redemption and the courage to speak the truth.

I thought it was neat how truly immersed in Melinda's mind you are but at the same time you still are not able to see the whole story at once. This is a powerful novel, and readers can enjoy both Melinda's wry humor and her heart-wrenching pain. The metaphors and symbolism add to the richness, but the primary attraction is Melinda herself - you become one with her and I found that I cared deeply for her and ached for her sadness. Although most girls will not be able to relate to Melinda directly, her tale is one that needs to be told. She is a survivor and a heroine and a voice that every young girl should learn from.

This was a very unique coming-of-age story but, more importantly, the author addresses issues that are difficult to discuss (I won't go further into these issues as I don't want to give any of the story away). If you enjoy books with a strong message, creative writing, and an intriguing plot than Speak will be the book for you.

Speak is told through Melinda's point of view and it is done really well. To me it is almost like her diary explaining her day and as the story progresses she also talks about her feelings and she just happened to decide to label different sections.

Melinda acted how I would think most in her situation would act, quiet, withdrawn, hurt. Through the progression of the story Melinda slowly grows and learns that she is stronger than she thought, that what happened wasn't her fault and that she can take a stand.

It wasn't until like the last couple of chapters that it got all wrapped up. Melinda found her voice to say no and tell someone what happened. My problem though is that we don't see the after effects of that. We had seen the initial effects on Melinda after the party but once she found her voice again I would have liked to have seen at least a little more.

I like the way that the author handled the subject matter. Melinda eventually said what happened but the author didn't really go into detail. It dealt more of the after effects and how Melinda handled it and handled how people around her, even her friends and family, were now treating her. Overall it is a good book. I was rooting for Melinda. I kept reading wanting to know how she would eventually find her voice again.

"I wonder how long it would take for anyone to notice if I just stopped talking."

Melinda never said a word about what happened that night at the party. She never said anything when she was accused of calling the cops, getting a lot of people in major trouble. She never spoke up against her classmates when they pushed and bullied and belittled her for it. She never told her bestfriend Rachel why she called them or how it feels to have your bestfriend say she hates you. She never said anything to her teachers who scolded her for going from a good student to a failure. She never told her parents who just can't understand what their child has become.

She never said anything, to anyone, at all.

Sometimes what you have to say is so horrible, it's unspeakable.

"I have no friends. I have nothing. I say nothing. I am nothing."

This book is the very reason I am so enamoured of the YA genre. Books like this, and Thirteen Reasons Why and I'm sure countless others I've yet to encounter are on a playing field all their own. They are written not only so that everyone can understand, but in a voice that reflects the conflict of emotions that happens in the heart of every teenager. Books like this that deal with actions and consequences and force you to think on it's terms teach you so much more than you could ever imagine you'd learn from a young adult book.

EVERYONE should read this book. I'm glad it's required reading material for some programs. It should be required reading material for life.

The usual words that spring to mind to describe this book are "haunting", "beautiful", "dark" but those are so generic. The language of this book doesn't paint pretty pictures, it paints black holes. The story doesn't haunt you, it stays with you, right there, always, not like a ghost- like a heavy rock you can't move, and you'll stumble on it again and again. I can tell you this if you read it- you will never forget it, even if you want to.

I read the award winning, controversial novel over the weekend.



Melinda is a sarcastic, cynical teenager with plenty of attitude (know one?). While Melinda narrates the book and the reader is privy to all her thoughts, Melinda has stopped speaking to everyone else. After she made the phone call to the police that busted up a summer party, her friends have shunned her and everyone else in the high school picks on her or ignores her completely.



Melinda's self-involved parents, a teacher and the counselor make some minor attempts to reach her, but don't dig deep enough to find the cause of her sudden change. Her grades are slipping. She is skipping school. She is withdrawn and sullen and friendless.



This is a dark but witty novel with the from the view of the problem teenager. There is, of course, something more sinister and painful in Melinda's past. As she is able to face the truth about the night of the party, she is able to heal. Speak has some very powerful messages. The writing is pretty simple, really, but is consistent with the 14 year old narrator and also makes the book more accessible to it's younger audience.



While this novel is not for children, I think teenagers and parents should read this novel together and discuss it. The novel is full of difficult topics and themes but they are real and pertinent and can lead to a valuable conversation between parents and their teenagers.

I've had "Speak" sitting on my shelf for about five years, unread. I finally decided to read it last week, and was pleasantly suprised. It is about a girl, Melinda, going through the struggles of school, friends, family and her secret. I thought it was a little slow in the beginning, but not for long. I could hardly put it down. It is a very well written book. The author adds so many little details, I could almost visualize everything perfectly. Through the book, I could really get a feeling of what Melinda is going through, not only by the author's descriptions, but I went some of the same things (not her secret, thankfully) such as being alone a lot and not liking to talk. I feel a lot of people can relate to Melinda.
Overall, this was a great book and I'd definately recommend it to someone.

Speak was definitely not an upbeat book, so if you're depressed it won't help matters. One thing I can say about this book is that the author did an amazing job of painting a visual picture and subdued emotion that I have never felt while reading a book. I felt Melinda's pain and I was there for her until the end. I originally saw the movie a few years back and thought it was fantastic. To this day I have never seen another book/movie interpretation that I felt really captured the essence of the book.