Something happened at the end-of-summer party that Melinda and Rachel attended before their freshman year of high school. What happened at this party that made Melinda call the police?
Melinda Sordino and her best friend Rachel are excited about going the the end-of-summer party. Melinda can't believe it when Andy Evans show interest in her. They go to the backyard to talk and get to know each other a little better, but then Andy takes things further than Melinda is comfortable with, and he won't stop, but Melinda can't speak. Melinda manages to get away and calls to police, and they break up the party. When school starts, everyone seems to know that Melinda called the police and ruined a great party, so she becomes the school outcast, being shunned even by Rachel. Melinda chooses not to speak about what really happened at the party, but when she runs into Rachel, she yearns to grab her and tell her what really happened at the party and to stop treating her so poorly. Now with no one as her friend, she is left with Heather, a new student from Ohio, as her only friend, and when she decides that Melinda is too much of an introvert to be friends with, Melinda decides to make an unused janitor's closet her safe haven. Melinda also sees her art teacher's class as a safe place and often goes there to work on her art project. Nicole, a former friend, is also in that class, and she slowly starts to warm up to her again. One day, Andy is in there, and Melinda feels weird and nervous around him. One day, while washing off paint from her shirt, Melinda writes Andy Evans' name on the wall of the bathroom stall as someone to stay away from. Later, Nicole shows her that other girls have written similar things about Andy. When Andy finds out, he confronts and attacks Melinda. Melinda fights back and other students run to see what is happening, discovering the truth about Andy and helping Melinda face what happened to her and overcome it.I enjoyed reading this book. It dealt with a difficult topic. It's told from Melinda's point of view, sort of on a daily account of what happens during her freshman year in high school, so readers get bits and pieces of the puzzle to figure out what happens, and at the end, it's all put together. I think it would be a good book for high schoolers to read and for them (girls) to know that it's OK to talk about what is bothering them, especially if it is something unlawful. It was difficult to read about how tough a time Melinda was having and how she wouldn't (couldn't?) talk to anyone about what happened to her. I think students would be able to understand how important it is for them to have friends and fit in with a group of people so that they feel comfortable in school.
I thought it was interesting that Speak is the title of this book. I think it is an appropriate title because it seems that Melinda knows that she needs to speak to someone about what happened to her at the party, but she cannot bring herself to talk about it. It is too difficult to bring it up because of how people might react to what she has to say, so instead she just keeps it all to herself. It isn't until she realizes that other girls have had similar experiences with Andy that she feels more comfortable talking about what happened to her.
Speak is a Michael L. Printz Honor Book and a finalist for the National Book Award, the Edgar Allen Poe Award, and for The Los Angeles Times Book Prize. It also won the SCBWI Golden Kite Award and was a New York Times and Publishers Weekly Best Seller and Best Book of the Year. In addition it was an ALA top Ten Best Book for Young Adults and an ALA Quick Pick. It was a Booklist Top Ten First Novel of 1999 and a BCCB Blue Ribbon Book. In addition, it was a School LIbrary Journal Best Book of the Year and a Horn Book Fanfare Title.
Other books by Laurie Halse Anderson include Fever 1793, Catalyst, and Prom.
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