Speak
Laurie Halse Anderson
Melinda is headed to high school, and since that high school party she went to over the summer--the one where she called the cops--no one has talked to her. She is now an outcast--a prude that got a lot of kids in trouble at a party with alcohol.
But no one knows Melinda's story. Trying to deal with what happened that night, unable to speak up and explain or share her feelings, Mel floats through her freshman year trying to make sense of who she is. With the help of her art class, and her lab partner, Mel begins to learn how to speak.
Laurie Halse Anderson is a powerhouse author. There is not a book she's written that hasn't knocked me out of my seat. Speak is a powerful book about a real, scary, and emotional situation, that unfortunately happens more and more often these days.
The self-hatred, isolation and shame that Melinda goes through is real. I could relate to her feelings of isolation and the thoughts that no one understands. As a secondary person to any of these situations, you find yourself yelling at Mel, and any other victim, asking why you didn't just SAY something...but Anderson teaches you--it's not that simple.
If you have not read this book yet, I encourage you to come down to the library and check it out. The first person to read this blog, and reference it to me at the library will a get a FREE NEW COPY of this book to keep.
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