So…it’s been a while. I promised myself that I would update once a week, but somehow that didn’t happen. Now that I have a spot of time, I have decided to post another book review. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson was an accidental find for me this summer. And by accidental find I mean one of those books my friends told me to read but I was too busy reading classics to care.
So when I wanted to construct a summer lesson for middle school and high school students, I googled books about bullying’ and Speak popped up. It’s 1999 release date was far enough away that, when I ran to the local Borders to purchase it, I managed to pick up an special edition containing a forward by the author.
Apparently I missed the sensation it caused upon its release, and it’s a shame. I’m sure it deserved much more attention that it actually received.
From the first page, Anderson traps readers in a psychological mystery novel. The narrative resembles stream of consciousness writing; readers follow main-character Melinda as she struggles desperately to come to terms with her past and fit into a high school student body that doesn’t want her. The way it’s written–Melinda’s ‘unedited’ thoughts screaming at you [in 1st person] from inside her head makes the main character instantly likable.
On the surface, Speak seems like any other book about bullying or ostracizing. Melinda, invited as an 8th grader to a high school party, is thrilled. However, the silly girl calls the cops and several students are caught underage drinking. She escapes the police at the party, but not the wrath of almost the entire student body–if they weren’t there, they know someone who was caught. If they don’t know anyone who was at the party, the students heard about Melinda’s treachery and want nothing to do with a squealer. She is spoken at more than to, and somehow her books manage to get pushed out of her hands each time she’s in the halls. It’s also obvious that Melinda is depressed–in the true clinical sense.
Here’s the magic of the book: Melinda’s depression, while clearly overwhelming to the main character, does not overwhelm the reader in a way that encourages him/her to stop reading. Still, Anderson manages to make readers care so deeply in such a short time for her protagonist, that it’s impossible to feel nothing toward her. Shortly after this connection is made, the mystery is introduced. Very subtly, Anderson plants the seed of suspicion. Something happened the night of the party that caused Melinda to call the police, but readers cannot know the secret until farther into the book, because Melinda is unwilling to even think about the topic. The title comes from this dilemma to reveal her secret.
The way Anderson handles the psychology of her character is very personal. Whether the reader is young or old or has been in a situation similar to Melinda’s or not, he/she will feel a connection to the character. The descriptions of high school, the one teacher who takes extra time with her, the students who use her–anyone who has been through a day of high school, or even middle school, should have no problem relating to Melinda. That makes the book pretty much universal. That being said, I would suggest that the reader be at least beyond primary school (age 11+) and preferably a little older.
How did my lesson go? Fabulous. Both the boys and girls were intrigued by the mystery. They could not wait to discover Melinda’s secret. They also immediately sympathized with Melinda and the behavior of the other students spawned good morals & ethics discussions.
Another positive? The book is just the right length. I finished it in a little over two hours. I don’t think I moved the entire time, save to turn the page. After completing my lesson, I gave the book to my mother with the requirement that I needed it back in two weeks. She finished it by the next morning. I have now passed it along to my friends. Out of the 3 who have finished it, not one hasn’t responded fervently (and positively) when I asked how they liked it.
So, I recommend Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson for preteens through adults, students, parents, teachers…. At the risk of sounding cliché, it’s a must read.
As a side note, I managed to procure a copy of the movie made by Showtime in 2004. Interestingly enough, Kristen Stewart plays the lead–she does a phenomenal job capturing the complexity of the character. It gives me great hope for the Twilight film. The movie itself is worth investing in. It’s a made-for TV movie, but I managed to find it on Amazon. However, this does not mean you should watch the film rather than read the book. I recommend both–print before film.
I hope you enjoy–go read it, now!
Life's a Book 