Review Detail

This was a sad book for me. I have read my share of books with ostracized main protags but Speak really taps into the realistic aspects of a party gone wrong and the horrible outcome that plagues Melinda.

High school is harsh. Drama is a shark in the ocean of teenagers. Unfortunately, Melinda feels the wrath of the shark attack. The swarm of loneliness that sinks inside her when everyone abandons her for calling the cops at the party she happens to unfortunately attend.

Once you read this book, you can truly see why it accumulated so many literary awards in the first place. Laurie Halse Anderson creates Melinda, a realistic teenager who combats abuse, loneliness, and fear in a sanctuary that condemns her for a crime that was a matter-of-fact cry for help from Melinda.

For sometimes, fear clouds the truth, hides it from the world and is unseen. High school drama is the shark, and the truth is attacked by those masses of razor teeth.