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4.02 AVERAGE
4.02 AVERAGE
Beautiful. I wish someone had recommended this book to me in high school. I wish we had read this book in high school English. This novel tells the story of Melinda's assault without being gruesome, without talking about courtrooms and lawyers. It tells the story from Melinda's perspective, from a normal 14 year old girl's perspective, and man I was that 14 year old girl. I hope schools let kids read this books, girls and boys, because it can help shed light on the situation at hand. Too many young people are sexually assaulted, and Speak doesn't just tell us another sordid tale, but instead shows us how it is without the drama, without the lifetime movie script, just from a normal girl's perspective. I also loved the open-ended end to the book, it really lets you imagine Melinda's life without spelling it out for you. I hope there is a sequel, but I will be fine if there is not.
reread this & couldnt stop picturing kristen stewart as melinda
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault
Minor: Self harm
dark
emotional
sad
tense
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
It's easier not to say anything. Shut your trap, button your lip, can it. All that crap you hear on TV about communication and expressing feelings is a lie. Nobody really wants to hear what you have to say.
Being the first young adult novel I have read in a while, the language used in Speak took me by surprise. It has been written in a diary format with the protagonist's inner monologue projected onto the pages in angst-ridden, sarcastic teenage slang.
In the summer before her freshman year of highschool, Melinda Sordino accidentally busts a party by calling the police for a reason that is withheld from the readers until a later point in the story. Several students end up getting arrested when the police breaks up the party, and as a result, Melinda walks into school on the first day to face great hostility from her compeers. From personal experience, I understand that highschool is easier when you blend in with the crowd as a nobody, not when you stand out and people begin pointing fingers at you.
The unspoken event at the party greatly disturbs her and she shows severe signs of post traumatic stress disorder, refusing to participate in school activities or speak, staring mutely at those who wrong her. People view her behaviour with distaste and she begins to be treated as an outcast. However, since the book is so rich with her sardonic, humorous narration that when a secondary character calls her out for being a "silent weirdo" it is a difficult jolt back to the reality that to outsiders, she is an automaton. It is only the readers who have the privilege of knowing Melinda's personality.
Speak is a coming-of-age novel as it follows Melinda on her quest to cope with her trauma and to reclaim her voice. She navigates through her freshman year with a burden on her shoulders and nobody to turn to. The friends she had no longer want to be associated with her and the friends she makes are always looking for a cooler clique to join. Artistic expression becomes her salvation. It helps her crawl out of the depths she had sunk into. Her art class requires her to dedicate the term to exploring a tree and she does so on various mediums- carving a linoleum block, making a sculpture, painting in watercolours. The tree becomes an important motif. Every representation of it is synonymous with her inner state.
I've been painting watercolors of trees that have been hit by lightning. I try to paint them so they are nearly dead, but not totally.
As she grows out of her cocoon, her tree grows healthier. She becomes the tree. As it sheds its dead branches and leaves to emerge stronger, she does too.
My tree is definitely breathing; little shallow breaths like it just shot up through the ground this morning.
The novel is littered with symbolic references that give Melinda's story more dimension. Nonetheless, I felt disconnected from her emotional struggle and was not invested to find out what her big secret was. It didn't trigger me in the way I had expected it to. It is, however, worth a read. The themes Speak deals with are powerful. There can never be enough representation of depression and abuse in media. Too many teenagers live in silent agony because they feel like their suffering isn't of enough consequence to be heard. Improper handling of these victims can do irreparable damage and informing ourselves is the first step in the right direction.
Being the first young adult novel I have read in a while, the language used in Speak took me by surprise. It has been written in a diary format with the protagonist's inner monologue projected onto the pages in angst-ridden, sarcastic teenage slang.
In the summer before her freshman year of highschool, Melinda Sordino accidentally busts a party by calling the police for a reason that is withheld from the readers until a later point in the story. Several students end up getting arrested when the police breaks up the party, and as a result, Melinda walks into school on the first day to face great hostility from her compeers. From personal experience, I understand that highschool is easier when you blend in with the crowd as a nobody, not when you stand out and people begin pointing fingers at you.
The unspoken event at the party greatly disturbs her and she shows severe signs of post traumatic stress disorder, refusing to participate in school activities or speak, staring mutely at those who wrong her. People view her behaviour with distaste and she begins to be treated as an outcast. However, since the book is so rich with her sardonic, humorous narration that when a secondary character calls her out for being a "silent weirdo" it is a difficult jolt back to the reality that to outsiders, she is an automaton. It is only the readers who have the privilege of knowing Melinda's personality.
Speak is a coming-of-age novel as it follows Melinda on her quest to cope with her trauma and to reclaim her voice. She navigates through her freshman year with a burden on her shoulders and nobody to turn to. The friends she had no longer want to be associated with her and the friends she makes are always looking for a cooler clique to join. Artistic expression becomes her salvation. It helps her crawl out of the depths she had sunk into. Her art class requires her to dedicate the term to exploring a tree and she does so on various mediums- carving a linoleum block, making a sculpture, painting in watercolours. The tree becomes an important motif. Every representation of it is synonymous with her inner state.
I've been painting watercolors of trees that have been hit by lightning. I try to paint them so they are nearly dead, but not totally.
As she grows out of her cocoon, her tree grows healthier. She becomes the tree. As it sheds its dead branches and leaves to emerge stronger, she does too.
My tree is definitely breathing; little shallow breaths like it just shot up through the ground this morning.
The novel is littered with symbolic references that give Melinda's story more dimension. Nonetheless, I felt disconnected from her emotional struggle and was not invested to find out what her big secret was. It didn't trigger me in the way I had expected it to. It is, however, worth a read. The themes Speak deals with are powerful. There can never be enough representation of depression and abuse in media. Too many teenagers live in silent agony because they feel like their suffering isn't of enough consequence to be heard. Improper handling of these victims can do irreparable damage and informing ourselves is the first step in the right direction.
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4 - love the concept of the tree, her art project. Its so hard being a teenager in high school with the different cliques. Knowing who you are friends with, who are true friends. Dealing with difficult subjects.
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes