Speak
by Laurie Halse Anderson
Published by Penguin Putnam
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Kathy Perschmann, Chanhassen (MN) Librarian
True, published in 1999, this is not a new book, but at my library it is getting a lot of requests, so I decided to read it.
Anderson says in an interview at the back of the book that this story began when she awoke from a nightmare one night hearing a girl crying. When she checked on her daughters and found nothing wrong, she realized the girl was in her head.
Anderson has used much from her own ninth grade school year, when she was a new arrival to a town and felt like an outcast, and her family was struggling. She really did argue with her English teacher about symbols in the Scarlet Letter (though I think there are LOTS of symbols and metaphors in this book!).
Melinda Sordino narrates the book, most are in her thoughts, as she rarely talks to anyone. She lives in New York, with her nearly always-arguing parents. The book starts with the beginning of Melinda's ninth grade year. Melinda is an outcast; her friends are not speaking to her.
Later we find out bit by bit what happened: There was an all-night party at the end of the summer which 13-year-old Melinda and her good friend Rachel snuck off to attend, and Melinda ended up calling the police from the party.
The only class Melinda seems to enjoy is Art; and she has found a refuge at school in an empty closet. She decorates her closet with her tree drawings, and a poster of Maya Angelou that the librarian gives her.
Her parents only focus on her silence, her failing grades, and skipped classes. Melinda does make it through the school year, to a terrifying climax, in her tiny refuge of a closet, the day she decides she does not need it anymore and is taking home her art.
Armchair Interviews says: This is a troubling book, one for girls to read and have talks about. It would be great for a mother-daughter book club or any book club. The growth in Melinda makes it ultimately a rewarding read, and uplifting.