Speak

 

Anderson, L. H.  (1999). Speak.  NY:  Penguin

In the opening of this novel by L.H. Anderson, we meet Melinda Sordino on her first morning of high school. Upon entering the school bus, we can already see that she is feeling overwhelmed about more than just being a freshman. She is worried about seeing her friends and wonders if they are still her friends. She is also carrying a deep secret with her. Throughout the first part of the book, we find out that she and her friends attended a party over the summer with older kids and there was drinking involved. Something horrible happened to Melinda that night, but the reader is not quite sure what that is until later. At the party that night, Melinda called the police and they showed up at the party. After that, she lost her friends and everyone began to make fun of her for being a snitch. Melinda is visibly depressed throughout the majority of the book, holding in a secret that she feels she cannot share with anyone. 

As the school year progresses, Melinda finds solace in her art class with the help of her art teacher, Mr. Freeman, and begins to acknowledge what happened that night at the party. She was raped by an older boy named Andy Evans whom she refers to as "IT" throughout the book. After Andy starts dating her ex-friend Rachel, she decides to tell Rachel the truth about Andy. This does not go well at first because Rachel thinks Melinda is jealous and just making everything up. Eventually, Melinda is brave enough to speak up and stand up to Andy, who has been terrorizing her since the incident. 

Speak was written in the first person and felt like reading the diary of a scared and depressed teen. The author made you feel what Melinda was feeling, which are feelings that many teens deal with. You don't have to be a victim of sexual assault to empathize with Melinda and her struggles. This book is a must-read for all teens, regardless of gender. The book includes a section in the back with sexual assault survivor resources. It states that 1 in 6 American women and 1 out of every 33 American men will be the victim of an attempted or completed rape and most will not speak out about it! The resources listed provide help for anyone dealing with sexual assault in their lives. Read this book, watch the movie and recommend it to the teens in your life!