- Hardcover
- Publisher: Peter Smith Pub Inc (Jun 30 2006)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0844672920
- ISBN-13: 978-0844672922
- Product Dimensions: 20.1 x 13.5 x 2.3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 386 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (756 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,299,453 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon
Since the beginning of the school year, high school freshman Melinda has found that it's been getting harder and harder for her to speak out loud: "My throat is always sore, my lips raw.... Every time I try to talk to my parents or a teacher, I sputter or freeze.... It's like I have some kind of spastic laryngitis." What could have caused Melinda to suddenly fall mute? Could it be due to the fact that no one at school is speaking to her because she called the cops and got everyone busted at the seniors' big end-of-summer party? Or maybe it's because her parents' only form of communication is Post-It notes written on their way out the door to their nine-to-whenever jobs. While Melinda is bothered by these things, deep down she knows the real reason why she's been struck mute: Andy Evans. He's a senior at Melinda's high school, and Melinda hasn't been able to speak clearly since he raped her at the senior party last August.
Laurie Halse Anderson's first novel is a stunning and sympathetic tribute to the teenage outcast. The triumphant ending, in which Melinda finds her voice and loudly confronts her rapist, is cause for cheering (while many readers might also shed a tear or two). After reading Speak, it will be hard for any teen to look at the class scapegoat again without a measure of compassion and understanding for that person--who may be screaming beneath the silence. (Ages 13 and older) --Jennifer Hubert --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.
From Publishers Weekly
In a stunning first novel, Anderson uses keen observations and vivid imagery to pull readers into the head of an isolated teenager. Divided into the four marking periods of an academic year, the novel, narrated by Melinda Sordino, begins on her first day as a high school freshman. No one will sit with Melinda on the bus. At school, students call her names and harass her; her best friends from junior high scatter to different cliques and abandon her. Yet Anderson infuses the narrative with a wit that sustains the heroine through her pain and holds readers' empathy. A girl at a school pep rally offers an explanation of the heroine's pariah status when she confronts Melinda about calling the police at a summer party, resulting in several arrests. But readers do not learn why Melinda made the call until much later: a popular senior raped her that night and, because of her trauma, she barely speaks at all. Only through her work in art class, and with the support of a compassionate teacher there, does she begin to reach out to others and eventually find her voice. Through the first-person narration, the author makes Melinda's pain palpable: "I stand in the center aisle of the auditorium, a wounded zebra in a National Geographic special." Though the symbolism is sometimes heavy-handed, it is effective. The ending, in which her attacker comes after her once more, is the only part of the plot that feels forced. But the book's overall gritty realism and Melinda's hard-won metamorphosis will leave readers touched and inspired. Ages 12-up. (Oct.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Browse and search another edition of this book.
First Sentence
High-Home of the Trojans" didn't send a strong abstinence message, so they have transformed us into the Blue Devils. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
High-Home of the Trojans" didn't send a strong abstinence message, so they have transformed us into the Blue Devils. Read the first page
Explore More
Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Favourite novel,
This review is from: Speak (Paperback)
This was probably my favourite book that I read all year during grade eight. I found that it helped me learn to research more about things like sexual abuse, drugs, and rape.
5.0 out of 5 stars
this book was awsome,
By Alexandria (Washington) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Speak (Paperback)
this book was a little confusing in the begining but the middle and the end we awsome and i couldnt put the book down......it was like they wrote a book about me....i could relate so much.....i love books like this and if any1 knows 1 they should tell me! well you should read this book and dont put it down till your dun reading it!!!
4.0 out of 5 stars
Whatever you say can and will be used against you,
By Demetria (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Speak (Paperback)
Speak is an amazing read for anyone. While it is targeted towards Young Adults, I think it would be a good book for parents to read as well. Perhaps parents could read more YA books and it might actually give them a better understanding of their own teenagers. This gives the reader a good insight into the theory that there are two sides to every story. Not only does the unspoken character have to deal with the horrid aftermath of rape pulling at her emotional soul, but she can't talk about it to anyone. Fear of rejection, peer pressure, and teen angst play a major part in this powerful coming-of-age story
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Want to see more reviews on this item?
|
Most recent customer reviews |
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
