One more time, with feeling

BOOK OF THE DAY:

Speak by Laure Halse Anderson

“A frightening and sobering look at the cruelty and viciousness that pervade much of contemporary high school life, as real as today’s headlines… . The plot is gripping and the characters are powerfully drawn … a novel that will be hard for readers to forget.” –Kirkus Reviews

“Speak up for yourself–we want to know what you have to say.“ High school freshman at Merryweather High, Melinda knows this is a lie. She is isolated. She is an outsider. She is friendless because she busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops.

The only place she finds solace is in her art class. Through her artwork, Melinda finally confronts a traumatic event she endured at a party; she was raped by an upperclassman, who still roams the school’s halls and instills fear in her body. As she begins heal, she endures another violent encounter with him. This time, Melinda ferociously fights back. She refuses to remain silent and achieves justice by speaking up.

Gritty, honest, and skillfully told, Speak is real. Many books claim to portray the reality of the human struggle and soul, but Laurie Halse Anderson compels you to empathize with raw emotion and intelligence. Although Anderson plunges into the world of darkness and sexual violence, she delivers a touching and inspirational novel. Her prose is sharp, crisp and heart-felt. Reading this book will make you a better human being. Melinda is an unusual but real life heroine made of flesh and bones, which lives on this Earth through many people’s story.