My review of Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

Reading level: Young Adult
Pages: 198
Rating: 5 stars!
From: Amazon
Buy Here: http://www.amazon.com/Speak-Anniversary-Laurie-Halse-Anderson/dp/0142414735/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1258586612&sr=1-1

Melinda starts off high school on the wrong foot and it's because of something that happened before school even started. Everything was going fine until that party. She knows why she called the cops but she isn't telling anyone, not even her best friend, well now it's her ex-best friend. After the party, her friends dump her and leave her to fend for herself at Merryweather High. She's a freshman. And friendless.

Melinda doesn't mind the stares and snickers all that much but it's the rumors that she doesn't like. They are wrong, all wrong. They don't know anything about that night. Only Melinda knows what happened. Although no one would believe her if she did speak about it. There is someone else that knows, but they are keeping their mouth shut also. That's a good thing.

Melinda dreads school everyday, although she has found comfort in her Art class taught by Mr. Freeman. He gives her the freedom to open up through art and at first she is skeptical and her emotions are non-existent. But as the year progresses something inside Melinda clicks, and art is the one thing she has to stay strong.

There is also this boy, David Petrakis, who is in her Biology class. He teaches her a little something about life and ends up being a good guy and a friend to Melinda.

I would recommend this book to all of my friends. It's a quick read and made me think. The author's writing is very real and captures a high school perfectly. I felt like I could relate to Melinda in a way. The story behind Melinda is heavy and may be for more mature readers.
I felt bad for Melinda because she doesn't trust her parents with the truth and keeps it to herself and you only find it out about half-way through the book. Laurie Halse Anderson is a great young adult author and I'll be checking out more of her books.
Allison