Speak (Anderson novel)
Book cover of 1st edition
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| Author | Laurie Halse Anderson |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Fiction |
| Publisher | Farrar Straus Giroux |
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Publication date
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October 1999 |
| Media type | Hardback and paperback |
| Pages | 197 pp (first edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 40298254 |
| [Fic] 21 | |
| LC Class | PZ7.A54385 Sp 1999 |
Speak, published in 1999, is a young adult novel by Laurie Halse Anderson that tells the story of high school freshman Melinda Sordino. After accidentally busting an end-of-summer party due to an unnamed incident, Melinda is ostracized by her peers because she will not say why she called the police. Unable to verbalize what happened, Melinda nearly stops speaking altogether, expressing her voice through the art she produces for Mr. Freeman's class. This expression slowly helps Melinda acknowledge what happened, face her problems, and recreate her identity.
Speak is considered a problem novel, or trauma novel. Melinda's story is written in a diary format, consisting of a nonlinear plot and jumpy narrative that mimics the trauma she experienced. Additionally, Anderson employs intertextual symbolism in the narrative, incorporating fairy tale imagery, Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, and Maya Angelou, to further represent Melinda's trauma.
Since it was published, the novel has won several awards and has been translated into sixteen languages. The book has faced censorship for the mature content explicit in it. In 2004, Jessica Sharzer directed the film adaptation, starring Kristen Stewart as Melinda.
The summer before her freshman year of high school, Melinda Sordino meets Andy Evans at a senior party. Outside the woods, Andy rapes her. Melinda calls 9-1-1, but does not know what to say and runs home. The police came and broke up the party, and some people got arrested. Melinda does not tell anyone what happened to her, and nobody asks. She starts high school at Merryweather High School as an outcast since all her old friends left her, and is shunned by her peers for calling the police. She remains silent and sinks into depression. Melinda is befriended by Heather, a new girl, who clings to Melinda only to ditch her for "the Marthas", who are the "popular" girls at Merryweather High. As Melinda's depression deepens, she begins to skip school, withdrawing from her already distant parents and other authority figures, who see her silence as means of getting "attention". She slowly befriends her lab partner, David Petrakis, who encourages her to speak up for herself.
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