Speak

Anderson, Laurie Halse. Speak. New York: Penguin Group, 2006.

[Book cover credit: www.alibris.com]

Genre: Realistic/Issues

Annotation:
This is an amazing story of a misunderstood teenager who was raped by an upperclassman at a party and lost all of her friends. Her world was devastated until something unexpected happens.

Booktalk Review:
Melinda was raped by an upperclassman at a party the summer before her freshman year. When she called the police, they only broke up the party and she never made sure they knew what had happened to her. As if this could not get any worse, when school started she was an outcast because she broke up the party. FYI...her home life was not much better. No one knew what had happened to her. She went through each school day as a silent, shunned, meek rat. Melinda even received harsh treatment from her teachers! Alone and miserable, her old best friend, Rachel, didn't even want to talk to her. Well, Rachel began dating the upperclassman who had raped Melinda, so what will Melinda do? Will she ever tell her story? Will she ever Speak?

Awards, Recognitions, Honors, etc.:

• A Michael L. Printz Honor Book
• A National Book Award Finalist
• An Edgar Allan Poe Award Finalist
• A Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist
• Winner of the SCBWI Golden Kite Award
• An ALA Best Book for Young Adults
  
• An ALA Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults
• An ALA Quick Pick
• A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year
• A Booklist Top Ten First Novel of 1999
• A BCCB Blue Ribbon Book
• A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
• An IRA Young Adult Choice
• A Junior Library Guild Selection
• A New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age
  
• A Horn Book Fanfare Title
  
• A New York Times Best Seller
• A Publishers Weekly Best Seller
• A winner of eight state book awards
• A finalist for eleven state book awards
  

Author's Website:
http://www.writerlady.com/