Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson was just as beautiful as I expected it to be. Before I'd already read one of her other books, Winter Girls. Speak was recommended to me by one of my close friends, and I'm glad I listened to her.

Laurie Halse Anderson writes characters so well, I could feel as though I am the character in multiple dimensions, which is really admirable in a character. There were several points in the novel during which I had to stop, whether to do work or to walk to different classes or go to sleep, and I was so into the novel that when I was doing these other things, I was still living in the world, in Melinda's mind. I was constantly breathing the words Anderson had put onto the page.

The world Speak was set in was just as realistic and just as well written. It was so easy to see and feel everything Melinda was, even when I was figuring out what happened, even when our narrator still hadn't told us why she was feeling that way or who she was seeing.

Speak sends out such a strong message, about speaking up and about putting yourself out there when it scares you most. I feel as though our Laurie Halse Anderson has done so in the most beautiful, passionate way with her characters, with her world, and with her words.

Absolutely 5/5 stars.
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