Laurie Halse Anderson

A graphic novel adaptation of the award-winning novel Speak—adapted by Laurie Halse Anderson herself and brought to life visually by Eisner Award winner Emily Carroll.

Speak: The Graphic Novel

A fiercely authentic, critically acclaimed and award-winning modern classic. 'Speak up for yourself - we want to know what you have to say.' From my first day at Merryweather High, I know this is a lie. Nobody will even talk to me, let alone listen - all because I called the cops on an end-of-summer party. But if I could only tell everyone why I called the police that night... If I could explain what happened to me... If I could speak... Then everything might change. 'With the rise of women finding their voices and speaking out about sexual assault in the media, this should be on everyone's radar... Powerful, necessary, and essential.' - Kirkus

Speak

I've had this on my TBR for a very long time, but I never took the plunge.

This was so sad, yet took us readers on a journey.

I loved how it was written as the characters journal entries, it really put us within her head.

Sarah Campbell

I've had this on my TBR for a very long time, but I never took the plunge.
I'm very glad that I did this time. 
This was so sad, yet took us readers on a journey.
I loved how it was written as the characters journal entries, it really put us within her head.

Eva Ströberg

Beautiful drawing, haunting story.

We all know how high school can be a hell on earth, but for Melinda, it’s even worse. She’s the school pariah, after she called the cop on a party last summer, making everyone in the school resent her. What they didn’t know was what really happened to Melinda.

Her parents were not helping either. Both mom and dad drowned in work, too busy in the rat race of life to notice that their only daughter suddenly became depressed, failed in her subjects, isolating herself and losing all her friends.

It’s really a tale as old as time, how tough it is to be a nobody in high school, and nobody would even trust your words, even if you open your mouth and speak

"Speak up for yourself—we want to know what you have to say." From the first moment of her freshman year at Merryweather High, Melinda knows this is a big fat lie, part of the nonsense of high school. She is friendless, outcast, because she busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops, so now nobody will talk to her, let alone listen to her. As time passes, she becomes increasingly isolated and practically stops talking altogether. Only her art class offers any solace, and it is through her work on an art project that she is finally able to face what really happened at that terrible party: she was raped by an upperclassman, a guy who still attends Merryweather and is still a threat to her. Her healing process has just begun when she has another violent encounter with him. But this time Melinda fights back, refuses to be silent, and thereby achieves a measure of vindication. 

In Laurie Halse Anderson's powerful novel, an utterly believable heroine with a bitterly ironic voice delivers a blow to the hypocritical world of high school. She speaks for many a disenfranchised teenager while demonstrating the importance of speaking up for oneself.

Mathieu Schwab

A stunning adaptation of an incredible, important novel

Emily

It was such an engaging book and shows the emotional aspect of rape/sexual assault accurately. I recommend anyone to read this!

chloe rae

Such a powerful novel that I think EVERYONE should read.

Zahra

3.5 stars

Everyone seems to love this book and I feel like a weird loner, the only person on earth who doesn't. It was just okay for me. I really tried, but I just couldn't get to the point of actually liking it.

"Speak up for yourself—we want to know what you have to say." From the first moment of her freshman year at Merryweather High, Melinda knows this is a big fat lie, part of the nonsense of high school. She is friendless, outcast, because she busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops, so now nobody will talk to her, let alone listen to her. As time passes, she becomes increasingly isolated and practically stops talking altogether. Only her art class offers any solace, and it is through her work on an art project that she is finally able to face what really happened at that terrible party: she was raped by an upperclassman, a guy who still attends Merryweather and is still a threat to her. Her healing process has just begun when she has another violent encounter with him. But this time Melinda fights back, refuses to be silent, and thereby achieves a measure of vindication. A timeless novel about consent and finding the courage to speak up for yourself, the twentieth anniversary edition of the classic novel that has spoken to so many young adults now includes a new introduction by acclaimed writer, host, speaker, and cultural commentator Ashley C. Ford as well as an afterword by New York Times-bestselling author of All American Boys and Long Way Down, Jason Reynolds. This edition will also feature an updated Q&A, resource list, and essay and poem from Laurie Halse Anderson. Praise for Speak: “In a stunning first novel, Anderson uses keen observations and vivid imagery to pull readers into the head of an isolated teenager. . . . Will leave readers touched and inspired.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review “An uncannily funny book even as it plumbs the darkness, Speak will hold readers from first word to last.” —The Horn Book, starred review Praise for Speak: The Graphic Novel: “[Emily Carroll] should be recognized as one of the best graphic storytellers out there.” —Kate Beaton, author of Hark! A Vagrant “What a talent. What a voice.” —Mark Siegel, author of Sailor Twain, or The Mermaid in the Hudson “Carroll knows how to capture uncomfortable emotions—guilt, regret, possessiveness, envy—and transform them into hair-raising narratives.” —New York Times Book Review Accolades for Speak: New York Times Bestseller Publishers Weekly Bestseller Michael L. Printz Honor Book National Book Award Finalist Edgar Allan Poe Award Finalist Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist ALA Top Ten Best Book for Young Adults ALA Quick Pick Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year Booklist Top Ten First Novel BCCB Blue Ribbon Book School Library Journal Best Book of the Year

Speak 20th Anniversary Edition

Paulina

4.5⭐️
opening line: 3/10

this is hard to review as of the heavy topics it discusses. the writing is brilliant. first I was very bored by it but I realized that it reflects Melinda perfectly- everyone sees her as this boring, weird girl who doesn’t speak. I had exactly this feeling reading it.

Originally I choose this book for a book presentation in middle school and now I finally picked it up again, and I realized, like it was with the writing, that this book is so much more than the awful thing that happened to Melinda in the beginning, that it shows the flaws of highschool (especially in America) and the people there.

I give this book “only” 4.5⭐️ because it was hard to get through, as of the writing AND the topic ofc. I will never read this again. It was great but a book like this can be read one time only (as it is for me) and I just can’t give it the full five.

Nevertheless BRILLIANT, I wished I had finished this sooner

A traumatic event near the end of the summer has a devastating effect on Melinda's freshman year in high school.

madeleine

Lara Engle

Speak was already a great book. It's even better as a graphic novel. The way art is interwoven into the story becomes even more meaningful with the visual medium. The emotions are even more raw when seen as well as read. Each character has more soul and every relationship becomes more complex. It's amazing how you can see the power of a person finding her voice and learning to speak for herself.

Speak is a slight volume that packs a powerful gut punch. As I read, I kept seeing the faces of my students through the leaves of Melinda's tree. It is my hope that young people who need it find this book and through it find their own voice to speak.

Bessie Small

I thought the author did a good job expressing the heroins feelings. Usually in books like this the author will only talk about the physical harm its done and never the mental harm so thats what i like about the book. i think it was very realistic to today. and i think she did a good job interpreting todays youth and not trying to assume how they feel.

Tasha Ells

It was boring and hard to get into, but it had a good ending and it did mean something in the end. But it just made me mad how she reacted, until she finally did something for herself

Jacqueline Englund

A story that absolutely deserves to be heard on a subject that has still nit been given the importance it deserves! I didn’t connect with the characters the way I would have hoped and at times it felt a bit generic but overall still a good read.

Kristen Claiborn

I'm a member of this fantastic book club on Facebook. Each month we have four (sometimes five) picks. Some of them are specific titles, most of the time those come from The Book of the Month Club's main 5 selections each month. Other books are reader-picked by genre or category. September of 2021 our category was banned books. After reading multiple articles listing banned books, not a single person is shocked to hear I had read almost all of them (I'm a rebel). This was one of the VERY few I had yet to tackle, and since it was banned primarily for the negative attitude towards males, that seemed like one I would definitely need to read. 
 This is a powerful, and unfortunately WAY too common story, of a young woman who went to a party, got pretty intoxicated, and was raped. She was then vilified by her peers...somehow being the victim of sexual assault made her the bad guy. This is a story that is repeated over and over every day to young women around the world. It's a story that shouldn't have to be told. As a woman, it's a story I'm sick and tired of hearing. And finding out why this book was banned REALLY pissed me off. I'm glad I read it. 
 The only (and it's a tiny thing) thing I didn't like was the way it read like a choppy journal. Almost like the narrator was writing it as a detached version of herself. It didn't work well for me. Otherwise it's fantastic.

Jeannette Ordas

While the unraveling of events didn't come of a surprise, I enjoyed this book. What can I say, I'm a sucker for painful highschool stories.

Amelia 

WARNING: This book contains Rape and Self Harm. 

I honestly really enjoyed everything about this graphic novel. The illustrations were amazing, the story was truely heartbreaking and sadly something that happens. This book was truely sad, but eye opening. I think everyone should give this a read. And if you are staying silent, don’t, you are not alone. 

I borrowed this book from the library not knowing what to expect but it didn’t disappoint. And also someone who had previously read the same book before me had left a sticky note at the end of the book. Which really touched me and hopefully will help someone in the future. So thankyou to that person who left that sticky note. 

The sticky note said:
‘You are not alone. Full responsibility lies with the perpetrator. You are not to blame. There is help available and you are worthy of receiving it.’

I hope that note impacts somebody who needs it. A truely captivating and sad story, that was beautifully written and illustrated.

Rachel Braithwaite

melinda was a such a lovable character. she was very quiet on the outside but she had so many thoughts in her head. although this book brings up a very serious topic, it was laced with humor and made me love it even more. definitely recommend!

devin.reads

Izza

5 stars | Speak is one of my favourite books of all time. This "updated" graphic novel adaptation is just as hard-hitting and heartbreaking as I remembered it. Emily Carroll was the perfect artist to illustrate this story. Beautiful work. I have to reread the novel now. Highly recommend.

TW RAPE

Speak is a novel that means something very personal to me. The author managed to capture the pain and conflict that I felt myself as a sexual assault survivor. I saw myself in the Melinda and I saw the people I knew and grew up with in the other characters — including the man who assaulted her.

Reading this book felt therapeutic and healing to me. Melinda had so much more than just her voice taken away from her that night and watching her grow and trust herself into relearning how to use that voice to speak up for herself really allowed me the opportunity to do the same.

I truly believe this is a book that needs to be read by so many people, especially high school students so there can be conversations had about reaching out to people to see if they are in need of support and conversations had about sexual assault.

It’s not your fault. Never. Your voice will be heard

nora <3

i thought the writing style would be different. i had also seen the movie before reading this, so i kind of knew what was going to happen. the storyline wasn’t the strongest, it felt more like reading a diary or something. but i really liked it, just not the best book i’ve read. i could really relate to her character tho

aizea

i think its a great and realistic insight into the mind of a teenager as opposed to other 'coming of age' typa books which just focus on boy-crazy girls and stupid drama, which is so unnecessary. melinda's thoughts are actually relatable which i think is why, at least to me, she's such an unlikeable character.

what i mean is i dislike melinda because of how much i see myself within her and how many of her thoughts are also my thoughts; the same way i don't sympathise with a lot of her trauma because it's similar to what i've experienced and i find it hard to sympathise with myself. her thoughts and her reactions are realistic, the things she does at times make me cringe because they're things i've done if ygm

this book was hard to read at times, not just because of how relatable it is but because i didnt feel compelled to read it. it took me 2 months to read it and although i never wanted to DNF it, i never exactly felt the need to read it the way i do with other books (but this may be because i mostly read romance)

overall i do think this was a nice book, would read another book by the author and although the ending was ambiguous, i like it as it is and wouldnt like a sequel tbh.

Emelie

1,5owls!

Even if the plot is realistic and this happens more than we know, i was bored 95% of the time.

It's a story about sexual assault and that topic was talked about on like 5pages, the rest was how she performed in school and her grades. 

I get that events like this is hard to go through, but i felt it wasnt enough talked about and it should've been more attention to that specific topic. The author could've continued around 150 pages more and talked about how the plot would go after it was revealed what the main character had been through, and the perpetrator's punishment!

Speak: The Graphic Novel

Reviews