Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson is a powerful book.  Told from the point of view of Melinda, a ninth grader who has been through hell but is not sure if the whole thing was her fault, the novel explores the crippling effects of guilt and confusion, and the healing effects of communication and connection. Too bad that Melinda has neither parents nor friends with whom she can communicate and must suffer through an entire school year under a choking burden of guilt and fear: she tries to communicate her distress by not speaking.  Why can no one hear her?  Silence can be very loud, if anyone is listening.

I was so frustrated by Melinda’s parents, I wanted to shake them.  Guidance counselor?  Pathetic. Teachers?  Ineffective but at least a couple of them try to reach Melinda, and the art teacher (who is busy fighting his own battles) offers her as an alternative to speaking expressing herself through art.  He also gives good advice;  art will help her survive, and self-expression, through art and through words, is the lifeline:  “When people don’t express themselves, they die one piece at time.”

And why is self-expression important?  Because by communicating with others we connect with others.  We learn we are not alone; we learn we have company in our feelings of occasional self-loathing or prevailing doubt; we find support for our dreams; and we offer strength to others through being listened to and listening.

Anderson writes in the easy language of teenagers, and has Melinda express the usual preoccupations of clothes, status, and grades, together with the poignant and age-worthy longing for the safety of childhood and the freedom of adulthood but being stuck in the misery of teenage-hood.  Add into the mix a traumatic and hidden experience, and Melinda compels our sympathy and our understanding.

In the end Melinda pulls off an act of incredible bravery, and opens up all readers to the importance of listening, even when silence is all we hear.  Sure, the lesson is to talk, to express your feelings and share your pains and failures and heartaches, and to stand up for yourself.  But the even more important lesson, as least to me as a parent, is to listen.  Self-expression only works when someone is bothering to hear what you’re trying to say.