Speak

My thoughts in general: Well, this book was a 1999 National Book Award Finalist about a girl named Melinda who is in high school and has to deal with the many difficulties of being in high school and dealing with the consequences of decisions she has made. I have only read parts of it, but it looked intriguing to me, so I bought it and will read the whole thing when I find the time. The book was adapted into a TV movie in 2004, which I have not seen. I think it will interesting to see how the book was adapted because one of my main attractions to the book is the way in which it is written. The story is told in first person, and it does not follow all the typical conventions of writing. There are liberties taken in how the story is told. It is almost like a journal in which the girl, Melinda, just writes her thoughts according to however she felt at the time. According to some of the quotes on the cover, the book "plumbs the darkness" of life, school, being a teenager, etc. It is written in a way that invites the reader into the thoughts of this girl as she struggles through life. I was intrigued by this and am interested to see how the writing style supports (or does not support) the message of the book.

This is Laurie Halse Anderson, the author of Speak.

My thoughts on application: Because the main character/narrator of the book is a high school student, I think that this book might be more accessible to high school students than other books. I think that they might be able to relate and actually want to read the book. Here is an excerpt from pages 5-6:

THE FIRST TEN LIES THEY TELL YOU IN HIGH SCHOOL
1. We are here to help you.
2. You will have enough time to get to your class before the bell rings.
3. The dress code will be enforced.
4. No smoking is allowed on school grounds.
5. Our football team will win the championship this year.
6. We expect more of you here.
7. Guidance counselors are always available to listen.
8. You schedule was created with your need in mind.
9. Your locker combination is private.
10. These will be the years you look back on fondly.

Since I haven't actually read the entire book, I don't know about all of the content of the book. However, I think that the writing style would be beneficial to study/discuss in class. I think the style employed in this novel helps demonstrate that not everything has to follow traditional "rules" and "conventions." In discussing media, one of the keys in discussing the text is form (in addition to content). If students could express themselves in a form that suits their content, then the work they produce and its merit could then be discussed. I think it would interesting to have students write the same story using different writing styles to help the understand how form can change the power, depth, significance, meaning of the content.