“SPEAK” by Laurie Halse Anderson

“Speak”, is about a girl who has been raped and chose not to tell anyone about it.
In spite of the controversy of the subject, some fearless teachers of American literature teach this book to American students from middle schools, high schools, and even from colleges.
This novel helps students grow as readers and mature into thoughtful, caring people.

Whenever I listen to the news reports on Romanian TV, at least one of them is about rape. That means that the victim reported the violation to the police. But what about the cases that go unreported because the victim is too ashamed to tell anyone because of the public opinion. What then?

“I didn’t call the cops to break up the party. I called them because some guy raped me. Under the trees. I didn’t know what to do. I was stupid and drunk and I didn’t know what was happening and then he raped me. When the police came, everyone was screaming, and I was just too scared, so I cut through some back yards and walked home.”

In the past, I used to hear people whispering: “the girl asked for the rape”. Lately, people are no longer whispering. They are instead speaking out on TV shows and explaining to the reporter that the rapist are in fact <<good boys>> and that the victim is to be blamed because she was wearing short skirts and revealing tops that instigated the <<innocent>> boys.

“It is easier not to say anything. Shut your trap, button your lip, can it. All that crap you hear on TV about communication and expressing feelings is a lie. Nobody really wants to hear what you have to say.”

“SPEAK” is a book about depression, as stated by the author, and this is why it has resonated so profoundly among so many readers. <<Today’s teens have to cope with massive amounts of stress and conflict. Way too many of them understand the pain of not feeling like they can speak up.>>

I wish that this book would be read not only by the adolescents but by their parents as well.

Kindle, 2014