Book Review: Speak

Speak

By: Laurie Halse Anderson

My rating: 4/5 stars

This was an interesting read. I already knew the big secret – why the cops were called because someone let the surprise out (with NO spoiler alert given).  I had already bought a copy of the book, so I figured I should read it… Even with the ending being given away.  (For the record it drove me nuts to already know what happened… Felt like part of the book had been stolen away from me…)

Anyway, so I just finished this book the other day.  It honestly left me upset and annoyed.  It definitely wasn’t the writing – the author was/is very talented!  It was an easy read and I found it very easy to slip back into the story.  When I sat down to read it I felt that I had a cloud of negative thoughts above me.  I felt tired and my mind kept going back to some negative thoughts.  (I wasn’t depressed… But was very unhappy.)

Now I know by this point some of you might be wondering “Was it life circumstances that were bothering you?” or something like that.  The honest answer – no.  I went and met some celebrities at a nearby convention and had a blast.  I hugged my celebrity crush and got to talk with a lot of interesting people.  It was something out of the ordinary and I enjoyed every minute.  When I got home I was still very happy and felt uplifted.  Then when I sat down with the book and started reading I started thinking about all of the stupid stuff that I had said/done at the convention.  I knew I sounded like an idiot and that the celebrities weren’t interested in me – it was just because I paid money that they pretended to like me (they are actors after all) ….  And then I was left feeling uneasy and disliked myself a bit more after reading.

Other than this negative feeling that I got from the book… I honestly did like it.  Had the ending not been ruined then I might have not felt so unhappy while reading the whole book.  Or maybe I would have pieced together what happened… Maybe not.  There’s no way to tell.

I liked this book and I highly recommend it for middle school students  (and older).  There are adult themes / scenes, but I think the book’s overall message is far too important to be concerned about those moments.

My rating: 4/5 stars

Sincerely,

Taylor

Have questions, requests, etc?  Then feel free to send me an e-mail at taylorreadingblog23@yahoo.com

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