“It happened. It cannot be avoided or forgotten. No running, flying, burying or hiding allowed. The novel Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson moves people and takes them on an adventure into the mind of a teenager. But not just any teenager, according to Melinda Sordino. A freshman at Merryweather High, fourteen years old, with muddy brown hair, brown eyes, chapped lips, and hated by her new school. Says no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Starting on her first day of high school, she is already known among her peers as the outcast and unwanted by anyone who knows her name. For what reason? As far as is known, he called the police to a party resulting in several of the attendees being arrested. However, she chose not to think, hear or talk about what happened on that cool August summer night in Syracuse, New York, that made her new school hate her. personal point of view on Melinda. Some with positive things to say and others with a more negative view of his past actions and poor reputation. For starters we have the protagonist herself, Melinda Sordino. Melinda is an intelligent and insightful person who tries to get through the day as best she can. With all her old friends ignoring her and her parents too busy to notice the problems that caused her pain, she is left with nothing but her pain and the memories that have haunted her since that summer day. Throughout the year you see Melinda go through her ups and downs. Going from starting to talk a little more when she befriends the new girl, Heather, to falling deeper into her depressive state, skipping classes and her grades dropping dramatically when Heather decides to abandon her to become one of the "Marthas". , a popular click on Merryweather. We discover as the book continues that Melinda is indeed a very complex character who seems to have a very deep understanding of everything and everyone around her. One day, when she stays at home because she is ill, she finds herself watching Oprah and almost using her as a voice to reconstruct and explain to herself what really happened that night and what happened, showing us that what she observes she uses to help her solve problems that cannot interpret or understand clearly. As the book progresses, we meet many characters who create a new level of complexity and intrigue in this story, each playing a key role in Melinda's evolution over the course of the novel. Specifically his eccentric and enthusiastic art teacher, Mr. Freeman. Mr. Freeman is one of the few people in this story who recognizes Melinda's struggles and pushes her to speak openly and express her feelings, both through words and through her art. He brings a sense of lightheartedness and positivity to the book with his motivational speeches, dedication to his students, and quirky character. Besides Mr. Freeman, Rachel Bruin is another character who plays an important role in Melinda's first year at Merryweather. Rachel is known in history as Melinda's former best friend. After learning what Melinda had done that day, he has hated her ever since. At least until he discovered the truth about what happened that confusing and chaotic night. A truth that no one except Melinda had known. Rachel's role, particularly her hatred for Melinda, is one that almost serves to remind our main protagonist of everything that has happened and everything that has changed since that night. We witness, through Melinda's eyes, Rachel's attempts to adapt to her new, well-known "click"., 45(3), 40-47.