Captivating and thoughtful. Speak certainly is one of those books that's sticks with you long after you've finished reading it. 
 I was told that some school's have now put this novel into their curriculum. I think that's wonderful! This is truly a story I feel needs to be heard and studied and thought about in great lengths. 
 Melinda's story is fast paced and although it truly doesn't have a whole lot of plot to it, it carries something within it that keeps you invested in where it's going till the very end. 
 There were pieces of this book where I was so incredibly into where it was going that I simply couldn't put it down. There were other parts that actually made me laugh out loud. And again, there were parts that had me so mad I wanted to throw things across the room. I went through a roller-coaster of emotions with this story. 
 Lets discuss these things a little bit shall we? 
 First, the nearly plot-less story I still couldn't stop reading. Ironically, Melinda who spends most of the story NOT speaking, has quite the enticing and entertaining voice as a narrative. I liked her, and I enjoyed the way she told her story. 
 Second. The funny stuff. There were a lot of chuckle moments in this story, but there was a particular moment when Melinda imagines (durring a day at home watching talk shows) What Oprah, Sally Jesse, and Jerry Springer would tell her about her situation. As a person who's grown up with all three of those talk show hosts on my days home sick from school, I could actually hear their voices in my head and it literally made me giggle out loud. It was an entertaining moment in the story. 
 Third. The parts that got me so mad I could spit. Well, probably the most obvious part of the story which would invoke anger for most people is ANDY (BEAST) Evans. I hated him. He made my skin crawl. He was a really really hated character for me and that doesn't happen often. There was nothing about him in the least that could make you think he was (misunderstand) Nope, he was just a dirtbag. 
 The other person in this story that had me so mad I could spit?? Melinda's self absorbed B*^%h of a mom. Yeah I said it, that woman was a sorry excuse of a mother and it made me sick.. I was disgusted by her lack of even trying to understand what was going on with her (obviously) bothered child. Melinda wasn't speaking, her grades floundered, she wore baggy, loose fitting clothes, she cut class, she showed no intrest in previously loved activities... all tell tale signes that something is VERY wrong. BUT yet, according to her piece of crap mother, she must have been doing all of this to punish HER??!!! 'WTF! Are you frigin' kidding me??' (that's what I was saying in my head) I'm glad this mother is a fictional character, cause no joke, I wanted to confront that woman and just go all 'Sons of Anarchy' on her. LOL 
 All jokes aside though, this book has a very real tone to it that will likely speak to everyone on some sort of level at some point in their lives. It's worth the read for just about anyone from the ages of 12 and up.