Personal Review - "Speak"

If you walk through Barnes and Noble on an average day, there’s usually a good chance of stumbling upon a popular book reimagined in a graphic novel format. Much like how movies adapt books for the big screen, there usually are a number of changes made in these comics to better suit the platform, yet likely not as many since the written word is a common element the two media forms share. However, despite that similarity, it isn’t often that I find a comic interpretation of a book that captures the integrity or feeling that the original source material is so well known for, and usually, the memory of the comic unfortunately blends into the memories of the original book.

Perhaps this common pattern is a part of the reason that the comic interpretation of “Speak” was as impactful as it was, being not just an outlier in its format but also debatably being a stronger story than the original novel because of how well the artist took advantage of the medium. After being exposed to and learning about other graphic novels as forms of literature, I sought to revisit this piece I read months ago with a new focus to see how this comic made a literary story beloved by English teachers everywhere even better.

Written by Laurie Halse Anderson, “Speak” follows the story of Melinda, a girl in ninth grade who comes to terms with and relives her trauma as a rape survivor by finding her voice. Published in 1999, the themes are incredibly relevant even to this day, when artist Emily Carroll adapted the tale for a new medium. Illustrated with heavy, thick black ink, Carroll’s illustrations bring a new sense of horror about Melinda’s experience and the struggles that plague her on a daily basis.

Words and people become harrowing shadows that haunt Melinda and trap her mentally and literally through composition on paper, an opportunity presented by the source material and very much emphasized during the character’s moments of crisis.

While much of the emotional impact is a result of the writing, the visuals pay close attention to the words and what the character is experiencing beyond what is said. This graphic novel interpretation succeeds so well not just as a result of the critically acclaimed writing, but the way that Carroll chooses to present the established themes in a way that literature could not achieve.

Melinda’s infatuation with cubism, for example, was discussed in the book yet taken to a new level with illustration. While the character might talk about how cubism moves her, the way that she sees herself as well as her teacher are two instances where Carroll chooses to show how that interest affects her worldview beyond what is just explicitly stated to the audience.

“Speak” the graphic novel was an entirely new experience for me - having read the novel before, I hadn’t expected to be as emotionally affected as I was by the piece. Carroll clearly had a lot of respect for Anderson’s story and sought to represent it as powerfully as Anderson had written it, a goal that I would say she certainly surpassed. Reading this was a breath of fresh air from the pattern of stories being told in new formats for economic benefit and this comic is one I would highly recommend, whether or not they had read the book beforehand.