Laurie Halse Anderson – laureate 2023 1
Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award Book tips from the
jury Laurie Halse Anderson has written many books in several different genres. Which one to choose first? Here’s some recommendations to help you out! Laurie Halse Anderson’s literary breakthrough came with the young adult novel Speak. When 13yearold Melinda is raped at a disorderly party, she calls the police, but she cannot bring herself to talk about what happened. How can we speak about what the world refuses to see? How can we speak so that we will be heard and believed? Melinda’s strategy for surviving the pain, shame, and isolation is to stop speaking. Anderson’s novel was published long before #MeToo and had an enormous impact. The part it has played in encouraging survivors – regardless of gender – to come forward and speak about their experiences of sexual assault has been widely acknowledged. Speak (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1999) 14