Speak of Me as I am

The book I chose to write about is Speak of Me as I Am by Sonia Belasco. This is a realistic fiction book because it is about two teens coping together after the loss of a loved one. The two characters, Damon and Melanie, both lost someone of great importance to them. Melanie lost her mother to cancer while as for Damon he lost his best friend Carlos to suicide. Carlos was Damon's best friend. They spent every second together. Carlos had a camera that he loved and the night he took his life he left it on his bed along with a box of pictures for Damon to find. Melanie's mother left her with the gene of being an artist. Damon sees Melanie for the first time in the park under the tree crying where Carlos overdosed. He took her picture making Melanie look up at him in despair with her makeup running down her cheeks. Soon as Damon starts at Hamilton high school he hangs out with Melanie and her best friend Christian. Damon auditions with Christian for the school play Othello. Christian soon realizes that Melanie and Damon like each other so he tells the director that Melanie wanted to help paint the backgrounds. Melanie hasn't done any art since the passing of her mother so it overwhelms her a little. Soon after Melanie and Damon start to date they learn more about each other's losses and help each other through it. 

In my opinion, I thought this book was not only well written, but it was also very emotional because we got to see the real problems people face in the world today. It was very heart breaking reading and visualizing their thoughts and feelings. How their actions reflected that. At the beginning of each chapter I read a thought from each character that would be explained throughout the story. Switching back and forth between Melanie and Damon helped make the story stronger because it allows the reader to know what they are thinking in that exact moment. The story is very heart touching because the reader can see a different side to everyone, the reader sees what someone is hiding under a fake smile and forced laughter. So if you are looking for something emotional and heart warming to read, I would suggest reading the book Speak of Me as I am. 

-Morgan T.