Edited Laurie Delgatto
Saint Mary’s Press, 2006, 64, $9.95,
www.smp.org
More often than not, we in the “adult world” overlook the significance and insight of the young mind. Teens Speak, a collection of writings on family matters from highschool-age kids, offers a glimpse into the lives of the young adults who have offered up their work to be viewed for the betterment of the reader.
All of the authors in this book are young adults who present their ideas and beliefs in a very blunt manner, writing what they feel and believe without needless embellishments. The simplicity of their words makes their meaning so clear and genuine.
The book contains several short stories as well as poetry, with topics ranging from alcoholic family members to the struggles of peer pressure. At the end of the book, there are several pages of questions for the reader as well as space to write their responses.
Teens Speak would be excellent interactive reading for young teenagers who are struggling through many of the issues addressed by those their own ages. And the questions at the end will guide the readers as they strive to define for themselves the meaning of family.
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Review by: KATE BAKER, Journalism student at Northwestern College, Roseville, Minnesota.
