Dear Melinda

Author’s Note: This is a letter to Melinda from Rachel, and it will explain what kind of character Rachel is and her actions she took for character development.  This is from the book, Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson.

Hey Melinda,

I am so sorry.  I should’ve believed you when you first told me what Andy had done… I totally regret dating that jerk, I’m glad I left him at senior prom. I was being really bratty and a bad friend.  We were best friends before, and then I turned into somebody I wasn’t.  You are the strongest person I’ve ever met! Seriously, how could you live with knowing he did that to you? It would be a terrible flashback.  I am in love with the fact that you told people what had happened, it’s good that you broke out of the shell and came out with the truth about what he did to you. You are one tough cookie!

I should’ve asked you why you called the cops before, I feel horrible.  I hope you know that you can trust me now, but hey! Best friends fight, right?  I know I was disappointed when we were in the library and when you wrote it down on paper, I believed you when you wrote it, but after I asked you who did it, and you wrote Andy Evans, I thought you were just jealous of my relationship with him. Oh my, I was such a jerk; high school completely changed me, it’s unbelievable… High school changes everybody though.

By the way, I have a question, were you skipping school, hiding, getting low grades, being shy, looking and feeling depressed because of my actions? I know I would have. Again, I’m so sorry for shooting you looks, saying mean stuff about you, and being super rude to your face I still just can’t believe that I did that.

You were totally right about Andy Evans, he should go to jail and stay there, forever.  He is absolutely disgusting. I hope we can become really good friends again…

Thank you.

<3 Rachel

This letter shows that Rachel, was Melinda’s best friend until a party when Melinda had called the cops because of an issue that no one else understood.  Throughout the book Rachel was very bratty, and she became someone she wasn’t.  I would describe Rachel as a dynamic character because she obviously changed a lot and became this ‘foreign freak’.