Ophelia Speaks: Summary and book reviews of Ophelia Speaks by Sara Shandler, plus links to an excerpt from Ophelia Speaks and a biography of Sara Shandler.

At age sixteen, Sara Shandler read Mary Pipher's Reviving Ophelia, the national bestseller that candidly explored the unique issues that challenge girls in their struggle toward womanhood. Moved by Pipher's insight yet driven to hear the unfiltered voices of today's adolescent girls, Shandler yearned to speak for herself, and to provide a forum for other Ophelias to do so as well. A poignant collection of original pieces selected from more than eight hundred contributions, Ophelia Speaks culls writings from the hearts of girls nationwide, of various races, religions, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Ranging in age from twelve to eighteen, the voices here offer a provocative and piercingly real view on issues public and private, from body image to boys, politics to parents, school to sex. Framing each chapter are Shandler's own personal reflections, offering both the comfort of a trusted friend and an honest perspective from within the whirlwind of adolescence. In these pages, you will see your best friend, your daughter, your sister--and yourself. At once filled with heartbreak and hope, in these pages Ophelia speaks.

Media Reviews

Library Journal Shandler, an undergraduate at Wesleyan University, envisioned this book as a response to Mary Pipher's national best seller Reviving Ophelia, and it certainly lives up to her expectations.   Publishers Weekly Shandler has done an admirable job of shaping the disparate pieces into a disturbing mosaic that reveals the seriousness of teenage problems.

Recent Reader Reviews

Rated of 5 by kmichell
inspirational
In reading this book I found a way to say all the things about my life that I had not been able to articulate. Having battled anorexia and bulimia and self-cutting for many years, I felt lost and alone. The book is so raw and real, I feel like the...   Read More

Rated of 5 by Chelsey
I read Ophelia Speaks for the first time when I was 11, my sister brought it to me shortly after I was admitted into my first psychiatric hospital. I related to the book in so many ways. I've been sexually abused and was cutting myself for five...   Read More

Rated of 5 by Jessika
Ophelia Speaks was there for me in a way that no one ever could be. Just reading those stories made me feel not so alone in everything. It helped me through so many rough times. It covers so many topics that whenever I needed something to help me I...   Read More

Rated of 5 by where'smymind
i recieved this book from my mother when i was going through some major depression last year, before i started to see a councelor.

i didn't read the book right away. i tossed it under my bed with all my other books that i decided not to...   Read More

Rated of 5 by Tiffany
I first saw this book in my english class......we all had to do projects on something we were interested on. One of the girls in my class decided to do this book. I had no clue what it was at first. I thought to myself oh another book. But when...   Read More

Rated of 5 by Viel
Ophelia Speaks is really a very great book--i have read some of the reviews for the book before and since then i have been trying hard to find copies in the bookstores until i came to one copy in a book sale. It really touched me in many ways; even...   Read More

...13 More Reader Reviews

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