--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Melinda's trick is looking hard in the…" description: "\"“Melinda's trick is looking hard in the mirror, Absolving herself and cracking open doors to the next place. But the girl at that school, so haunted, s..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1e/laurie-halse-anderson-623_absolution_melinda-s-trick-is-looking-hard-in-the-m_1248071.png" --- # Melinda's trick is looking hard in the mirror, Absolving… ![“Melinda's trick is looking hard in the mirror, Absolving herself and cracking open doors to the next place. But the girl at that school, so haunted, smashed all the reflections boarded up the windows and bolted the doors, forever stuck at 15 years old judged to serve a life sentence for what they…” quote by Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1e/laurie-halse-anderson-623_absolution_melinda-s-trick-is-looking-hard-in-the-m_1248071.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1e/laurie-halse-anderson-623_absolution_melinda-s-trick-is-looking-hard-in-the-m_1248071.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1e/laurie-halse-anderson-623_absolution_melinda-s-trick-is-looking-hard-in-the-m_1248071.png) > ““Melinda's trick is looking hard in the mirror, Absolving herself and cracking open doors to the next place. But the girl at that school, so haunted, smashed all the reflections boarded up the windows and bolted the doors, forever stuck at 15 years old judged to serve a life sentence for what they did.”” [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A girl confronts her self-image, breaking free from oppressive expectations, while another remains trapped in a painful past. **In simple terms:** Self-reflection versus being stuck in trauma. Key Takeaway Encourage self-awareness and breaking harmful cycles. Themes identity trauma freedom Mood hopeful melancholic Type literary psychological When to use this quote - adolescence - mental health - personal growth Key Concepts self‑image psychological liberation Questions to Reflect On - How does confronting one's reflection empower change? - What prevents the second girl from moving forward? A Different Perspective The metaphor may be too abstract for some readers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Absolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolution/) [Assault-survival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assault-survival-11686/) [Haunted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/haunted/) [Haunted Smashed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/haunted-smashed-3923267/) [Judgement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judgement/) [Melinda Trick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/melinda-trick-3923265/) [Open doors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/open-doors/) [Reflections Boarded](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reflections-boarded-3923266/) [School Haunted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school-haunted-1604268/) [Sexual-violence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sexual-violence/) [Unfair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unfair/) [Unjust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unjust/) ## Related quotes > [“a quick turn around a corner and my planet becomes sand on the shore of a dying Universe”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-kelley-harrell/a-quick-turn-around-a-corner-and-my-planet-becomes-sand-on-the-shore/) [S. Kelley Harrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-kelley-harrell/) > [High school is a haunted house in April, when seniors act up because the end is near. Even those who hate school sometimes cling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-gibbs/high-school-is-a-haunted-house-in-april-when-seniors-act-up-because/) [Nancy Gibbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-gibbs/) > [“I’m left with Haymitch in the rubble, wondering if Finnick’s fate would have one day been mine. Why not? Snow could have gotten a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/i-m-left-with-haymitch-in-the-rubble-wondering-if-finnick-s-fate/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“The Farmer’s Almanac promised a cold winter. The coldest in decades. Andrew grinned, unaware of how hideously ugly it made him. Let the winter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaime-allison-parker/the-farmer-s-almanac-promised-a-cold-winter-the-coldest-in-decades/) [Jaime Allison Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaime-allison-parker/) > [“He was about to cross a point of no return. The place separating him from the imaginary line in the sand. The one society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaime-allison-parker/he-was-about-to-cross-a-point-of-no-return-the-place-separating-him/) [Jaime Allison Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaime-allison-parker/) > [“It's easy not to abuse your power when you don't actually have any power.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-markus-malloy/it-s-easy-not-to-abuse-your-power-when-you-don-t-actually-have-any/) [Oliver Markus Malloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-markus-malloy/) > [“John was still making comments regarding violent things that he shouldn't, but I hoped he was just being a big mouth. Nobody was going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sierra-d-waters/john-was-still-making-comments-regarding-violent-things-that-he/) [Sierra D. Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sierra-d-waters/) > [“But no matter how much evil I see, I think it’s important for everyone to understand that there is much more light than darkness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-uttaro/but-no-matter-how-much-evil-i-see-i-think-it-s-important-for-everyone/) [Robert Uttaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-uttaro/) > [“Today I wore a pair of faded old jeans and a plain grey baggy shirt. I hadn't even taken a shower, and I did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sierra-d-waters/today-i-wore-a-pair-of-faded-old-jeans-and-a-plain-grey-baggy-shirt-i/) [Sierra D. Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sierra-d-waters/) > [“If we truly believe in equity, in justice, in accountability — then gender can’t be a shield. A predator is a predator, regardless of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-wallace/if-we-truly-believe-in-equity-in-justice-in-accountability-then/) [Carlos Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-wallace/) > [“In 2011, actor Johnny Depp told the November issue of Vanity Fair that he felt participating in a photoshoot was akin to rape. "Well,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-elsworth/in-2011-actor-johnny-depp-told-the-november-issue-of-vanity-fair-that/) [Emma Elsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-elsworth/) > [“We live in a world in which women are battered and are unable to flee from the men who beat them, although their door…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natascha-kampusch/we-live-in-a-world-in-which-women-are-battered-and-are-unable-to-flee/) [Natascha Kampusch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natascha-kampusch/) > [“Some readers may find it a curious or even unscientific endeavour to craft a criminological model of organised abuse based on the testimony of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-salter/some-readers-may-find-it-a-curious-or-even-unscientific-endeavour-to/) [Michael Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-salter/) > [“Some of the most effective segments are interviews with various staff members, including Aila, who works for the center’s legal department. She explains the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-uttaro/some-of-the-most-effective-segments-are-interviews-with-various-staff/) [Robert Uttaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-uttaro/) > [“Always know there are friends somewhere rooting for you. There are people you don’t know, always praying for you and lifting you before God.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-uttaro/always-know-there-are-friends-somewhere-rooting-for-you-there-are/) [Robert Uttaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-uttaro/) ## More by Laurie Halse Anderson > [“The word ghost sounds like memory. The word therapy means exorcism”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/the-word-ghost-sounds-like-memory-the-word-therapy-means-exorcism/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [Censorship is the child of fear and the father of ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/censorship-is-the-child-of-fear-and-the-father-of-ignorance/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [“I have this halfway place, a rest stop on the road to sleep, where I can stay for hours. I don't even need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-have-this-halfway-place-a-rest-stop-on-the-road-to-sleep-where-i/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [I can see us, living in the woods, her wearing that A, me with a S maybe, S for silent, S for stupid, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-can-see-us-living-in-the-woods-her-wearing-that-a-me-with-a-s-maybe/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [Eating plain toast will detonate her. "I'll have some honey." When the bread is done I scrape on a microscopic layer of it and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/eating-plain-toast-will-detonate-her-i-ll-have-some-honey-when-the/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [Cutting pain was a different flavor of hurt. It made it easier not to think about having my body and my family and my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/cutting-pain-was-a-different-flavor-of-hurt-it-made-it-easier-not-to/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [I am learning how to be angry and sad and lonely and joyful and excited and afraid and happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-am-learning-how-to-be-angry-and-sad-and-lonely-and-joyful-and/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [“Leaning against my father, the sadness finally broke open inside me, hollowing out my heart and leaving me bleeding. My feet felt rooted in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/leaning-against-my-father-the-sadness-finally-broke-open-inside-me/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [I like cheeseburgers too much to be a model.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-like-cheeseburgers-too-much-to-be-a-model/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [I am getting better at smiling when people expect it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-am-getting-better-at-smiling-when-people-expect-it/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [“All that crap you hear on TV about communication and expressing feelings is a lie. Nobody really wants to hear what you have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/all-that-crap-you-hear-on-tv-about-communication-and-expressing/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [I doubt trees are ever told to 'be the screwed-up ninth-grader.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-doubt-trees-are-ever-told-to-be-the-screwed-up-ninth-grader/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [“It was the most eloquent silence I ever heard.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/it-was-the-most-eloquent-silence-i-ever-heard/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [I've dealt with depression my entire life, on and off, which makes me the perfect author for teenage readers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-ve-dealt-with-depression-my-entire-life-on-and-off-which-makes-me/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [“What did it feel like to die? Was it a peaceful sleep? Some thought it was full of either trumpet-blowing angels or angry devils.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/what-did-it-feel-like-to-die-was-it-a-peaceful-sleep-some-thought-it/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) [Explore all 437 Laurie Halse Anderson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) ## More Absolution quotes > [I tell you, guilt dwells nowhere but in the eyes of the accuser. This men know even as they deny it, which is why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-scott-bakker/i-tell-you-guilt-dwells-nowhere-but-in-the-eyes-of-the-accuser-this/) [R. Scott Bakker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-scott-bakker/) > [It is by far the most elegant worship, hardly excepting the Greek mythology. What with incense, pictures, statues, altars, shrines, relics, and the real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/it-is-by-far-the-most-elegant-worship-hardly-excepting-the-greek/) [Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/) > [“There's a price for absolution on this planet, and it's called penance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spider-robinson/there-s-a-price-for-absolution-on-this-planet-and-it-s-called-penance/) [Spider Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spider-robinson/) > [“There's absolution and purity to fucking that strips people back to their primal core.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kitty-french/there-s-absolution-and-purity-to-fucking-that-strips-people-back-to/) [Kitty French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kitty-french/) > [From sorrow to serenity, the truth is absolution, from sorrow to serenity, its on your head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/killswitch-engage/from-sorrow-to-serenity-the-truth-is-absolution-from-sorrow-to/) [Killswitch Engage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/killswitch-engage/) > [“Being alone will show you who you really are, and if you cannot get-on positively as the sole master of your space in that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/being-alone-will-show-you-who-you-really-are-and-if-you-cannot-get-on/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [Our own acts are isolated and one act does not buy absolution for another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/our-own-acts-are-isolated-and-one-act-does-not-buy-absolution-for/) [William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/) > [“Time made apologies and absolution unnecessary. Time didn't really heal, it just made bad memories distant so that the brain couldn't recapture the lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amulya-malladi/time-made-apologies-and-absolution-unnecessary-time-didn-t-really/) [Amulya Malladi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amulya-malladi/) > [“Pause your opinions, debating and absolute knowing for long enough to conceive gratitude.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/pause-your-opinions-debating-and-absolute-knowing-for-long-enough-to/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [“Psychoanalysis is confession without absolution.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/psychoanalysis-is-confession-without-absolution/) [G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/) > [“I find something repulsive about the idea of vicarious redemption. I would not throw my numberless sins onto a scapegoat and expect them to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-find-something-repulsive-about-the-idea-of-vicarious-redemption-i/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It is the confession, not the priest, that gives us absolution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/it-is-the-confession-not-the-priest-that-gives-us-absolution/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [There is nothing absolute and final. If everything were ironclad, all the rules absolute and everything structured so no paradox or irony existed, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/itzhak-bentov/there-is-nothing-absolute-and-final-if-everything-were-ironclad-all/) [Itzhak Bentov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/itzhak-bentov/) > [The truth brings with it a great measure of absolution, always.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-d-laing/the-truth-brings-with-it-a-great-measure-of-absolution-always/) [R. D. Laing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-d-laing/) > [For one thing, the Catholic Church in particular has this one thing - confession - in which you could go, confess to a priest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jacoby/for-one-thing-the-catholic-church-in-particular-has-this-one-thing/) [Susan Jacoby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jacoby/) [Browse all 89 Absolution quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absolution/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Melinda's trick is looking hard in the mirror, Absolving herself and cracking open doors to the next place. But the girl at that school, so haunted, smashed all the reflections boarded up the windows and bolted the doors, forever stuck at 15 years old judged to serve a life sentence for what they did.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Laurie Halse Anderson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/melinda-s-trick-is-looking-hard-in-the-mirror-absolving-herself-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Absolution" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/melinda-s-trick-is-looking-hard-in-the-mirror-absolving-herself-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1e/laurie-halse-anderson-623_absolution_melinda-s-trick-is-looking-hard-in-the-m_1248071.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1e/laurie-halse-anderson-623_absolution_melinda-s-trick-is-looking-hard-in-the-m_1248071.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1e/laurie-halse-anderson-623_absolution_melinda-s-trick-is-looking-hard-in-the-m_1248071.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Melinda's trick is looking hard in the mirror, Absolving herself and cracking open doors to the next place…” — Laurie Halse Anderson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Laurie Halse Anderson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Melinda's trick is looking hard in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/melinda-s-trick-is-looking-hard-in-the-mirror-absolving-herself-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/melinda-s-trick-is-looking-hard-in-the-mirror-absolving-herself-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```