Book Review: Crank by Ellen Hopkins

Book Review: Crank by Ellen Hopkins

There is one author whose books rarely stay on the shelves in our school library - those written by Ellen Hopkins.  Even though they are 500+ pages long, students (males and females both) read them. Why? Here is what they say:

• They are realistic.
• They are gritty and dirty.
• They tell the truth about teen issues and don't sugarcoat it.
• They scare me.
• They are fast reads.

Summary by Goodreads:

In Crank, Ellen Hopkins chronicles the turbulent and often disturbing relationship between Kristina, a character based on her own daughter, and the "monster," the highly addictive drug crystal meth, or "crank." Kristina is introduced to the drug while visiting her largely absent and ne'er-do-well father. While under the influence of the monster, Kristina discovers her sexy alter-ego, Bree: "there is no perfect daughter, / no gifted high school junior, / no Kristina Georgia Snow. / There is only Bree." Bree will do all the things good girl Kristina won't, including attracting the attention of dangerous boys who can provide her with a steady flow of crank. 

So why haven't I picked up Crank until now?  I honestly did not want to read about some of these real issues that are facing teens today.  At least once a month our city newspaper has an article about the effects of heroin on teens and young adults in the suburbs.  Just yesterday, I found out that an athlete that my husband knows and my relatives were very close with just committed suicide.  He had been fighting depression for some time now.  These are real life stories and as a parent it makes it so hard to read books about these same topics. 

That being said, I think Ellen Hopkins does an incredible job of helping readers see the truth behind these issues.  Crank focuses on meth, but I tell students to replace meth with heroin and it is the same story.  Even if this is a topic I don't particularly enjoy reading in my fantasy book world, I highly recommend parents and EVERY teen needs to read it.  These stories are eye opening and really can help us see the pressures that teens and young adults face today.