Crank, by Ellen Hopkins

Title: Crank
Author: Ellen Hopkins
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Release: October 5, 2004
Source: Fiktshun
Purchase: (RJ Julia | McElderry)

Kristina Georgia Snow is the perfect daughter: gifted high school junior, quiet, never any trouble. But on a trip to visit her absentee father, Kristina disappears and Bree takes her place. Bree is the exact opposite of Kristina—she's fearless. Through a boy, Bree meets the monster: crank. And what begins as a wild, ecstatic ride turns into a struggle through hell for her mind, her soul—her life.

I’ve had people telling me to read Crank, and every other Ellen Hopkins book for years now, but I didn’t give in to pressure for the longest time. What was I thinking? After reading Crank, I am so disappointed in myself for not reading it sooner. Perhaps it was intimidation that caused me to put off reading it; the book is over five-hundred pages long and is written in verse. Whatever the reason, it wasn’t a good enough one for not picking up Crank sooner than I did.

Drugs are a touchy topic, and it’s hard to write about one’s downfall from them the right way, but Ellen Hopkins got it spot on. It was heartbreaking to read Kristina’s story, but in a perhaps twisted way, I never wanted it to end. The story was so engaging and addictive… I was hooked. I cannot wait to read the continuation of Kristina’s story in Glass and Fallout.

Like I said, Crank is written in verse. Before Crank, I had never read a verse novel and wasn’t sure what to expect at all. But when I started, after the initial “how do I go about reading this” phase that lasted a few pages, I was so absorbed that I couldn’t put the book down. Though the writing is spectacular, the story it tells is even more so. I definitely am going to read another Ellen Hopkins book, probably more than one, very soon.

As a reader, you of course don’t want to agree with the decisions Kristina makes, but not once did I get outraged at something she did in Crank. It was weird, knowing that her life is falling apart before my eyes, but Crank as a piece of literature made me want to keep reading about this one girl’s downfall, and of course I wanted her to get on the right path, but at the same time I loved reading about her messed up life that I almost… didn’t.

Crank completely messed with my emotions and opened my eyes in more ways than one. I’d completely recommend Crank to anyone who wants a serious book that you can still love reading. And from what I’ve heard, Crank isn’t even Hopkins’s best book. I’m not sure if I can believe that, but I’ll definitely be looking into it.