Katie

 //Crank// by Ellen Hopins

I read the novel //Crank// by Ellen Hopkins. This novel is about a girl named Kristina Snow who is a perfect daughter, student, and seems to never be in any trouble. On a trip to visit her absent father she looses Kristina and she finds herself to be somebody she never knew, Bree. Through a boy she meets Crank, the monster. Once she gets invited into this wild, unexpected party there is know turning back for Bree. An innocent dance soon turns into a dance with the devil, a swirling drowning tunnel to an unknown melody, one that Kristina couldn’t even escape from, let alone her worst enemy, herself.In an attempt to reverse the curse she finds that she has only dug herself deeper into the tunnel. Bree is addicted, and when she returns home she needs to get her hands on some crank, fast. She meets two guys Brendon and Chase who seem to supply her every need, including love. She begins dating the both of them. As she finds the more she gets involved, the more disasters occur.The light on the other side becomes dim, there is know way out of this mess. Kristina must find a way to remove the mask of Bree that’s plastered upon her skin and has infected who she really is.  In this story the theme is extremely clear to identify. The theme is summed up by thinking twice before doing drugs. She invites you into to her daughter’s life, the truth about being touched by the monster, and gives you factual information about living with crank. She teaches you through out the novel that getting involved with drugs ruins your life and turns you into a stranger, someone you yourself don’t even recognize. At the beginning of the book she wrote this message to the readers-     "If this story speaks to you, I have accomplished what I set out to do. Crank is, indeed, a monster-one that is tough to leave behind once you invite it into your life. Think twice. Then think again." She wrote her set of books not just for the money or a career, she had a goal bound in front of her. She wanted to inform the teenage population about the dangers that come with smoking, and evidently try to make a big enough impact with information that would cause everyone to think twice before becoming a victim of the drug. So please think twice, then look back and think once more. I very much enjoyed reading //Crank//. I loved how Ellen Hopkins wrote the book in the perspective of her daughter. I got a glimpse of what her life was like in such a unique and almost poetic form. Her book seemed to have verses upon each page, probably no more then a couple dozen words. She chose correct and creative vocabulary to make each image and event vivid with description and detail. Like her other novels, she wasn’t afraid to scare the reader with shocking facts. - “We went into her room. Locked the door. Sat on the bed. Robyn produced a V of crusty foil, tapped in the last crumbs of powder. This little bit will go right to your brain and won’t clog your sinuses.” Most of her writing within this book was very alarming, but I was pleased to know that Ellen Hopkins wasn’t afraid to acknowledge the truth. With this book not only informing young readers but also warning them, made the impact stronger. I really liked this novel for this reason because frightening facts may just be the one thing a teenager needs to say no. Here is some links that will help you learn more about this book and also drug abuse. [|Drug Abuse and Addiction] [|Ellen Hopkins:Crank]