Crank

In my search for looking for good YA novels for Alan's classroom next year, I found a list of books that are popular with seventh and eighth graders. One of the titles was Ellen Hopkins' Crank. I glanced at what it was about--a teen girl on crystal meth. I wasn't sure if the novel would be something that would work for his classroom, but I know that Alan is interested in hearing stories about struggles with addiction, so I placed the book on hold. When it came in, I saw that the book was written entirely in a series of poems, which made me more interested in reading the book myself (though it seemed less appealing to Alan).

It was a quick read and an interesting format. I've seen other novels written with poetry rather than prose and I do enjoy the reading experience, though it can also leave something to be desired--particularly in terms of character development. Some of the things that happen in this book can seem hard to believe simply because you don't know the characters well enough to know if they would actually do these things. Overall I did enjoy the book and found it interesting that it is the first in a trilogy. I plan on eventually picking up the sequel, but am not rushing out to read it.