People Kill People by Ellen Hopkins

People Kill People by Ellen Hopkins, 428 pages

I could tell by the cover this book may be controversial, but I really had no idea what the book was about and how Ellen Hopkins would deal with gun violence in today's society.  The book follows six teens all connected either by family or friends.  Their relationships are complicated.  Each one has been touched by violence and abuse.  But, how will it end?  In a shocking ending, the trigger is pulled.  Who will be the victim and who will pull the trigger.  Guns don't kill people.  Guns just make it easier, even for a child to do it.

Tilt by Ellen Hopkins

Tilt by Ellen Hopkins, 603 pages

I think you could call this a stand alone novel, but it is a follow up to Ellen Hopkin's adult novel, Triangles.  For the first 300 or 400 pages of Tilt, the storyline overlaps with Triangles, but in Tilt, it is told from the teens perspective as opposed to their mother's perspective.  Tilt follows the lives of three teens, Mikayla, Harley and Shane.  Shane and Harley are cousins and Mikayla is a good friend.  Mikayla finds herself alone and pregnant when the father of her child abandons her.  She must decide to keep her baby or chose adoption.  Harley finds herself in dangerous situations, pressured by the boys she thinks care about her.  And, Shane, as a homosexual teen, finds himself in love with a young man with HIV.  Tilt is sad and heartfelt as the reader watches their lives intertwine and tumble out of control.

Triangles by Ellen Hopkins

Triangles by Ellen Hopkins, 544 pages

I heard about this book as a prequel to the teen book, Tilt.  Triangles is Ellen Hopkins first adult novel.  Ellen Hopkins is known mostly for her teen books written in prose.  I listened to this book on audio which was kind of neat because it is about three female friends and was interesting to hear it told in a three voice perspective.  Triangles follows three adult friends as they face their individual midlife crisis.  Each woman is different from the other.  Andrea is a single mother raising a teen daughter.  Holly is a very unhappy wife raising two teenagers.  And, Marissa is a loving wife who is struggling to raise a gay son and a terminally ill daughter.  Triangles was a very good story, but also a very sad one.

Perfect by Ellen Hopkins

Perfect by Ellen Hopkins, 622 pages

This book is the sequel to the book Impulse by Ellen Hopkins. I thought Perfect would follow what happened to the characters in the book Impulse. But, what it is about is characters related to the characters in Impulse. written in the same tense as Impulse. This was a very thought provoking book. Perfect follows the lives of characters who were all associated with Conner. Cara is Conner's twin sister who is striving to be perfect in every way. Kendra is Conner's ex girlfriend who is trying to win beauty pageants while losing weight to the point her health is at risk.  Jenna is Kendra's sister who finds herself in a relationship with Andre.  All these teens are trying to find their perfect selves in a way that destroys their lives and those of their loved ones.

Impulse by Ellen Hopkins

Impulse by Ellen Hopkins, 666 pages

I had been searching for this book for a while when I found it while searching our catalog in our new Evergreen library system.  I enjoyed reading this book, even though it dealt with many taboo subjects.  But, I really felt like I connected with the three main characters in the book. Vanessa feels flawed as a person and only feels good when she is cutting herself.  Tony is a young, homosexual drug user who is living on the streets, trying to recover from the lose of his partner and from being abandoned by his father.   Conner is a teen who feels he cannot live up to the high standards his parents have set for him and recovering from having a sexual relationship with a teacher.  Each of the three find themselves locked up together in a psychiatric hospital called Aspen Springs.  The three each tried to commit suicide in their own way: Vanessa by cutting, Tony by pills, and Conner by shooting himself in the chest.  They are each sent to Aspen Springs to recover.  The three connect in a very special way.  The ending was shocking.

Rumble by Ellen Hopkins

Rumble by Ellen Hopkins, 546 pages

I think I have read most of Ellen Hopkins books, and I must say this is probably one of my least favorites.  Matthew Turner is a teen in high school dealing not only with everyday issues but also dealing with the suicide of his homosexual brother, Luke. Luke was driven to suicide by the bullying he faced at school after he came out.  All this has made Matthew question his religion, his faith and his relationship with his girlfriend. All of Ellen Hopkins books are a little depressing, but this one was hard to get into.

Smoke by Ellen Hopkins

Smoke by Ellen Hopkins, 543 pages

Smoke is the sequel to the teen book Burned.  It continues right where it left off.  Pattyn is a teen on the run after taking the blame for killing her father. She and her mother and sisters had been abused for years by the man they called Dad.  She killed him to save her sisters from the years of abuse she suffered.  What she takes is the blame for killing her Dad when really it was her sister Jackie who killed him. While on the run, Pattyn finds a friend, a new job and a new love by the name of Angel.  But after losing her true love, Ethan and their unborn baby, Pattyn fears she will never be able to love again.

The You I've Never Known by Ellen Hopkins

The You I've Never Known by Ellen Hopkins, 590 pages

In this latest book written entirely in prose by Ellen Hopkins, there is so much going on with the main character, Ariel Pearson.  Not only is she just trying to be a normal teenager trying to fit in at school and on the basketball team, but Ariel and her Dad, Mark, have been on the move her whole life.  Now they are living in a place Ariel can finally fit in.  She has her best friends Monica and Syrah. Ariel finds herself falling not only for her friend Monica, but also falling for her Dad's girlfriend's nephew Gabe.  But, when an accident happens to a fellow student that throws Gabe and Ariel in the middle of rewards and publicity of being heroes, Ariel's life takes a tumble.  What she thought was her life with her Dad after her mother left her as a small child turns out to be something much more when her mother comes back into her life and tells her the real truth of who she is.  Not only does Ariel finds herself dealing with changing relationships, she finds out her real birthday is September 11th.  This book is very long, but well into the middle the reader is trying to guess the tie in between the back and forth narrations of Ariel and Maya McCabe.  Read and find out!

Traffick by Ellen Hopkins

Traffick by Ellen Hopkins, 523 pages

Traffick is the follow up book to Tricks.  Written in verse, this teen book follows Eden, Cody, Seth, Ginger, and Whitney as they hit rock bottom in Las Vegas.  Each on a different path of drugs, addiction, and prostitution, this book show what happens when teens make poor choices. Ellen Hopkins writes a very intriguing story and manages to tie the lives of these characters together.

Tricks by Ellen Hopkins

Tricks by Ellen Hopkins, 625 pages

In this first book in this teen angst series by Ellen Hopkins, five teens fall into the dark side of prostitution. Each of these five teens come from very different backgrounds across the United States.  Eden, Cody, Seth, Ginger, Whitney each have a very different story growing up, but they all have a few things in common.  They are each looking to find love and happiness, but what they find is darkness and pain.

Burned by Ellen Hopkins

Burned by Ellen Hopkins, 531 pages

Every now and then I like to read an Ellen Hopkins book. Her books explore teen angst to the fullest and usually have some depressing and shocking twist.  This one was no exception.  Pattyn is a teen Mormon girl forced to spend the summer with her Aunt Jeanette after misbehaving. Being sent away turns out to be a blessing because in Pattyn's home her Dad is a mean, angry alcoholic who beats her mother.  What Pattyn finds that summer is peace and comfort in the arms of Ethan.  Of course they fall in love and tragedy falls upon them.

Identical by Ellen Hopkins

Identical by Ellen Hopkins, 565 pages

In Identical, Ellen Hopkins writes about a very taboo subject: incest. Kaeleigh and Raeanne are identical twins who were in a horrific car accident when they are younger that turned their lives upside down. Kaeleigh and Raeanne are exact opposites in personality.  When their mom decides to run for Congress, their Dad becomes their main caregiver. Shocking and disturbing at times, this book is written in verse which keeps the story moving and enthralls the reader.  I knew nothing about this book when I started and towards the end, a surprise twist is thrown out there that makes this one of the best books for young adults.

Fallout by Ellen Hopkins

Fallout by Ellen Hopkins, 665 pages

Fallout is the third and final book of the Crank series. Unlike the first two books, written from Kristina's perspective, this book is entirely written in the perspective of her children.  In the first book, Crank, Kristina gives birth to her son, Hunter.  In the second book, we find out she is expecting a second child, which is revealed was a daughter.  The story continues with another daughter and two more sons.  Only the two youngest live with Kristina. Hunter seems to have the most stable life being raised by Kristina's parents. His other siblings were not so fortunate. Drug addiction is not only the problem of the addict, but it also adversely affects everyone in the family.  It is never one person's problem.  Kristina's children have to fight their own addictions, all the result of Kristina's lifelong addiction to meth.

Glass by Ellen Hopkins

Glass by Ellen Hopkins, 681 pages

In her follow up novel to Crank, Ellen Hopkins continues with her story of Kristina and her battle with meth addiction in Glass.  After the birth of her son, Kristina stays clean for a little while, but she can't fight her cravings.  After landing a job at 7-Eleven, she scores some money for her new found addiction, glass.   Glass is a more powerful, purer form of meth.  Kristina's addiction proves so strong she is kicked out of her house and loses custody of her son. Finding a new love with Trey, Kristina falls into a deeper path to destruction that eventually lands her in jail. This novel was very powerful and shows how drug addiction can destroy a young life.

Crank by Ellen Hopkins

Crank by Ellen Hopkins, 537 pages

I had heard many things about this book.  Crank brought me back about 30 years when Go Ask Alice was the controversial book read by teenagers.  I read that book many times.  Crank is a book written in verse.  The pages are short which make it a quick read.  Crank is loosely based on Ellen Hopkins' daughter's own story.  In this book, teen Kristina Georgia Snow is introduced to crank, aka the  "monster," while visiting her Dad one summer. Crank is crystal meth. While doing crank, Kristina becomes her uninhibited altar ego, Bree.  Kristina is introduced to many things while staying with her Dad, including a boy named Adam. Needless to say, once she returns home to her Mom and step dad, Kristina is transformed from a good girl/student to "Bree."  Kristina experiences some very traumatic experiences which eventually leads to her giving birth to her son. This book may not be for everyone, but it does spark the discussion of drug usage among teenagers.

Triangles - Ellen Hopkins

Triangles by Ellen Hopkins - 529 pages

Holly: Filled with regret for being a stay-at-home mom, she sheds sixty pounds and loses herself in the world of extramarital sex. Will it bring the fulfillment she is searching for?

Andrea: A single mom and avowed celibate, she watches her friend Holly's meltdown with a mixture of concern and contempt. Holly is throwing away what Andrea has spent her whole life searching for - a committed relationship with a decent guy. So what if Andrea picks up Holly's castaway husband?

Marissa: She has more than her fair share of challenges - a gay, rebellious teenage son, a terminally ill daughter, a husband who buries himself in his work rather than face the facts.

As one woman's marriage, another's rekindles. As one woman's family comes apart at the seam, another's reconfigures into something bigger and better. In this story of connections and disconnections, one woman's up is another one's down, and all of them will learn the meaning of  friendship, betrayal, and forgiveness.

Tilt - Ellen Hopkins

Tilt by Ellen Hopkins - 602 pages

Witnessing the fallout from the poor choices their parents make and the lies adults tell themselves, three teens are clinging to the remnants of the secure and familiar world in which they've grown up. Makayla is sure she's found the love her parents seem to have lost, but is suddenly weighing nearly impossible choices in the wake of dashed expectations. Shane has come out, unwilling to lie anymore about who he is. Harley, a good girl just seeking new experiences, never expects to hurtle towards self-destructive extremes in order to define who she is and who she wants to be.

Crank - Ellen Hopkins

Crank by Ellen Hopkins - 537 pages

All it took to change Kristina Snow's life was a trip to visit her father. Three weeks in Reno and Kristina has become Bree and begun her relationship with "The Monster". As meth leads Kristina into mind-altering and life devastating choices, her family and friends are powerless to stop her quick dive into a life of sex and drugs. Kristina's life spins out of control as she "flirts with the monster" and most readers find themselves soaring through this intense novel in a matter of hours. As with all of Ellen Hopkins' novels you will find yourself immersed and unable to put it down.