~Young Adult Enthusiasts~ discussion

Has anyone read any Ellen Hopkins books? If so, which ones? What did you think?

I've read Crank, Glass, Identical, and part of Impulse (didn't get to finish it by the time it was due). So, far my favorite is Impulse. I haven't finished it, but the half I did read was pretty good. I like that it focused on multiple characters. I don't much care for Identical, it didn't really impress me. As far as Crank goes, drug stories were never quite my thing, even though Crank is still good.

One thing I like about Ellen Hopkins is that she writes in prose poetry. Not too many authors do that, and she really pulls it off well. It's different, but in a good way. Also, I love the way she writes about real problems and never sugar coats them.

I've only read Crank, and ... I didn't like it very much. I have to disagree with you about her style. I just don't care for it. Poetry-prose can work well, sometimes. But most of the time, I feel like it's a bit pretentious. In the case of Crank, I felt like it would have essentially been exactly the same if it hadn't been written in poetry. It still read like prose to me, so it was kind of just prose in a funny shape and I didn't find it all that compelling.

I also don't really enjoy "heavy issue" books. That is, books that focus in on a big issue like drug abuse, alcoholism, abusive relationships, self-harm, etc. In general, I feel like it's a cheap way to draw in readers since people care about these types of problems and feel bad for the characters. But most of the time, the characters themselves end up being rather bland and just a tool which the author uses to convey a message.

I have read crank, glass, fallout, impulse, tricks, burned, and most of identical. I love her books because they are about strong topics and I plan to read the other books she has out.

I have read all her YA books to date and love them. She has a new one out soon and I can't wait.
I like the books became they are real life stuff. As a school teacher, I think it is good for young adults to see how life can be when a bad choice is made at a young age.