Thursday, January 13, 2011

Identical by Ellen Hopkins





Pages: 565
Publisher: McElderly Books
Age Group: Young Adult (Mature Readers)
Release Date: April 26, 2008
Challenges: 350 Page Challenge

Do twins begin in the womb?
Or in a better place?

Kaeleigh and Raeanne are identical down to the dimple. As daughters of the district-court judge father and a politician mother, they are an All-American family --- on the surface. Behind the facade each sister has her own dark secret, and that's where their difference begin.

For Kaeleigh, she's the misplaced focus of Daddy's love, intended for a mother whose presence on the campaign trail means absence at home. All that Raeanne sees is Daddy playing a game of favorites --- and she is losing. If she has to lose, she will do it on her own terms, so she chooses drugs, alcohol, and sex.

Secrets like the ones the twins are harboring are not meant to be kept --- from each other or anyone else. Pretty soon it's obvious that neither sister can handle it alone, and one sister must step up to save the other, but the question is --- who?

Stars: 4.5/5
Cover: B+

Plot:
Kaeleigh and Raeanne are identical twins, and their home-life is far from perfect. Their mom is practically never home, and their dad is abusing Kaeleigh. Raeanne feels like her dad doesn't love her, so she turns to drugs and boys. 

Things get progressively worse, long-lost grandparents start calling, and family secrets start revealing themselves. 

On the surface, their family is picture-perfect. But as you dig deeper into their lives and the things they hide, you realize nothing is as it seems.

Wow. This book left me speechless. I loved that it was told between alternating views of Kaeleigh and Raeanne. 

The entire story was really disturbing and left me feeling kind of miserable, to tell you the truth. Identical got so intense at times, I couldn't read it in one sitting. 

Characters:
The characters all had their own problems, and they were all just as bad as the next. Not to mention, they each had a way of dealing with their problems, but their ways of coping with their problems only made their situations worse. It was a vicious cycle.

It surprised me, because on the surface, the characters come off as having a really good life.

I couldn't really tell you who my favorite twin was. I liked them both for different reasons, and disliked them for different reasons, also.

I felt so much frustration towards their parents, though. They were infuriating. I wanted to shake them, and tell them to open their eyes and really see what they were doing to their kids.

Writing:
As always, Ellen Hopkins writes a captivating, dramatic book with a strong message. I love the way Ellen writes, and she is awesome at writing a story you just can't stop thinking about.

Ending:
The ending was my favorite out of all of the Ellen Hopkins books that I've read. It was shocking, confusing (but not in a bad way), and extremely thought-provoking. I found myself running the book back through my mind and connecting the dots so that everything made sense.

Lovely Line:
I lay awake
Most of the night, pondering
mysteries. Where did my father

come from? Who made him,
and who made him the way he is?

Who is my grandmother? Where
has she been all these years, and what

does she know that Daddy wouldn't
want us to know? What happened

between her and Grandpa Gardella?
What happened between Daddy

and him? Does Mom know
the answers to those questions?

If she does, why hasn't she ever
talked about them? If she doesn't,

why doesn't she? Why don't I?
Why are there so many mysteries

shrouding our lives? Will I ever
know the answers? If so, when?

If not, why?
(Page 368)

The Final Verdict:
This one is definitely more of Ellen's dark and depressing books. 

It left a big impact on me, and this is a book that will be haunting me for a long, long time.

FTC: I borrowed this book from my brother.

17 comments:

  1. This is my favorite Ellen Hopkins book... so far :) I still haven't read Tricks. :P

    ReplyDelete
  2. I just finished this one a couple days ago. It was definitely dark and it left big impact on me too. Great review.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks, guys!

    Caroline: I'll go check out your review!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I always hear how wonderful and profound Ellen Hopkins novels are...I'll definitely have to check one out, especially after reading your great review :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Yeah, they definitely are.

    And awesome! Thanks. :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. This book was excellent! I couldn't put it down! However, the ending of the book was completely unexpected, and in my opinion, not very good. Personally, I didn't think the ending suited the rest of the book.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. WELL I HAVENT READ IT SO I THINK ,THAT COULD HAPPEN.

      AND IF U HAVENT READ A BOOK CALLED AFTER ITS REALLY GOOD. ITS ABOUT A 17 YEAR OLD GIRL GOES TO JUVI FOR HAVING IT

      IT-U NO WHAT AND A BABIE

      Delete
  7. Very good post. I'm facing a few of these issues as well..

    Have a look at my website; Schuh Kaufen

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hey are using Wordpress for your site platform? I'm new to the blog world but I'm trying to get
    started and create my own. Do you require any coding expertise to make your own
    blog? Any help would be really appreciated!

    My web page; 404 : Page not found | Women's Learning Partnership

    ReplyDelete
  9. I READ THE BACK OF THE BOOK FOR A SCHOOL BOOK CLUB AND AT FIRST I DID NOT LIKE IT BUT THAT WAS BECAUSE I JUDGED THE COVER DON'T JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS BORING COVER READ THE BACK OR READ 1-3 PGS

    ReplyDelete
  10. I usually do not write a leave a response, however
    after reading a few of the comments here "Identical by Ellen Hopkins".
    I actually do have a few questions for you if it's allright. Could it be just me or does it give the impression like some of these remarks come across like they are left by brain dead people? :-P And, if you are posting at other places, I'd like to keep up
    with everything new you have to post. Could you list of the complete urls of
    your social networking pages like your linkedin profile, Facebook page or twitter feed?


    My blog post private krankenversicherungen test

    ReplyDelete
  11. I seriously love your website.. Very nice colors & theme.
    Did you make this web site yourself? Please reply back as I'm hoping to create my own blog and want to learn where you got this from or just what the theme is called. Cheers!

    Have a look at my web site - simply click the following website page

    ReplyDelete
  12. replica bags in gaffar market gucci replica handbags z0z84f3s11 replica bags seoul straight from the source g1f16j6a68 cheap designer bags replica replica bags nyc replica bags bangkok replica hermes handbags f6p58t7k68 best replica bags online 2018

    ReplyDelete

I love getting your comments, and I try my best to respond to everyone!

Thanks for taking the time to give me your feedback. :)