Review | Tricks by Ellen Hopkins

Five teenagers from different parts of the country. Three girls. Two guys. Four straight. One gay. Some rich. Some poor. Some from great families. Some with no one at all. All living their lives as best they can, but all searching...for freedom, safety, community, family, love. What they don't expect, though, is all that can happen when those powerful little words "I love you" are said for all the wrong reasons.

Five moving stories remain separate at first, then interweave to tell a larger, powerful story -- a story about making choices, taking leaps of faith, falling down, and growing up. A story about kids figuring out what sex and love are all about, at all costs, while asking themselves, "Can I ever feel okay about myself?"

Thoughts: If you've ever read any of Hopkins books, you know how powerful they can be. This was no exception. Written in the same format as her other books, this looks like a whole lot of book, but since it is written in short poems, I finished it quite quickly.

In the beginning, the stories are all separate, moving at a slow pace but then they start changing, becoming more intense and there are little details that intertwine the stories together slowly.

Hopkins created amazing characters, each with their own problems and all searching for similar things. The way the book was written had me turning page after page even though at some points it was even a bit hard to read.

I really am a big fan of Hopkins books and I am glad I got a chance to enjoy this one as well, I recommend it to everyone.

Favorite Line:
"If love has no more meaning
than that, you can keep it.
I don't want it now or ever
again. Don't want to hear
the words or wear it's scars."

This book was provided by the local library.