“Life was good before I met the monster. After, life was great, at least for a little while.” Crank, by Ellen Hopkins, is a thrilling realistic fiction book. Crank is about a young girl named Kristina and the decisions that she made on simple trip to see her dad, that will affect the rest of her life. Kristina learned the hard way that once you let the “monster” into your life, it's impossible to get him out.

Hopkins wrote Crank in poetic form, which makes Crank seem more truthful and realistic. Hopkins made Kristina's life such a possibility. It was completely real, almost as if it were a true story. I think part of the reason is seems like it's real, is because of all the person vs. person and person vs. self conflicts that Kristina encounters. I absolutely love Crank. I think it shows how carefully you have to choose who you want to associate yourself with. Also, how every decision we make, big or little, will effect our lives. I wanted to keep reading Crank because I wanted to see what new challenges Kristina would face and how she would handle them. I would recommend Crank to mature 13-year olds to 18-year olds. Anybody older would enjoy it, too, but I think that that age group will appreciate it the most and will have the biggest effect on them.