Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Glass (2007)

This book is a sequel to Crank, the story of a meth addict loosely based on the life of Ellen Hopkins' daughter. Methamphetamine in a very pure form is called glass, ice, crystal, or "the monster" by Katrina, an 18-year old girl who has already danced with the devil, kicked the habit, and had a baby conceived during a rape. We join her in this book living with her mother, stepfather, and brother, taking care of her son and trying to get her life back on track. Unfortunately, the drug calls to her again.

I have my out.
I have my high.
I have more stash
waiting.
I have a job.
Almost have an income.
It is almost time
for an outstanding
eighteenth birthday.
I have earned my wings,
can't wait for my
test flight to freedom.
My head buzzes,
my body rushes,
electric, anxious.
I want a taste
of flight, a taste
of adulthood, another
small taste of ice
before afternoon dwindles.
The last thing on my
mind is Hunter, waiting
for his mommy.

Every promise she makes herself, she breaks. Every stopping point, she passes. We watch her inevitable downward spiral and we are appalled at how seductive this drug is. It gives the user such a rush of feelings in the beginning but the rush fades and it becomes harder to exist without using until it is impossible to quit. She is kicked out of her house and moves in with her dealer who needs a nanny for his two children. How convenient.

Have you Ever Tried

To quit
a bad habit, one
that has come to
define you?
To cease
using a substance-
any substance-
that you not only
need but enjoy?
To stop
yourself from
lighting up that
cigarette? It's going
to kill you, but hey,
you're going
to die
someday anyway,
why not die happy,
why not die buzzed,
why not die
satisfied? Why not
die sooner, with
fewer regrets, than
later?

Will she ever get over the drugs and enjoy a normal life? To recommend this book, please allow me to use free verse.

Read
this
book.
Now.

My rating for this book: ++++

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