About this title: Kaeleigh and Raeanne are the twin daughters of a district-court judge and a politician mother. They are identical in almost every way, but each girl has dark secrets. The bestselling author of "Crank" gives voice to victims of childhood sexual abuse, in a moving and disturbing novel.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Date Published: 2008
ISBN-13:9781416950059ISBN:1416950052
Description: New. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 565 p. Intended for a juvenile audience. Intended for a young adult/teenage audience. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Margaret K McElderry
Date Published: 2008-08-26
ISBN-13:9781416950059ISBN:1416950052
Description: NEW. Hardcover. From an inventory that is 100% brand-new, 100% direct from the publishers' distribution channel. We carry NO pre-owned, NO remaindered. We pack in CARDBOARD to ensure the pristine quality is maintained. (Bubble-wrap alone is NOT sufficient to protect from USPS equipment. ) Guaranteed brand-NEW, protected with CARDBOARD, your satisfaction is guaranteed. BKLUVID: 9781416950059. read more
Edition: 1st edition. 1st Printing.
Binding: Advance Reader's Copy in pictorial wrappers.
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books, NY
Date Published: 2008
Binding: Spoken Word Compact Disc
Publisher: Highbridge Co
Date Published: 2008-08-27
ISBN-13:9781598877359ISBN:1598877356
Description: NEW. Spoken Word Compact Disc. From an inventory that is 100% brand-new, 100% direct from the publishers' distribution channel. We carry NO pre-owned, NO remaindered. We pack in CARDBOARD to ensure the pristine quality is maintained. (Bubble-wrap alone is NOT sufficient to protect from USPS equipment. ) Guaranteed brand-NEW, protected with CARDBOARD, your satisfaction is guaranteed. BKLUVID: 9781598877359. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Date Published: 2008
ISBN-13:9781416950059ISBN:1416950052
Description: Good. Used Condition-GOOD can be a well cared for Book that is in great condition to a Book that may show some signs of wear. GOOD Books sometimes are permanently marked; have some spine or page creases; exibit signs of aging or an ExLibrary copy. ** Sometimes grease pencil or permanent marking on cover. May contain limited notes and or highlighting. 100% Satisfaction guaranteed on all purchases. ** SHIPS FROM USA-Domestic Delivery takes 5-14 days ** read more
Description: Like New. Book appears unread, but may have a publisher's mark or minor shelf wear. We are the Twin Cities' largest independent book store. Notes: Please note: This is the audio version of this title. _; read more
Binding: Hardback
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Date Published: 2008
ISBN-13:9781416950059ISBN:1416950052
Description: New. Kaeleigh and Raeanne are the twin daughters of a district-court judge and a politician mother. They are identical in almost every way, but each girl has dark secrets. The bestselling author of "Crank" gives voice to victims of childhood sexual abuse, ... read more
Edition: Unabridged
Binding: Audiobook CD
Publisher: Workman Pub Co
Date Published: 2008
ISBN-13:9781598877359ISBN:1598877356
Description: New. Do twins begin in the womb? Or in a better place? Kaeleigh and Raeanne are identical down to the dimple. As daughters of a district-court judge father and a politician mother, they are an all-American family-on the surface. Behind the facade each sis... read more
Edition: 1st Edition
Binding: Hardcover in a Dust Jacket
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books, New York London Toronto Sydney
Date Published: 2008
ISBN-13:9781416971580ISBN:1416971580
Description: New in New jacket. 32mo-over 4"-5" tall. 565 pages, novel in verse, absolutely new copy, dust jacket is protected with plastic cover. read more
"Kaeleigh and Raenne Gardella are identical, exactly the same, down to their mole. Twins, yes, but with completely opposite personalities. Raenne is the "tough" girl, sex, drugs, and boyfriends are what her life consists of. Kaeleigh on the other hand is smart, gets good grades, and participates in school plays, and is considered the "good girl", she seems to have the perfect life. But the two girls have a secret no one knows. Kaeleigh has been sexually abused by their drunk father since she was a very young child. Mentally and physically she cant take it anymore. Her decisions and what she learns will change her life forever. Ellen Hopkins is a good writer and I enjoy her "voice" through out her books. I also like how the pages are set up in verses and poems. It makes the book easier to get through and more fun to read. I personally didn't like this Ellen Hopkins' book as much as the others. I felt like not a lot happened through out the story and it was hard to keep focused."
Its about two girls, identical twins, who have very different personalities. Its told from both of their perspectives and written entirely in poems. They lead a hard life after a life altering car accident. Their mother, now cold and heartless is a politician, and is rarely home. Their father is a drunk and addicted to oxycodon.
Kaeleigh is unsure of herself, and unable to love because she is being molested by her. Ian, her best friend and only good stable thing in her life is completely in love with her. She loves old people and gets attached to a woman who shares her own tragedies. Kaeleigh releases her hardships by cutting, and eating.
Raeanne is a hard ass, promiscuous, drug seeking rebel who loves her father very much and resents her mother. She is seen as the stronger twin, because Kaeleigh isn't strong enough to say no to people. She spends her time with Mick and Ty, who supply her with free weed, as long as she supplies them with herself.
I would recommend this to anyone who needs a good, hard core story. There's a twist in the end that will make your heart drop.
Ellen Hopkins is the New York Times best seller author of Crank, Impulse, Burned, and Glass. The lives in Nevada with her husband and son. She wrote and published her first novel when she was nine."
"Identical takes on the issue of sexual abuse by a relative. In this case, Kaeleigh is sexually abused by her father while her twin sister, Raeanne, isn't. Raeanne never tells on her father, especially since her mother is distant {she's running for Congress} and cold. And the story, written in the same free verse Hopkins used in Crank and Glass, switches from the point of view of Kaeleigh to Raeanne. Of occasionally, if you follow the sepearate words down the page, the girls come to the same conclusion through different experiences and sometimes they repeat what one another has to say.
"At ten, it isn't exactly easy to separate good touch from bad touch, proper love from improper love, doting daddy from perv." {pg. 241}
When I started my review in my head towards the end of Identical, I was all set to complain about how indistinguishable Kaeleigh is from Raeanne and visa versa. The identical twins I know are completely distinguishable - in dress, mannerism, and voice. Raeanna and Kaeleigh are not, and I found myself flipping back and forth, back and forth between the pages to make sure who I thought was speaking was, in fact, speaking. But then I reached the end and my complaint was explained. At least, to a degree.
You see, the ending in unexpected, unexplainable, and completely out there. At the end of the book, you learn that Raeanna actually died in the car accident caused by Ray and Kaeleigh has multiple identities, living through herself and her twin sister to cope with the sexual abuse. Now that I think about it, the book is riddled with clues: Raeanne and Kaeleigh never talk to one another, the accident Ray caused never made any sense, the fact that Madison hits on both girls' boyfriends, why Ray would choose one daughter over the other when they're supposed to be identical. But the ending didn't settle right with me; it felt too much like a copout.
And the fact that, rather than focus on one issue, Hopkins threw in sexual abuse, bondage, teacher-student relationships, parents' separation, rape, child p*rnography, pr*stitution, drags, and alcohol abuse. I don't know if she was trying (too hard} to be "edge" and push the envelop with her novel or if she couldn't decide which problem to focus on in this novel, but her jam packed novel didn't settle right with me."
Basically it's about these two twins, Kaeleigh and Raeanne. They are half of the All-American family, with a dad who is a judge and a mom who is running for a position in Congress. But what lies beneath their facade is really dysfunction; and the worst, worst kind.
Kaeleigh, the introverted one, is being sexually abused by Ray, her own father, and also binges and cuts herself. Raeanne is the exact opposite and is more outgoing, but finds herself wanting the attention Kaeleigh always gets. So, she resorts to drugs, and lots, and lots of sex. And this is just the beggining of the horrible suffering the twins face in this book.
As a teenager myself, I must admit that sometimes I cringed while reading the book and had to put it down for a second. However, I would immediately pick it right back up and continue reading. I strongly would reccomend not giving this book out to teens under the age of 14; it's just THAT graphic at some parts of the story. Not bad, though.
Ellen Hopkin's unique poetry style is commanding and flawlessly executed, and when the twin's viewpoint switches over the mirroring effect is awe-inspiring. (read the indiviual words as they go down the page.)
The twist at the end was... wow. I remember the shock I experienced the first time I saw it. Overall, if you are a fan of Ellen Hopkin's previous works this will be another amazing readthrough, if not, then it won't hurt to give it a try. /end review"
We guarantee every item's condition, as described on Alibris. If you are not satisfied that an item is as described, return your purchase for a refund.
rating
