Identical by Ellen Hopkins

In honor of Banned Books Week, an Ellen Hopkins book. Enjoy.

Twin sisters, both with secrets. Not just from each other, but from everyone. Kaeleigh and Raeanne are identical twins with similar, but different problems.

Kaeleigh is emotional detached, a loner. She rides the school bus to be away from others, she works at a retirement home setting up meals, and she does not leave the house without Daddy's permission. Oh, and she is Daddy's replacement since Mom has moved on to the political arena and out from their lives. He drinks himself practically into oblivion and then sneaks into his daughter's bedroom, like he has for quite a few years, and gets the love he desperately misses from his wife. Too bad the only person she really wants is her best friend Ian.

Raeanne is just the opposite. She craves male attention because she feels unwanted by Daddy. She seeks out that attention in sexually with her drug-supplier and another random guy that she meets while fantasizing about her history teacher. She is rebellious in a sarcastic and smart-allick way, knowing when to stop just shy of "the line". Raeanne also feels like a protector for Kaeleigh. While she knows what's going on between her sister and her father, she does nothing to stop it.

As the election draws near tempers begin to flare as the girls' paternal grandparents, long missing from their lives, resurface separately and attempt contact with the family. The girls, unsure how to handle this and confused at their Daddy's vehement hatred of his own parents, set out to get to the bottom of what's going on; naturally they go about it in different ways with shocking results.

A grab-you-by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of book, Identical is astonishing and heart wrenching. Ellen Hopkins has done it again with her artful way of writing just enough that you understand, without having to spell out every single action. The rhythm and meter of her work is captivating and will suck you in in no time. True to form as well, this book has a twist that I am sure no one will see coming. I can't wait to read her latest work, Tricks.