Tricks

I am super picky when it comes to the condition of my books. I am really impressed with this one. The only thing that irritated me was the inside cover flap was bent. 😫

Book was "Unacceptable" not Good". It has all sorts of gunk on the edges to the point where I don't even want to touch it. It had torn and a whole bunch of folded pages. The book is also without it's sleeve.

Have not read it yet

I envy Ellen Hopkins. She is by far the most amazing author alive. Of course that is just an opinion, but I'm sure someone out there agrees. I have read all of Hopkin's books, so it was just necessary that I read Tricks; boy am I glad I did. This book was so powerful I had to stop reading and just stare at the wall for a minute to remember that this is just a book. Lol, OK, a little exageration, but you get what I'm saying. It is so amazing to me that Hopkin's can begin five stories, all complete opposites of eachother, and in only about 600 pages, intertwine all of them to make one large picture; and she did it without confusing me! HAH! But anyways, the point is, this is an AMAZING book and I definitly recommend to all who have read her books, and if you haven't, START! Happy Reading~! (:

Tricks is a story of five teens that find them in a place that they never though that would be. Each characters comes from a different background and had their own journey there. Their stories are all intertwined and create a large story about making choices, taking leaps of faith, falling down, and growing up. 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. Tricks is a powerful book. The characters are like those that I know. I related to aspects from pretty much every character. They were definitely three dimensional. I cheered for their them and cried for all of their sadness. I felt that the plot moved a bit too slow for some of the characters and was resolved rather quickly. It was a original look on teen prostitution and how people get in to it. I love how Hopkins makes sure to keep the story real and edgy. Hopkins created a wonderful book that I think that you should check it out. At the end, you will be thinking "What if this happened to me?" and will want to read more.

In her five previous novels, which focus on such timely and disturbing social phenomena as sexual abuse, attempted suicide and methamphetamine use, Ellen Hopkins cuts through propaganda and politics to get to the emotional heart of the often controversial subjects she explores. In TRICKS, her most ambitious novel to date, Hopkins uses her free verse style to great effect as she explores the different routes taken by five teens to the same desperate solution: prostitution. Hopkins utilizes slightly different styles for each of her five subjects, a distinction that will probably go unnoticed by many readers, especially once they become absorbed in each person's story. She also provides transitions between narrators by repeating key words, further expressing the connections among these young people even before the plot does so. Although these stylistic niceties are subtle, the differences among Hopkins's subjects are not, and readers will likely have no trouble distinguishing the teens' narrative voices because their stories are so singular. Eden is the daughter of a fundamentalist preacher in Idaho, whose parents send her to a religious rehabilitation camp, where she falls in love with a non-believer and trades sexual favors with a prison guard to try to secure her freedom. Seth is an Indiana farm boy who comes out to his father in the wake of his first gay love affair, only to be thrown out of the house and into the arms of a wealthy but demanding and manipulative older lover. Whitney is a typical wealthy teen from Santa Cruz; when her first serious relationship fails, her insecurities and desire for affection connect her with a charismatic older man who promises her love but may not have her best interests at heart. For Ginger, prostitution runs in the family; she doesn't respect her prostitute mother, and she knows she has to escape (even if it means abandoning her younger siblings) when her mom starts pimping Ginger herself out to clients in search of someone younger. Cody lives in Las Vegas, so it's not surprising that he turns to gambling when a health emergency and family death lead to financial strains; when online poker and sports betting force him deeper into debt, however, Cody becomes desperate enough to perform acts he never would have imagined before. Hopkins's writing is striking and shocking partly because of the juxtaposition of lyricism and lewdness in each person's story. Each teen starts his or her short section with a poem summing up thematic or narrative concerns: "You stand in front of me, / Pretending to be solid, / but you're nothing / more than smoke and mirrors." These thoughtful, lyrical passages stand in stark contrast to the scenes of graphic sex, drug use and desperation that eventually characterize each subject's narratives. Readers will be alternately titillated and horrified by the encounters Hopkins describes in brief but explicit detail, and will frequently find themselves both repelled by the wretched situati

While (or maybe because) Tricks does, like Hopkins' other books, touch on controversial subjects, I believe this book is a great read for teenagers. The ideas about love and sex in this book - what happens when you search for it erroneously; what true love is; misconceptions about sex - are extremely relatable to what teens hear today. Through five different teenagers, each unique, each with their own personalities and backgrounds, you feel their stories come to life and gain insight as to how some people end up on certain paths. I wasn't expecting to love this one, but absolutely did.

Eden, Seth, Whitney, Ginger, and Cody are five teens, from all over the country. They may be as different as anyone could be, but they all have something in common: they want to be loved. But their pursuit of love and happiness isn't always smooth, and very quickly each teen finds themselves in a place they don't want to be, a place they never expected to be, each of them turning tricks. What starts out as five separate stories slowly intertwines to become one story about sticking to what you believe in, standing up for yourself, and ultimately growing up. As always with Ellen Hopkins' books, Tricks is one that will make you cringe but at the same time have you so tightly under its spell that it is impossible to stop reading. Tricks is intriguing at first as Hopkins introduces readers to her five diverse, painfully honest, and flawed characters. You can't help but connect with at least one of them in one way, shape or form. You even have high hopes for them and their happy ending, even as you can see that something terrible and heartbreaking is in store for them, and see them stumble into it. Tricks is not for the faint of heart; Hopkins gives readers a realistic and hard look at each one's life, not leaving out a single thing. She demonstrates to readers that there aren't any happy, perfect endings, but there is a way out, and all you need to do is ask. Tricks is a powerful, chilling read with a cast of gripping characters that takes a look at how they deal when forced into unthinkable circumstances. Cover Comments: This cover is actually pretty plain, but keeps in style with the covers of Ellen Hopkins' other books. So that in itself usually makes it distinguishable, but really I think it's pretty unremarkable. I'm trying to figure out what the cover is supposed to be...it looks like fire one minutes and then a red sheet the next. Oh well, it does it's job well! (Edited to add: I just saw a finished copy--very impressive! It looks much nicer than the picture!)