A review by sngick
Collateral, by Ellen Hopkins
4.0
This was the first Ellen Hopkins book I've read despite constantly ordering and purchasing her YA novels for my students and library. I've always been reluctant to try her YA novels because I perceive them as depressing and sad.
I decided to read Collateral because it was a love story. I'm a sucker for a love story and appreciate a good romance to lose myself in every once and a while.
The verse novel style made for a quick read but didn't lessen my involvement with the characters and story. My heart ached for Ashley as she fell for her marine and devoted herself to him during his 4 tours of duty in Afghanistan. I hoped for a happy ending but knew it probably was not going to happen. The emotions in this book are raw and intense. The characters are fairly well developed. The differences in writing styles for Ashley's thoughts and Cole's poetry was apparent. I also appreciated the changes in fonts for writers and even to depict different emotions and time periods.
I would recommend this book to adults who say they don't read or don't have time to read. The strong male & female main characters and military subject matter make it seem appealing to both men & women, but I doubt many guys will give it a try. I can now understand why my students enjoy books by Ellen Hopkins.
I decided to read Collateral because it was a love story. I'm a sucker for a love story and appreciate a good romance to lose myself in every once and a while.
The verse novel style made for a quick read but didn't lessen my involvement with the characters and story. My heart ached for Ashley as she fell for her marine and devoted herself to him during his 4 tours of duty in Afghanistan. I hoped for a happy ending but knew it probably was not going to happen. The emotions in this book are raw and intense. The characters are fairly well developed. The differences in writing styles for Ashley's thoughts and Cole's poetry was apparent. I also appreciated the changes in fonts for writers and even to depict different emotions and time periods.
I would recommend this book to adults who say they don't read or don't have time to read. The strong male & female main characters and military subject matter make it seem appealing to both men & women, but I doubt many guys will give it a try. I can now understand why my students enjoy books by Ellen Hopkins.