Cracked
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4.6 • 64 Ratings
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
A teen takes a bottle of pills and lands in the psych ward with the bully who drove him to attempt suicide in this gripping novel.
Victor hates his life. He has no friends, gets beaten up at school, and his parents are always criticizing him. Tired of feeling miserable, Victor takes a bottle of his mother’s sleeping pills—only to wake up in the hospital.
Bull is angry, and takes all of his rage out on Victor. That makes him feel better, at least a little. But it doesn’t stop Bull’s grandfather from getting drunk and hitting him. So Bull tries to defend himself with a loaded gun.
When Victor and Bull end up as roommates in the same psych ward, there’s no way to escape each other or their problems. Which means things are going to get worse—much worse—before they get better.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Bullying gets a thorough examination in Walton's YA debut, a stark, but often heavy-handed story that alternates between the perspectives of the victim and the aggressor. Sixteen-year-old Victor Konig may be a math genius, but his icy parents ignore him when they're not pressuring him to be perfect. No longer able to endure parental neglect, as well as bullying at the hands of William "Bull" Mastrick at school, Victor attempts suicide, landing in a psychiatric hospital. Coincidentally, his tormentor ends up there as well, after his own hellish home life drives him to a moment of violence. Committed to the psych ward for five days, the two enemies have to deal with one another, both as roommates and in group therapy. But it may be impossible for them to overcome their respective traumas, abusive backgrounds, and mutual hatred, unless they accept help from outside, unexpected sources. Though Walton successfully exposes the impetus of violence through well-developed central characters, both Victor and Bull's guardians feel one-dimensional. The author's bleak depiction of the cycle of cruelty loses some of its potency through an overly tidy conclusion.
Customer Reviews
Cracked is Excellent!
This book deals with bullying & the stories behind the bullies & their victims. Shows people are alike in many ways because you don't know what goes on behind closed doors.What an excellent book! It's a great story and so well written. Should be a "must read" for school counselors and high school students.
Amazing!
This book is so great. It will teach about what some teenagers have to go through everyday. It really opened my eyes to how I see the world.
amazing
this book never fails to make me cry. the way this book keeps you locked into the story and makes you feel like you’re actually there is incredible. i’ve never read a book like it before. definitely one of my favorites