Writing Assignment 3, Draft 2

Dear Ellen Hopkins,

Reading all four of your free verse poetry books has not only been a pleasure, but, ultimately, an uplifting experience. The way you use poetry to tell the stories of love and struggle makes me believe in every word you write. Not only am I touched by your style of writing, but I am moved by the stories you tell.

While reading Crank and Glass, I didn't know that the story was about your daughter, but when I read the end note for both books, which told that these books were based on the true story of your daughter's crytstal meth addiction, I was blown away. But the story was compeling, filled with twists and turns, and unfortanet real life situation. According to this book, your daughter also became pregnant and had a baby while addicted to a very dangerous drug. Reading this was heart breaking, but when you refered to the character that stood for your daughter as having left her child in her shadows, I was shocked that you could express your feeling about it to the public. I look up to you as an author who is able write about a very personal experience, and still make it sound graceful by putting it in poetry form.

Out of your four books, Impluse was the most relevant to me. Going through a similar experience myself, reading about three teens who attempted suicide and were admitted to a psychiatric hospital was comforting. I especially connected to your character, Vanessa, who hid the secrets of her sorrows, and revealed them only to a sharped razor. She knows something is wrong with her brain, something that is controling her beyond her own behavior. Her involentary need for male attention also reminds me of myself. Although it was fictional, knowing that other people go through the same thing that I did was uplifting. Writing the three stories in a poetic way gave them a deeper meaning.

Your style of writing and subject matter are inspirational to me, and both have changed the way I see the world
Thank you

Sincerely,
Emily Thomas