A review by harasnicole
Tilt by Ellen Hopkins

5.0

So, I have not read the adult companion to this book, Triangles, but after reading Tilt , it's definitely been added to my TBR shelf, as well as all of Ellen Hopkins' books that I want to read at some point. She's the first author I've read who writes in "free prose" or "free verse," and it's quickly becoming my favorite format to read not because I fly through her often 600+ novels, but because of the emotions that are packed into each chosen word. Her novels are definitely not "easy" reads, in regards to subject matter; despite having read the synopses of several of her books, and my first book of hers was Tricks , I'm quickly learning that she's one of those authors who puts a great amount of thought into these subjects that she writes about, and I love her for it.

[b:Tilt|11133791|Tilt|Ellen Hopkins|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1346263814s/11133791.jpg|16057047] is told in three separate points-of-view, with different side perspectives chiming in with their thoughts and feelings every now and again. You have Shane, who's gay, and a bit rebellious; he hasn't had a relationship with his father since coming out, and his mom, while she hasn't outright disowned him, she never really acted as if she knew that she had a whole other kid that needs her just as much as her terminally ill daughter. Which I get, truly. I'm not a parent, don't want to be, but I can't imagine the pain that some of them have to go through when it comes to their children being sick and there's literally nothing they can do about it except maybe make them as comfortable as possible. Shane finds love online with a guy who's about a couple years older than him, and who is also HIV-positive, and the closer he and Alex became, the more I loved Alex and his wisdom whenever his point-of-view was thrown in after Shane's sections.

Shelby is the first character I've read about who suffers with Type-I SMA, or spinal muscular atrophy (in fact, I've never even heard of that condition until this book, but it sounds awful), and I was pleasantly surprised that we actually had a point-of-view chapter from her. She may not have been able to do much of anything because of her condition, but she sure had at least some idea of what was going on around, and I quite loved how she didn't understand sadness. She's four, so it wasn't that surprising, the amount of things she didn't know, but I found it interesting, anyway.

Then there's Harley, who's 13-going-on-14, but wants to be an adult because she feels like everyone around her treats her like a baby, so she and her mom go on a diet together, Harley starts to lose weight, and she uses her chance at a makeover to bond with her soon-to-be stepmom, Cassie. Soon, she's running with a fast crowd and her best friend Brianna, whom Harley has always been a little jealous of because of the attention she got, looks on from the sidelines, and essentially watches as her best friend spirals out of control.

And lastly, there's Mikayla, Brianna's older sister. Mikayla seemingly has it all: the perfect looks, the perfect boyfriend, the perfect friends. The boyfriend's a dick, and talks Mikayla into forgoing using a condom for sex a couple of times, promising that he'd pull out before anything happens, and when the inevitable happens, Dylan tucks tail and runs back to his ex-girlfriend because a baby wasn't in the books for him, and then she's left all alone to deal with her pregnancy and more decisions that may or may not reveal themselves.

All three teenagers are all hanging on by a thread, and while some scenarios may seem a bit over-dramatic, it's really kind of not, because these situations happen probably more often than anyone knows, and it paints a picture of hurt, anger, sadness, depression, and any other emotion that I may have forgotten. When I made it to the end of the book, I was kind of disappointed that it ended because I was definitely left wanting more. But I love that it's not just open-ended, but optimistic as well.

My overall rating for this is probably 4.57 out of 5-stars , but I rounded it up to a full 5.0 because, despite my hatred for Lucas, and my hope that Harley would tell someone without feeling so ashamed and feeling like she'd be judged for having her virginity stolen from her while she was blackout-drunk, I get it. I totally get it, and that's why it breaks my heart that more girls and women who are sexually assaulted don't speak up. As much as I want them to, there's still such a stigma against them (and the men too! They have it kind of worse).