Crank

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     When reading Crank, one of the most striking parts I found was how it gets you in the head of somebody who starts completely rational, then falls down the path of drug use and addiction.  I think it's helpful to have Kristina start as somebody who's perfectly normal, aside from familial and identity problems, because it shows how the smallest thing can lead to a downward spiral.  She shows how addicts rationalize their lifestyle by the very first poem, saying that "Life was good / before I / met / the monster. / After, / life / was great. / At / least/ for a little while (1)."  Although her drug use starts from trying to get closer to her father in any way she can, and eventually trying to get closer to Adam, I think an important part of her addiction is her "alter ego" of Bree.  Bree is part of Kristina even before the meth, her impulsive side that she lets take over when she feels mismatched to a situation.  This quality shows how drug addiction impacts those who are susceptible to other personality disorders-once she was using meth, I found that there were times when I wondered if Bree was the main character instead of Kristina. 
     It's also shocking how quickly the events of the book spiral.  Kristina isn't with her father very long, and by the end of the year she's almost fully dependent on meth to fuel her school and home life.  She's even willing to get into contact with "La Eme, / "Eme" meaning M, for Mexican / Mafia, hardcore importers and traffickers, / plus a few chemists, doing their thing / in desert hideaways (470)."  Using meth is already risking her life enough, but the fact that Kristina is willing to put herself, and her friends and family in danger shows the lengths to which she's rationalized her drug use.  She knows it's not good for her, and knows that "the biggest problem of all (414)" is how nothing in life gives her pleasure anymore when she's not high.  She feels so terrible when not on crank that her only goal becomes to get high again.  When she finds out she's pregnant, it's a lifesaver, because she has a life in her that depends on her to survive, and although "I did slip once or twice. / One tiny snort was all it took / to satisfy desire so / deep it snatched by breath away (526)."  This is perhaps one of the most realistic parts of recovery that the novel shows; because her body has become chemically dependent on meth, it's not possible for Kristina just to quit cold turkey.  Like addiction, recovery is a process, and something Kristina must work her way along.

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