''Identical'' is

Ellen Hopkins Ellen Louise Hopkins (born March 26, 1955) is a novelist who has published several ''New York Times'' bestselling novels that are popular among the teenage and young adult audience. Personal life Hopkins was adopted by Albert and Valeria Wagner ...

's fifth novel. The book was released in August

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing ...

and hit ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' Bestsellers list. Hopkins has stated that "Some of the material for the book came from friends, friends who are now strong successful women and you would never guess that abuse is in their past".

Plot

From the bookjacket

"Kaeleigh and Raeanne are 16-year-old identical twins, the daughters of a district court judge father and politician mother running for Congress. Everything on the surface of their lives seems Norman Rockwell perfect, but underneath run deep and damaging secrets. Kaeleigh is the good girl-her father's perfect flower, something she has tried so hard to be since she was nine and he started sexually abusing her. She cuts herself and binge eats, desperate to feel something normal. Raeanne uses painkillers, drugs, alcohol, sex, and purging as an outlet to numb the pain of not being Daddy's favorite. Both girls must figure out how to become whole, but how can they when their world has been torn to shreds?"

Reception

Reception for ''Identical'' has been positive, with the

School Library Journal ''School Library Journal'' (''SLJ'') is an American monthly magazine containing reviews and other articles for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, with ...

writing that the book was "Gritty and compelling, this is not a comfortable read, but its keen insights make it hard to put down."

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

and Kirkus Reviews also positively reviewed the book, with Kirkus praising the book's voices as well as Hopkins's "masterful shards of verse". In 2009, ''Identical'' was named the fifth most popular book for teens via YALSA's 2009 Teens’ Top Ten award.

References

External links

{{Ellen Hopkins 2008 American novels Novels by Ellen Hopkins Verse novels American young adult novels Margaret K. McElderry books