Cracked [Hardcover]

K.M. Walton (Author)

Book Description

Release date: January 3, 2012

In this gripping debut, a teen takes a bottle of pills and lands in the psych ward with the bully who drove him to attempt suicide.

Victor hates his life. He’s relentlessly bullied at school and his parents constantly ridicule him at home.

Bull is angry. He’s sick of his grandfather’s drunken beatings. And he likes to take out his rage on Victor.

Determined to end it all, Victor takes a bottle of his mother’s sleeping pills—only to be disappointed when he wakes up in the psych ward. And his roommate? None other than Bull, whose loaded-gun effort at self-defense has been labeled as a suicide attempt. Things go from bad to worse—until the boys discover they might just have something in common: a reason to live.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“In this powerful debut novel, K.M. Walton takes an unrelenting look at the corrosive effects of bullying, sometimes coming from where one would least expect it. CRACKED crackles with emotional intensity from beginning to end.”

--James Howe, bestselling author of THE MISFITS

"Readers who enjoy stories of dysfunction, personal growth, and redemption will love this book."

— VOYA, February 2012

"[Bull's and Victor's] stories offer a strong message of hope to the bullied and abused."

--The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, April 2012

About the Author

K. M. Walton is a former middle-school language arts teacher and Cracked is her fiction debut. She lives in Pennsylvania with her family.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Simon Pulse (January 3, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 144242916X
• ISBN-13: 978-1442429161
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,033,094 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

K. M. Walton is the author of Cracked (Simon Pulse ~ Simon & Schuster 2012), Empty (Simon Pulse ~ Simon & Schuster 2013) and the co-author of Teaching Numeracy: 9 Critical Habits to Ignite Mathematical Thinking (Corwin Press 2012 - lead author Margie Pearse) a book for mathematics teachers K - 8. As a former middle-school language-arts teacher she's passionate about education and ending peer bullying. She gives school presentations on the topic "The Power of Human Kindness." K. M. is a graduate of West Chester University and a PAWLP fellow. She lives in PA with her husband, two sons, cat, and turtle.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic First Must Read of the year! January 8, 2012

By What's On the Bookshelf

Format:Hardcover

This is a book about bullying, family, friends, and the importance of feeling like there's someone that loves you enough to care about you, protect you, and give you what you need. Both Bull and Victor are looking for that someone, but they have VERY different lives. Victor is the quiet, hide in a corner to be invisible guy. Bull is the bully, always causing trouble with fights and humiliating Victor.

The most amazing thing with this book to me was that I didn't connect with the character I thought I would. It's a book about bullying, so I thought I'd connect with Victor more than Bull. Boy was I wrong. From almost the first time we met Bull he's the one my heart went out to. K.M. Walton did such a fantastic job at showing the other side of bullying. She demonstrated the behind-the-scenes of a bully.

When it came to Bull I wanted to reach out and hug him and never let go. Because I want you to read this book I'm not going to tell you much about what happens with Bull at home or once he gets to the hospital. I will tell you that things are both expected and unexpected in good ways.

Another aspect of this book that I loved was the realism to the story. So many times in fiction with a story like this the acceptance and turn around is quick. Really quick. We all want a happy or hopeful ending, and you'll get that in this book. But you won't read about how in the first day of being in the psych hospital that these two boys reconcile and become best friends. In fact, as I read I wondered if they would ever reconcile. K.M. Walton definitely took the truthful, not so pretty, approach to playing out the story and I love that.

In the end these boys find the love they were looking for. They find that someone to love them, care for them, and make sure they have what they need. You won't find unicorns and rainbows here, but you will find two boys that you can connect with and care about their life. This is a MUST READ book, especially for those of you who like real books told from a boy pov. And yeah...there's a little romance in it too.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Relevant & Gripping January 8, 2012

By Meg-a-mom

Format:Hardcover

K.M. Walton nails it!! This book is so well written in BOTH main character's voices. From the first page...the FIRST sentence...this book draws you in and keeps you wanting more ...page after page. I didn't want to put the book down. I laughed, I cried and I didn't want it to end.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars CRACKED is a beautiful and heartbreaking story! February 13, 2012

By BookYAReview

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

When I first heard of this novel, I honestly didn't know what to expect. So when I ordered it on Amazon and started it, my breath was taken away at how beautiful and great the book was!

This book was incredible.

First, the writing style. I loved K. M. Walton's voice in these two boys. I felt for them (even Bull), and whenever something horrible would happen (something like abuse), it really pulled at my heart. I loved that this story was about bullying and basically trying to overcome a bully, and I appreciate K. M. for crafting the story like she did.

Next, the characters. Like I said before, Victor and Bull made me feel sad and happy. I felt bad for Victor right from the get-go, and I finally came to understand Bull's mean ways. And the way that K. M. put them in the situations they got into really made me breathless. She's a very talented writer!

Then, there's just the actual story. I hate bullying, and when Bull would do something to Victor, I wanted to jump into the pages of Cracked and force Bull to stop being a horrible and wicked person. This book kept me up all night, and I finished it in just a day. This book was such a great book.

One more thing before I wrap this all up: the pacing. K. M. Walton paced this novel perfectly, and I always wanted to keep reading the story just to find out what exactly would happen. The story and characters always intrigued me, and I loved this story! And... it had short chapters! I love short chapters in a book. I have no idea why, but I do!

Overall, I highly recommend you go get this novel!