Wrecked

by E.R. Frank

Book Overview

A tragic car wreck leads to PTSD and therapeutic salvation in this novel from the author of America , which Kirkus Reviews deemed "a work of sublime humanity." Anna is involved in a horrific accident one night that leaves her brother's beautiful and popular girlfriend dead. Suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, she begins an unusual method of therapy called EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). Through her therapy, dreams,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0689873840
• ISBN13: 9780689873843
• Release Date: April 2007
• Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.44 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.8" x 8.2"
• Age Range: 12 to 17 years
• Grade Range: Grades 7 to 12

Customer Reviews

A Moving Look at Trauma and Grief

Anna Lawson's father is pissed off at her, she doesn't talk much with her mother, her brother looks down on her, her best friend Ellen thinks she's too scared to do anything wrong. Hers is a normal, average 16-year-old life. And then it isn't. In an instant, nothing will ever be normal again. Anna and Ellen have been at a party. Ellen's had too much to drink, so Anna is driving her home. Suddenly, everything is chaos. In the hospital, Anna learns that she has been in a head-on collision. She's bruised and battered, one eye has been cut, but otherwise, she's okay. Ellen is much more seriously injured, with a collapsed lung and broken bones. Worst of all, the driver of the other car - her brother's girlfriend Cameron - is dead. Everyone tells Anna that the accident wasn't her fault, that she isn't to blame for Cameron's death. But Anna knows she killed Cameron, just the same. Her overbearing father doesn't want Anna to have therapy, so she tries hard to cope with the guilt and sorrow, the nightmares and the panic attacks. Soon, however, Anna learns that she needs help to deal with what's happened to her, and to come to terms with her family and herself.

"The day I killed my brother's girlfriend started with me hand picking leaves off our front lawn."

Sixteen-year-old Anna was driving her (drunk) best friend home from a party when she collided head-on with her brother's girlfriend's car. Now a beautiful high school senior is dead, Anna nearly lost an eye and suffers from PTSD with crippling nightmares, her best friend Ellen is in a wheelchair, and the family is at odds with one another. Wrecked opens with the car accident and its aftermath, but, as a whole, the book is an exploration of the fabric of an entire family. Anna's friends and family have widely disparate reactions to the wreck. What is the right way to respond, anyway? Anna can find websites about how to deal with a dying family member, how to be a friend to someone who is grieving, and how to cope if you have suicidal thoughts, but there is no website to address the peculiar situation of how to cope with unintentionally killing one of your peers. The narration of Wrecked is told in a genuine teenaged voice, full of questions, full of frustration with parents, and desperately seeking direction. In a strange way, the entire crisis brings Anna's family closer, to a more complete understanding of one another. This book is highly recommended for teens and family members of all ages. It is especially important for anyone dealing with a family crisis or the accidental death of a family friend. Fans of this book should seek out Mary Beth Miller's Aimee and John Green's Looking for Alaska.

Wrecked review

The Book Wrecked by E.R. Frank, and published by Atheneum/Richard Jackson Books September 27, 2005. There are 256 pages in this book. This book is fiction. This book is about a young girl who accidentally kills her brother's girlfriend in a car accident. She deals with the ups and downs of having the girl's death on her shoulders, which is very hard for her to cope with. This book is mainly about dealing with life and death. I think that the author is trying to allow young adults to take a look through a teens eyes and let them see how it would be if they drink and drive. The young girl's name is Anna she goes to a party with her best friend Ellen. When they arrive at the party peer pressure pushes Anna do what she normally does not do, that is drink. She stops after a while and sobers up a little bit but Ellen is definitely wasted. On the way home is what changed Anna's life forever. All she can remember is the accident, and waking up in the hospital. She keeps repeating things she heard like screaming, and Ellen's voice. Now Cameron her brother's girlfriend is dead and no one is blaming her but she feels that it is all her fault. From what I have read so far in the book I believe that it is a very good book. It makes me feel kind of like I am in the story. It is so descriptive that I feel like if I close my eyes I can see what is going on. After reading the part of the book I have completed the book has really left a lasting impression it has made me think about what I would do if I were put in that situation. It kind of makes me sad, I want everyone that is interested in reading this book to know that it is the type of story that once you have picked it up to start to read it you can not put it down.

An emotionally charged story of responsibility

Speaking of tension, E.R. Frank's Wrecked is one of the most moving stories you could find on the aftermath of an auto accident. An auto crash involving three teens kills one, leaves a passenger disabled, and is viewed from the driver's perspective in Wrecked. For Anna has killed her brother's girlfriend in the accident and has to handle not only the death but the rift with her brother and her passenger friend, who was drunk at the time. An emotionally charged story of responsibility.

A beautiful and haunting glimpse into the mind of a teen suffering from PTSD

One day, Anna goes to a party with her best friend Ellen; there, they drink alcohol and visit the other guests. On her way home, Anna gets into a car accident, seriously injuring Ellen and Cameron Polk, her brother's girlfriend and the most beautiful and popular girl in school. Sadly, Cameron dies from her injuries. Anna blames herself for what has happened and begins having nightmares. While celebrating Thanksgiving with her aunt and uncle, Anna's family hears about a peculiar form of therapy called EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). Shortly thereafter, Anna begins seeing a psychologist and learns that she's been suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Once the EMDR therapy gets underway, Anna begins seeing the real problems in her life --- her relationship with her brother, her low self-esteem, and the fact that her family is living in fear because of her very controlling and abusive father. WRECKED paints a beautiful and haunting picture by providing readers with a deep understanding of a teenager's mind. Today, thousands of people suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Hopefully they will be able to get help like Anna did and learn how to live a normal life again. --- Reviewed by Ashley Hartlaub