Crosses is not a problem novel; it is a pain novel. The book is also about a totally new problem. Unlike many YA problem or realistic novels that seem to draw on contemporary headlines for their subject matter, this story is written from the underground.

No YA novel had ever dealt with cutting or punk characters like Katie and Nancy, and few dealt with teen life with this type of brutal honesty. Instantly, the characters are recognizable as real people. The language they use, the observations they make, the things they do are all too real. Almost every scene seems to take place in a cloud of cigarette or marijuana smoke, a haze of alcohol or drugs, and with loud music crashing around the characters.

Maybe most teens do not suffer from as much pain or as many problems as Nancy and Katie do...